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The What?
2004-02-02, 11:46 p.m.

Hi there. Thanks for stopping by! And now, some housekeeping.

When I was in college, I took a women's studies course on Gender Roles in Popular Culture. My very hip T.A. for that class was an alumna of Southern University and she had this laugh that really grated on my nerves. She spoke with a thick Southern accent, wore scarves with bright prints under her blazers instead of button-downs, and she was a gifted teacher. The thing that I remember most about her class was that whenever a student would complain about an assignment, an upcoming exam, grading, or anything related to the terms of the course syllabus, she would let out this Southern sigh and say, "Well, ain't that just the gumboots?" I had no idea what she meant by that, but I always nodded in agreement. The gumboots, indeed.

One of my favorite singer-songwriters is the brilliant Paul Simon, and one of my favorite tunes is "Gumboots."

I was having this discussion

In a taxi heading downtown

Rearranging my position

On this friend of mine who had

A little bit of a breakdown

I said breakdowns come

And breakdowns go

So what are you going to do about it

That's what I'd like to know

You don't feel you could love me

But I feel you could

It was in the early morning hours

When I fell into a phone call

Believing I had supernatural powers

I slammed into a brick wall

I said hey, is this my problem?

Is this my fault?

If that's the way it's going to be

I'm going to call the whole thing to a halt

You don't feel you could love me

But I feel you could

You don't feel you could love me

But I feel you could

I was walking down the street

When I thought I heard this voice say

Say, ain't we walking down the same street together

On the very same day

I said hey Senorita that's astute

I said why don't we get together

And call ourselves an institute

You don't feel you could love me

But I feel you could

You don't feel you could love me

But I feel you could

This song can make me cry but most times it's really good for introspective thinking on long car drives. The gumboots, indeed.

Gumboots are rubber Wellington-style work boots and also a part of South African culture. During Apartheid, black gold miners were forbidden to speak to one another, and they used their boots to communicate. This began the tradition of Gumboot Dancing. This is fascinating to me, as a person who's never known deprivation or true longing. I can't imagine using my footwear to communicate with my family and friends. The gumboots, indeed.

I don't know what The Gumboots is going to be about, but I hope you'll stick around and be sure to tell me what you think.

All lyrics are the property and copyright of their respective owners. All lyrics are provided for educational purposes and personal use only.