100 Words on The Smiths’ “Half a Person” (commonly known as “16, Clumsy and Shy”)

Image of back-scrubber, perhaps being employed at a posh YWCA

I do happen to have five seconds to spare so I'll tell you this song encapsulates the twitch of adolescence so perfectly. I used to think the opening verse where he drones on about "being on your trail" over and over was a step backward lyrically, but now I see! Reduction! We are always consumed by The Chase, half-formed while our still-wet wings start to stretch into a span. I never remember the second verse, because whatever he's/we're saying there doesn't actually matter. Just hear that it's "the story of my life," OK? Being is becoming, especially in a sixteen-year-old.

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