Derek Sivers on projecting meaning

Talking Heads was a great band from 1975 to 1988. Their lyrics were evocative and mysterious specific but vague and made you wonder what they were really about. David Byrne, the main songwriter of Talking Heads, later said that most of their lyrics were just random. He would write little phrases on pieces of paper, throw them into a bowl, and shuffle them. Then he’d randomly pull some out of the bowl and put them into the song. He did this because he liked how the listener creates meaning that wasn’t intended. Hearing one phrase next to another makes you assume they’re connected in a meaningful way. But nope. It was just random. You made that meaning yourself.

-- Derek Sivers. Hell Yeah or No, Projecting Meaning