"Nigger"

So I'm having lunch with a friend at Spaghetti Warehouse the other day. I go into the restroom. Like most bathrooms, where was grafitti on the stalls. But one word caught my eye:

Nigger.

Someone etched - with a knife or the edge of a key, I'm guessing - the word nigger in the metal wall containing the stall. I went back and mentioned it to the waiter, who apologized and said he'd take care of it. Then, a few minutes later, the manager comes over and apologizes and said they'd take care of the word, "We'll probably paint over it or something. We'll get rid of it."

Besides the obvious metaphor about "painting over" racial issues as if they're no big deal, I'm wondering why the manger didn't pick up our meal. I wasn't EXPECTING it, but it would have been nice, and would have been a nice gesture. It's not about asking for something for free, it's about hooking up a customer after a jarring experience.

Also, it reminded me that, yet again, even though this is the year 2007 and this is the 4th largest city in the United States, there are racist fools everywhere.

Damn a Grammy

I honestly don't care about the Grammy Awards. I used to. Way back when. But, I don't anymore. I think it's a function of me getting older and thus being more discriminatory in my tastes. Most music these days suck.

I know, I know. I sound like an old man. I sound like my parents. But, hell, it's true.

Rap is a joke.
Hip hop is dull.
And what has happened to R&B?

The mainstream media doesn't help. It's YEARS behind trend, and often miss the boat. Remember a couple of years ago, when several rap albums and songs won Grammy Awards? All the headlines and news stories were like, "Rap Comes of Age" and "Rap goes mainstream."

Please. Rap was mainstream years ago, long before being coronated by the elite media.

But I digress. I won't be watching the Grammys. Period.