Karma Chameleon

Listen while you read:  We could use a little culture!

Desert loving in your eyes all the way
If I listened to your lies, would you say
I'm a man without conviction
I'm a man who doesn't know
How to sell a contradiction
You come and go, you come and go

Karma karma karma karma karma chameleon
You come and go, you come and go
Loving would be easy if your colors were like my dreams
Red, gold, and green, red, gold, and green

Didn't hear your wicked words every day
And you used to be so sweet, I heard you say
That my love was an addiction
When we cling, our love is strong
When you go, you're gone forever
You string along, you string along

Every day is like survival
You're my lover, not my rival
Every day is like survival
You're my lover, not my rival

I'm a man without conviction
I'm a man who doesn't know
How to sell a contradiction
You come and go, you come and go

~  George O'Dowd et al (for Culture Club)

When was this last time you heard this one? Makes you want to dance, doesn't it? That's the charmingly flamboyant Boy George singing with Culture Club in this catchy tune from 1983's Colour by Numbers. Quite a colorful video, too.

I woke up this morning with the remnants of a dream that seemed to last all night long. I'll spare you most of the details, but it involved a music festival called "Bloodline," a man with four pearl earrings,  some ugly dogs and cute puppies, a bicycle with deadly sharp studded tires, and lots of friendly people on barstools. Oh, and a body of water. (No, the dream was not provoked by any ingestion of mind-altering substances.)

The main character (aside from me) was a man with a shirt and cowboy hat that changed colors, from a silvery grey to a dark brown. It was this anomaly that led to a case of mistaken identity, leaving me lost and confused, wandering through the dream and searching for reassurance. In describing the dream to that real man this morning, "Karma Chameleon" came into my head. And that's why you're listening to it now.

In light of the emotions created by the dream, I find Boy George's explanation of the song to be compelling: "The song is about the terrible fear of alienation that people have, the fear of standing up for one thing. It's about trying to suck up to everybody. Basically, if you aren't true, if you don't act like you feel, then you get Karma-justice; that's nature's way of paying you back."

But beyond my dream and its responsibility for the song's arrival in my waking life, I can't help but think of the Karma-justice I hope comes soon. By now, I suspect you know what I'm talking about. Every day is like survival.