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Starfleet Program Manager

from You're Not Cleared For This by D.J. McGuire

supported by
Terry England
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lyrics

I was walking through the Starbase
To see my daughter off
Her first assignment out in space
On the USS Chekhov
When down a clean, lit hallway
Came an officer to the fore
She wore a jumper of blue, and on her collar
Were three pips? No! That’s four!

Now, I’m not the foremost navy man
You all know this is true
But even I know ship commanders
Don’t where the color blue.
She saw my look of confusion
Because her rank was higher
She said, “No, I don’t run a starship.
I command a dumpster fire.

“I’m a Starfleet Program Manager.
So I can’t do what I please.
All the ships explore the galaxy,
While I sail bureaucratese.
“I’m a Starfleet Program Manager.
So I don’t go to the stars,
But ask anyone here and they will swear
I fly high at the local bar.”

I mentioned my daughter’s vessel
She said, “They’re all the same to me.
I fly a computer console,
While they’re out hoping galaxies.”
I wondered about that metaphor
For a starship deep in space
She saw my confusion and simply muttered
“I’m not here for poetic grace.

“I’m a Starfleet Program Manager.
So I can’t do what I please.
All the ships explore the galaxy,
While I sail bureaucratese.
“I’m a Starfleet Program Manager.
So I don’t go to the stars,
But ask anyone here and they will swear
I fly high at the local bar.”

I said, “your job sure sounds frustrating,
Staying here while the ships are gone.
She said, “I may never end up on a bridge,
But at least one’s in this song.”

As I went to see my young one
I stopped and turned to say
“Thank you for the conversation.
I hope you get out there one day.”
She said, “Being a program manager
Has its share of travails
But starship captains succeed or die
And they’ll promote me if I fail.”

“I’m a Starfleet Program Manager.
So I can’t do what I please.
All the ships explore the galaxy,
While I sail bureaucratese.
“I’m a Starfleet Program Manager.
With all the nonsense that entails,
But starship captains succeed or die
And they’ll promote me when I fail.”

credits

from You're Not Cleared For This, released July 24, 2020
Bass and vocals by DJ McGuire
Guitar by Chuck Parker

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all rights reserved

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about

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D.J. McGuire Suffolk, Virginia

My love of sci-fi/fantasy and my experience as a federal contractor take my muse to interesting places.

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