THE DAILY DIVERSION

I'm sure you've heard the saying "She's a little bit Country. I'm a little bit Rock and Roll." Well, this is also the case for cities in which I have lived/do live. In this case, I'm changing the saying to "It's a whole lot Country, and the other is a whole lot of Blues and Soul."

I've been thinking about this entry since last Saturday night.

Background information first:

For my wife's family's birthdays, there are three in a six day time frame (15th, 17th, 19th) and a couple others spread across February, we try to get everyone together, almost like a family reunion. This time around we all met up in Nashville, which is a nice, central point for all of us. No one has to drive much further than anyone else, so it works.

I lived in Nashville for one year, after we left Biloxi, and before we moved to Bowling Green. Of course, once I lived in Bowling Green, I traveled to Nashville plenty. Now, obviously, I live in Memphis.

So, this brings us to the point of this post...

Nashville is a whole lot of Country, and Memphis is a whole lot of Blues and Soul.

If given the choice, I'm very, very happy where I am. Personally, I find it amazing the complete different cultures that reside only 200 miles apart, within the same state.

Memphis and Nashville are like night and day. Well, that was a bad pun, and not intended to be racially motivated. Yes, Memphis has a much larger African-American makeup than Nashville, but its not to say that Nashville is just a town of a bunch of Honkeys!

In Memphis, most everything is geared toward the target market, and the same can be said about Nashville. Memphis radio stations are packed with Hip Hop, R&B, Soul, Gospel, and Blues stations, whereas Nashville has more Country (broken in several genres) and not a whole lot else.

I could explain the TV programming too, but I think you get the idea (We get a lot of "The Steve Harvey Show", "Bernie Mac", and "The Parkers" in Memphis. I don't know the programming in Nashville necessarily.). Memphis has relatively few White TV/News personalities, whereas Nashville's are predominantly White.

I guess a part of it is that I've never embraced Country Music. As a matter of fact, I find 99% of it deplorable, especially the newer stuff (although I do find it amusing that the Dixie Chicks can piss off our President enough that they're basically blackballed for a couple of years, then come back with an album about it and clean up at the Grammys, but that's another story). I can handle some of the old stuff, like Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, and a few others (because there was a lot soul in it. I mean, c'mon, "All My Ex's Live in Texas". That's awesome!). However, I cannot stand whiny, twangy music. It's depressing. It makes me want to consume large quantities of alcohol, possibly beat the living shit out of my wife (which I would never, ever do), while wearing a tank top with beer and pizza stains on it, all after I got out of my Ford or Chevy pickup with a full gun rack in it, and at least fifteen #3 or #8 stickers on the bumper/tailgate.

On the other hand, I can sit around and listen to some Blues and Soul, have a couple of cocktails, and be perfectly happy. I can even handle most of the Hip Hop that is prevalent around Memphis. Neither Blues, Soul, nor Hip Hop have ever made me feel like life was over and there was no hope. I can live with that.

Now, I know I've rambled on about this, but the point is this... I like Memphis, even with all the crap that we have to deal with living here. I can't imagine living in Nashville right now. Maybe as I mature, or find different places to go to in Nashville, I'll change my mind. But, as of right now, there is no way in Hell I can willingly spend an inordinate amount of time in Nashville and be happy. That's just me though!

Oh yeah, and I hate Cowboy Boots and Ten Gallon Hats! Always have! Neither one of them are sexy, nor purposeful in an urban environment, unless your purpose is to piss off someone standing behind you trying to see something.