Fiery Crash

i hear the "close your eyes and you wake" bit like i would if hearing someone on a road trip who fell asleep in the passenger seat say "i closed my eyes in detroit and woke up in wisconsin". just like how a very large passage of time or distance can be covered while you're completely unconscious of it. just a thought. or maybe just how easy it is to nod off and wake up in a compromising position somewhere public.

in all honesty, i think it's Bird's take on how our society works through looking at how we act in airports. if you look at the gist of it, it's life in an airport. but if you look at "every face has you reaching for your mace", sort of goes to illustrate the fact that everyone's gotten so hostile to those they don't know.

as for the fiery crash, it's kind of a call to wake up a little. it could be the last time you do anything if your plane goes down, and as often as it doesn't happen, it doesn't mean it still couldn't. some people live their entire lives afraid to fly because of the one in a million chance that their plane goes down. it never happens, so say the ones who end up in a crash.

it might just be a reverse psychology ploy to alleviate travel fear. you figure the people who worry the most are those most afraid to go down, but if you can be okay with envisioning your flight crashing and burning, you're either gonna be okay in flight, or you'll be a lot more ready to handle it if it does happen. ("just a nod to mortality").

our lives are pretty fragile, as strong as we'd like to think we are, and when we put our hands in the forces of something that can be a bit unpredictable, it's kind of important to respect the fact that you don't have control of any of that.

i think you ought not immediately try to read into it, but look at what he's given you. look at how antisocial we are in airports. and think about what it does to think about your plane going down, how that changes your idea of things. most people get comfortable with flying because they just won't think about that.

here's another thought: "to save our lives you've got to envision a fiery crash"...perhaps he means save a bit more figuratively. get people to wake up from their stupor. remember 9/11? remember how the whole of New York City actually banded together and became a community where people talked to eachother and helped eachother with sincerity? what happens when any group is faced with tragedy? they almost automatically break out of their little worlds and interact with those around them. they become people in community, with real lives, acknowledging the real life that surrounds. perhaps it's Bird asking us to give those lifeless stiffs in the airport a bit of a wake-up jolt, just to get their blood running and their minds racing.

just an idea, but that's my take on it.