Nashville Confidential

this is your life

We had a big old time tonight but there was something very strange on the lawn of the Frist: a veritable parade of people I've met since moving to Nashville. The Frist has a happy hour / open house the last Friday of each month, and it's a great event. Peoria's museum did this, too, but it seemed to have an implicit "blueblood only" tag. There are a lot of Beautiful People with Old Money at the Frist event, but there are also funky people and older people and fat people and people of color (well, not a ton, but some) and it just feels more egalitarian.

My group (usual work suspects) met twin brothers and a woman from Smyrna and had a fun talk with them. (AMS, I thought of you because one of the guys runs the Franklin Covey store here!) As I looked around I saw a lot of people from our company, some folks who volunteer with me at the Frist, and then Ted, the guy who sold me my car! About 10 minutes later I also saw the sole date I've been on since I've been here. That was just strange. It was fun to see Ted; he was his usual salesman self, giving me a big hug and plugging his band to all passersby. No comment on the sole date, except to say, no hugs were exchanged.

DMJ, her friend Kathryn and I went out for dinner afterward to the very trendy Virago. This was Kathryn's selection and I couldn't have been happier. I've wanted to go there for a long time. Bravo to DMJ for enduring it since it's pretty much a sushi place, although they do serve some "fusion cuisine." Virago is sleek and upscale and very fancy and now I can say I was there. The food was fine and the drinks were interesting (I had a saketini -- it had sliced ginger in it and was very pretty; also was probably about $1.75 per sip). Kathryn has a friend who works there so our server was quite nice (the one thing I usually fear about eating in a place like Virago is snooty service).

It's just fun to check out a place like that, but this was especially enjoyable because I was with people I truly enjoy. Turns out Kathryn is a big Jackson Browne fan so now my concert foursome is complete: she, DMJ, Gloria and I will ring in my 36th at AmSouth in a few weekends. I'm the only person going to see Steve Earle -- apparently he's not much of a draw for the others in my group.

big fat movie

Last night we went to see the free movie in Centennial Park and it was lovely: great film, great crowd, great summer night. I parked far from the amphitheatre and strolled across a twinkling lawn. The evening was the very definition of sultry but that didn't stop all ages from gathering for "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" and Warner Bros. shorts (the "Die Valkyrie" opera spoof -- you know, "kill da wabbit") about dusk.

To make it even better, we were watching that movie in the shadow of the Parthenon. I'm sure native Nashvillians think the Parthenon is stupid, but I really love it, just as I love all of Centennial Park. I had an awesome Saturday this past weekend and spent a great deal of it at the park -- I tried to spend as much time as possible outdoors because the weather was so great.

I started by going to the Farmer's Market, then to Hillsboro Village for an outdoor brunch, then down to the Green Hills Library -- a change from downtown but also a phenomenal facility. I found so many great books that I drove to the park, spread out a blanket under some trees and read for hours and hours. What a luxury! I also listened to NPR and we have two great, great stations here, an AM and an FM. I didn't realize that the AM station runs "Selected Shorts," a show I used to hear driving home from Chicago. The show features a celebrity reading a short story.

This particular Saturday the celebrity was Robert Sean Leonard (oh yeah) and the story was by Tim Gautreaux (also a fave, but for different reasons). I could have bawled, I was so happy! I walked for an hour and listened, then finally made myself go home (hearing to "This American Life" on the way).

The Catch-22 of life: you work in order to be able to do all the things that bring you joy. But sometimes, you can't do those things because you're too busy working. Saturday was one of those great days when I really got to do things that make me happy. I need to do them more often.

check this out

I go to the library about once a week and usually I go to the downtown location. This past weekend I ventured to the Green Hills branch and wow, was it nice. Nothing tops downtown, though. An article in today's newspaper confirms that our library system is simply marvelous. I'm so lucky.

worst. jukebox. ever.

