Drink it Black*
Well, you wonder why I always drink it black,
Why cream or sugar make me want to yack,
And why does this drink seem to have a somber tone,
reminding me of all those left alone.
I drink it black for the poor and the beaten down,
Living in the hopelessly under funded side of town.
I drink it for the post-doc who has long paid for his crime,
But is still working because he's a victim of the times.
I drink it black for those who never read,
Or listened to the words that this useless paper said,
About some research topic long gone,
with nothing but an irrelevant conclusion drawn.
Well, we're doin' might fine, I do suppose,
With our free soda and fancy clothes,
But just so we're reminded of the ones who are held back,
Late at night I'll continue to drinking it black
I drink it for the sick and lonely old,
For the reckless ones whose rejected papers left them cold,
I drink it black in mournin' for the papers that could have been,
If not for the blood let loose from that mighty red pen.
Well, there are papers that will never be right you know,
And things that need to be changed everywhere you go,
But until we start to make a move to get them right,
You'll never see me drink my coffee light.
Ah, I'd love to drink fruit juice every day
And tell the world that my paper will be okay
But I'll always carry off a little darkness on my back
Till things are brighter, I'm drinking it black.
*People say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. This is a grad student lifestyle adaptation of Johnny Cash's Man in Black.