Some beach, somewhere.
Have you ever driven three hours (one way) to get to a meeting in the boonies that lasted for three hours, although your involvement was all of TEN minutes? That too the first ten minutes? (Variants not readily accepted). Well, I know I’m asking for too much. You don’t have my job…and neither will I for long, 'cos I was ten minutes late this morning! Well, no big deal. It’s just a matter of flipping back a few pages for a solid, earth-shattering, life-altering “no comments” from me. Yup, that’s my job!
Anyway, the drive back from such meetings is always interesting. The usual course of events, a play by play, is as follows– Fiddle with the iPod and FM transmitter. Static. Fiddle some more. Static. Give up. Music plays. Ah! Nice. But not for long. Damn! Charge the iPod? Shoot! Look for charger. Blind dip the whole of back seat. Fudge, where is it? Ah, in the trunk! Why? Stupid. OK! Switch to radio…and then the fun starts.
Down in the boonies you don’t get dem too many ‘outside’ radio stations. All dem good ole boys listen to some good ole country music. Der any oder kinda music? Heck no! So I pretend I’m a…you know, a good ole boy drivin’ his beat-up truh-uck. It’s interesting. A different way of life. They sing about mundane things but usually add a twist to the song they’re singing that changes my whole perception of country music...and I look past the uncanny similarity in their voices and the music. Say this Blake Shelton song I was listening to - clever, very.
Driving down the interstate
Running thirty minutes late
Singing Margaritaville and minding my own
Some foreign car driver dude with the road rage attitude
Pulled up beside me talking on his cell phone
He started yelling at me like I did something wrong
He flipped me the bird an' then he was gone.
Some beach, Somewhere
There's a big umbrella casting shade over a empty chair
Palm trees are growing and a warm breezes a blowing
I picture myself right there
On Some beach, somewhere.
LOL! I didn’t get it right away either. But it helped that I listened to the actual song.
Anyway, there’s more to this than the song or station. I sometimes do make fun of stereotypes, and I laugh when "my type" is made fun of too. But, I can tell good-natured humor from humor laced with hatred. Why this jarring transition from radio stations to stereotypes, hatred etc.? Just the other day I was listening to my favorite radio station. They had a comedian who came on the show and picked on the call center folks in India (Yes, I know! Can we ever move on?). The usual lame attempt at an Indian...almost Middle Eastern accent, generous references to goats, camels and other livestock were his props so to speak. He went on to say that all of "them call center fellows" in India need to be fired and the jobs given back to hardworking Americans. Well, clearly he was one of those high school dropouts who couldn't spot Iraq on a map, hated the president but supported the troops, hated foreigners but bought a Japanese car...you get the idea. Try selling capitalism, globalization to Mr. Comedian. I bet you he'd buy it if it came in a 4x4 version with monster tyres (yeah, I'm tired of spelling it tires). As long as we recognize the existence of other cultures, the possibility of a whole other way of life, and a history that has paved its course, we can make tolerance look like a bad word. As for the comedian - some beach, somewhere!
Anyway, the drive back from such meetings is always interesting. The usual course of events, a play by play, is as follows– Fiddle with the iPod and FM transmitter. Static. Fiddle some more. Static. Give up. Music plays. Ah! Nice. But not for long. Damn! Charge the iPod? Shoot! Look for charger. Blind dip the whole of back seat. Fudge, where is it? Ah, in the trunk! Why? Stupid. OK! Switch to radio…and then the fun starts.
Down in the boonies you don’t get dem too many ‘outside’ radio stations. All dem good ole boys listen to some good ole country music. Der any oder kinda music? Heck no! So I pretend I’m a…you know, a good ole boy drivin’ his beat-up truh-uck. It’s interesting. A different way of life. They sing about mundane things but usually add a twist to the song they’re singing that changes my whole perception of country music...and I look past the uncanny similarity in their voices and the music. Say this Blake Shelton song I was listening to - clever, very.
Driving down the interstate
Running thirty minutes late
Singing Margaritaville and minding my own
Some foreign car driver dude with the road rage attitude
Pulled up beside me talking on his cell phone
He started yelling at me like I did something wrong
He flipped me the bird an' then he was gone.
Some beach, Somewhere
There's a big umbrella casting shade over a empty chair
Palm trees are growing and a warm breezes a blowing
I picture myself right there
On Some beach, somewhere.
LOL! I didn’t get it right away either. But it helped that I listened to the actual song.
Anyway, there’s more to this than the song or station. I sometimes do make fun of stereotypes, and I laugh when "my type" is made fun of too. But, I can tell good-natured humor from humor laced with hatred. Why this jarring transition from radio stations to stereotypes, hatred etc.? Just the other day I was listening to my favorite radio station. They had a comedian who came on the show and picked on the call center folks in India (Yes, I know! Can we ever move on?). The usual lame attempt at an Indian...almost Middle Eastern accent, generous references to goats, camels and other livestock were his props so to speak. He went on to say that all of "them call center fellows" in India need to be fired and the jobs given back to hardworking Americans. Well, clearly he was one of those high school dropouts who couldn't spot Iraq on a map, hated the president but supported the troops, hated foreigners but bought a Japanese car...you get the idea. Try selling capitalism, globalization to Mr. Comedian. I bet you he'd buy it if it came in a 4x4 version with monster tyres (yeah, I'm tired of spelling it tires). As long as we recognize the existence of other cultures, the possibility of a whole other way of life, and a history that has paved its course, we can make tolerance look like a bad word. As for the comedian - some beach, somewhere!
5 Comments:
Some beach, somewhere! Sigh!
Hey, remember the time when you had come to the resue of my pati from the bad dog in the field...and someone complaing about you guys to the police in eastern shore...
@ Cherie - Sigh yaake? Seeni!
@ Meenakshi - Oh yeah! I remember that... like it happened yesterday :-) There was an entire pack of wild dogs and Dr. B was trying to ward them off with a measuring wheel...and of course the manhunt across the Bay bridge LOL!! Dumb cop! He pulled us over, let us go, then did a background check, and the fun started when they were looking for us all over the place!
once upon a time I used to listento a lot of country songs having lived in Arkansas...it shore is nostalgic though
Where have you guys disappeared into???
Knock,Knock,Knock????
Mr S r u there?
Mrs S r u there???
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