Don’t Give Me A Pet

“My family and I attended the 10am Mass at St. Raphael's every Sunday when I was a child. "Our" seats were on the left, and towards the front, if you were looking at the altar. I always held the aisle. After taking communion, a Catholic is supposed to kneel in prayerful contemplation until everyone has had their turn. Prostrating, I clasped my hands and bowed my head low so no one would notice my open eyes. Each week, dozens of congregants filed past me to and from the Eucharist. I stared at their shoes and pretended to pray. This was the game: register every small detail of the shoes, all at once, in the second it took the pair to cross my peripheral window. I'd log style, brand, color, material, and condition and render a judgment of "cool" or "not cool" before the shoes were out of sight, all while keeping my posture devout. 

Tiny details can sweep me off my feet and take me to other planets, if I let them. As I got older, my tendency to be mentally elsewhere strained my relationships. I didn't like disappointing people that cared about me, but the thought of not being swept away felt claustrophobic and dismal. I wrote "Don't Give Me A Pet" in 2013 when I felt unbalanced, chaotic, and liable to end up on another planet in the blink of an eye.” - Owen

Lyrics

Performance Credits

• Vocals - Owen FitzGerald

• Guitars - Owen FitzGerald 

• Bass - Owen FitzGerald

• Drums - John Howie Jr.

Production Credits

• Produced by Owen FitzGerald & Saman Khoujinian

• Recorded, Mixed, and Mastered by Saman Khoujinian

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