Bollywood and becoming what I hate

I'll start off with the second portion of the title. Last night I went out, and actually had a decent time. I met up w/ some fellow co-workers, and we checked out the club Excess. If you've been following, you will remember that this is the same bar with the crazy rules posted outside. To my surprise, I was not charged cover for entering the club. Apparently being a guest of the hotel gave me enough clout to just walk in past the line of people who were waiting to get through, past the fancy velvet rope.

Once I got inside, I was greeted with fog machines, laser lights, and 1 lone man dancing by himself on the dance floor. There were a decent amount of people at the club, but nobody dancing, which to be honest is fine by me. I made a B-Line for the bar, and asked for a Tiger, the one beer here in India I somewhat enjoy. Not to my surprise, they were out. Apparently, the hotel only stocks enough of this beer for 1-3 days, and you need to time it just right to get it. So I'm left with the following choices: Kingfisher (which tastes like Natural Light, and PBR got together after drinking too much Keystone, and the bastard child that resulted from their amorous activites was Kingfisher), Corona (for $10 a bottle, IMPORT), Bud Heavy, and Carlsberg. . I opted for the Bud Heavy. "Bud Heavy!" I yell to the bartender over the techno music. A confused look enters his face. "What is this Bud Heavy drink?" I'm sure he's thinking. I then remember that this isn't Chicago, and yell, "Budweiser!" instead. This registers, and I'm served. The club itself was actually quite nice. Large circular tables, nice for lounging. 2 Floors, I soaked it all in while enjoying my first brew.

After ordering a second, I decided to make the rounds. I figured, worst case scenario, I walk around, enjoy my beer, then either a.) go to my room to pass out b.) enjoy a few more beers at the hotel bar. So I walk around when all of a sudden, I do a double take. This can't be real, two, not one, but two American's in the bar. Well tickle me pink, what a nice surprise. I introduce myself, and surprise surprise, they work for my company as well. We shot the shit for a while, as with all conversations with co-workers meeting for the first time, we talked about, you guessed it, work. After about 5-10 minutes of this, I had to say no more. It was Saturday night, and as most of you know, I usually drink Friday/Saturday night to forget about whatever I was dealing with Monday - 5pm Friday.

So I know this is the long winded version of why I became what I hate, but bear with me. So we are all leaving the bar, and hang out by the pool. We start trying to convince this one girl in the group to do some kind of dance. I volunteer to do it w/ her just so we can see what this is all about. Mind you, this was 30 minutes of a group persuading this girl to show us this dance. So we are about to start, and she looks at me dead in the eyes, and asks, "Ok, do you know what a cowboy is?"

Well I'm just shocked this girl would ask if I knew what a cowboy was. So my response, "Ya'll need to realize, I'm from Tennessee, and more importantly, America. Of course I know what a cowboy is." So who can spot the problem with the previous sentence? There are actually two. Need help? Ok, first of all, I said, "Y'all". I was, and still am the same person that would chastise classmates of mine from High School for graduating without an accent, and then returning home after a semester from Alabama or whatever southern school they went to with deep drawls, and a penchant for biscuits and gravy (which is delicious don't get me wrong). So I said, "Y'all" and didn't even realize it until one of the American's in the group (who went to Vanderbuilt) goes, "Oh, you say "Y'all" too." I can't even claim to have dropped the y'all out of habit from hearing others say it because let's face it, I live in Chicago. Nobody says it there.

Ok, now did you spot the second problem? I would bet good money Mr. Wagner caught it right off the spot. Everyone, I am not from Tennessee. I am a transplant. I moved to Tennessee. To say I grew up in Tennessee is even a stretch since I went to High School there, and spent summers home while I was at school in Ohio. To actually claim an allegiance to the state is a bold play though. I would like to move back one day, but I cannot rightfully say I am a Southern boy. So that was problem number two.

Anyway, back to center. This "Dance" I was being taught wound up being one of those dances you only do to one song (like the Cha-Cha song). The big move, the thing that was hyped up so much was this, and I'll describe it in detail. Hopping on one foot, while waving your right arm above your head like a lasso, and using your left hand to pretend you are holding the reigns of a horse. That's it. That's the dance. Well most of you who know how I get after a beer or two know that I when I am disappointed in something I will let you know. I had to explain to this girl that the build up did not live up to any of the hype I expected, and that had she simply bought me a beer 30-45 minutes prior to that, I would have gladly done that dance by myself, and maybe more. I also suggested her performance score card be lowered due to her poor performance of the dance. Mind you, I have no control over that, it's all hot air. Odds are I'll give the girl a high five tomorrow and go about my day.

Now, Bollywood. I bought a Bollywood movie a week ago, just to say I have it. I've watched about 30 minutes of it. So far, interesting idea, sub-par acting. It's very over the top, almost like how the videos I used to make for school projects looked acting wise. Except this movie had a budget. It's keeping my attention, but the thing I find interesting is that certain words can't be translated correctly I'm assuming, so the actors routinely switch from Hindi, to English and back to Hindi. It's kept my attention that's for sure.

All right, time for some dinner. I normally eat in my room, but tonight I'll venture down to one of the restaurants. It looks like there's some kind of Valentine's day theme going on here. That will make my table for 1 request that much more special. I just wish I had Jonah Hill offering me a magazine or something.