Nuggets of Gold!

BAD WAY TO END THE NIGHT

So yeah. OK. Just got home from being mugged at gunpoint. That was, um. Yeah. Surreal, I guess? Also? Bad.

Geoffrey and I were walking home from a bar four blocks from our house when some mo-fo lingering on the sidewalk (YES, I know, but so were a lot of people at 2 a.m. when all the bars just closed) put a gun in our faces and oh-so-nicely asked for money. He came at us out of a church parking lot, so thanks for that, big J. Luckily (I guess?) he just wanted cash, not credit cards, or cell phones, or wedding rings. So I gave him, I dunno, about $35 and Geoffrey gave him whatever he had and then he and his gun (!) walked away, and so did we. Like an idiot (sort of), I called 911 right away -- like on the same block -- and we booked it to my office (which was closer) and waited for the cops there.

So we have a case number now, wooo. And I'm a crime victim. Again (first time being when my car was stolen in D.C.). And some guy just improved his ranking within his gang, most likely. So congratulations to him. I'll just be here, I guess, safe (?) at home, trying to figure out how a city the size of Tokyo can be perfectly safe, but Raleigh is apparently not so much.

God bless America.

LETDOWN CITY

I have been in Atlanta (HOT-lanta!) this week, helping my dad take care of my mom as she recovers from hip-replacement surgery. And I have to say, the theme of this trip has been disappointment.

Disappointment 1:
You still can't buy beer in the grocery stores on Sunday (except in actual Atlanta, which no one has actually ever seen). I went to Publix Sunday afternoon with a list that included dinner fixin's and sweet, sweet beer to get me through my stay -- if you know me, or more accurately my parents, you know that sweet, sweet beer is an absolute requirement for surviving more than 10 minutes with them. After soaking in all the Publix goodness (like the bread lady -- the Publix bread lady is always awesome no matter what location you visit), I turned down the beer aisle to find ... no lights. And a big sign saying "No beer/wine sales on Sunday ... SINNER." Because I guess the baby Jesus doesn't want us to drink on his big day. Or, more accurately, he wants us to plan ahead for drinking on his big day. But lottery ticket sales on Sunday? No problemo. Thanks, Georgia. Thanks A LOT.

Disappointment 2:
I had forgotten that radio station 99X bit the dust. Now it's called Q100 (which is completely ridiculous, as the frequency is 99.7), and its playlist is pure suck -- of the same vintage of suck as every other radio station in this town now. I e-mailed a fellow Atlantan co-worker to share my despair, and, bless him, he reminded me that Georgia State's Album 88 still exists, and is still awesome. Thank you, the baby Jesus, for that. But I'm still going to drink on your big day because you allowed 99X to die. Sorry.

I'm heading back to Raleigh today, blissfully. The City of Oaks may not have the Big Chicken, but it does sell beer every chance it gets, and for that I love it.