The diehards sat in the rain for the three-hour mega-star-studded Fan Fair show at the Coliseum. It rained and rained and God bless CC for saying we did not have to go. I was spared! I absolutely would have attended, had she insisted, but she assured me that the thought of walking in the rain, standing in the rain, and sitting in the rain was not appealing. So instead we met a couple of my co-workers at an Elliston Place pool hall. CC showed a practical application of physics, or at least geometry, by winning most every game she played. We just hung out, which was relaxing and nice, and listened to music, which was a challenge. This place had a pretty lame jukebox. I made a few selections and all the other people in the bar glared. Sorry, I don't pay for Led Zeppelin.

totally cool

The weather here has been truly wonderful (although I'm sure the locals beg to differ.) Today was the first day this week the temps touched the upper 70s and there has been practically no humidity. This is excellent news for our Fan Fair visitors, who are lining up to get their favorite country music stars' autographs. There are thousands of tourists expected this year (some of those are coming to get their favorite soap opera stars' autographs, and no, I am not making that up.) This is probably the wildest, most congested weekend of the year. Could be worse: it could be 18,000 NASCAR fans.

I shouldn't be so rough on the Fan Fair folks -- after all, I've been known to travel long distances and spend an unconscionable amount of time and money to see my own favorite stars. The Fan Fair experience does make me wonder, if I knew I could meet Bruce Springsteen and have my picture taken with him, would I be willing to travel to New Jersey and stand in line for hours on end? Probably not -- although I just read that he was spotted in Nashville's most expensive restaurant and I was pretty excited. He was in my town -- a couple blocks away! I was oddly starstruck. So I have more compassion for the Fan Fair pilgrims. I just can't tell one big hat from another.

My co-worker KZ has been volunteering at Fan Fair; each day she works she gets a pair of tickets to the big nightly show at the Coliseum. She can't go on Friday night, so she gave the tickets to me. CC is a country music fan so I kept the tickets and asked her if she wanted to go. Fan Fair: into the breach we go.

yet again, i was not chosen miss universe

Maybe next year, if I move to a small island nation and can learn to answer ridiculous questions while wearing a swimsuit and high heels.

Well, it was a pretty nice day just the same. I was invited to a party at Jason's house for his daughter's 3rd birthday. It was wonderful to be out in the country and to be with an interesting group of people, like some of the musicians who played on Jason's albums and his wife Suzy's co-workers from a cool local restaurant. They were all very kind and friendly and creative. Suzy is an amazing hostess -- she can even make a child's party festive and delicious and makes it all look effortless. Today's theme was a luau (I'm the only person who did not dress appropriately) and they had umbrella drinks, seafood kabobs, macadamia nuts and more.

Most of the folks there were parents, and I can only marvel at how the women handle work, marriage, children and more. I completely respect the way these women cope with all of it, because I realize I wouldn't make it a half-day. It was also apparent to me how much they rely on one another and how much they enjoy helping the others. Driving home listening to loud music and thinking about all the activities and travel ahead this summer, I realized how truly happy I am to have freedom (or selfishness, depending on your point of view).

It was very nice of them to include me and yet again I saw that Jason and his family are simply great people. Buy his albums, see his shows, and eat in East Nashville.

sometimes a side man should just be a side man

I've seen back-to-back concerts for two weeks in a row now. This weekend I had company both nights -- perhaps I'm becoming others' musical puppetmaster and they're bending to my entertainment will. Last night CC, two of her friends and I went to see Sonny Landreth, who has played for Warren Zevon and John Hiatt and others. He's a master of the slide guitar and it was great to see him play (for about 35 minutes, then I was ready to call it a night -- I'm not as big a slide-guitar instrumental fan as I thought I might be).

CC's friends are very interesting and nice and smart -- both of these guys are Ph.D.s in physics. Apparently, one of them feels that such an academic distinction is poison to women, so his party line is, "I majored in art history." Isn't that hilarious? I don't know if he was being serious or not.

He also said something that I've never heard another person outside my family express out loud. He was telling us that he went to donate blood recently and found the office completely empty. People's coats and files were there, and a radio was playing, but there was no one to be found. His first thought was that Jesus had returned. I remember having that feeling a couple times when I came home from school and my mom was at the neighbor's, or driving home late at night from a shift at the paper and being the only car on the road. This was well before the "Left Behind" books and I knew a lot about his upbringing with just that statement. (And where were the blood bank people? In the basement, because of a tornado warning.)