"You're the only one/ Who drags me kicking and screaming through fast dreams/ You're the only one/ Who knows exactly what I mean."

Ah, the sweetly self-conscious teenage musings of yet another girl with a guitar and her journals, who thinks that a simple guitar sequence will pull her out of the ranks of the earnest anonymous. Adorable knitwear and all, Maria bears her teenaged soul to our jaded ears with the kind of cringing awkwardness that usually inspires naught but loathing in me. After all, giving credit to these girls is like the feeble certificates handed out for 'effort' to protect self-esteem, rather than the glittering trophies of achievement given to the truly deserving.

But somehow it's the utter lack of pretension coupled with all the painful insecurity of that first relationship that wins me over. She stumbles and mumbles and is so damn cute you can almost see the blushing eye contact across the room to this mystery man of infinite empathy. Besides, it's so perky! And wholesome! And jangly! With a chorus that doesn't really go anywhere!

It meanders along so nicely that being rude about it is out of the question, all swooping and layers and sweetness. And then this line kicks in, and I freeze because this adorable child, this pedestal-placed epitome of middle-of-the-road kooky coffee rock didn't just say this, right? I mean, out loud? In public?

I hope you can forgive me for the time/ I put my hands between your legs and said it was small/ Because it's really not at all.

That's it, that one line which elevates this song to the small platform of endearment it occupies in my overflowing heart.
There really are no words.



(TRQCMoSPS rating: The boy toy in this video is Jesse Head, who appeared with MK and Ashley in 'So Little Time'. Their movie 'New York Minute' featured Eugene Levy, who was in 'American Pie' with our dear Ms Reid.)