Who are the people in your neighborhood?
Generally speaking, the people I encountered in Nashville were friendly, polite and gracious. Similar to those I met in the Carolinas and Georgia. I had the opportunity to have more than a passing conversation with a variety of people in and around Nashville.
One gentleman, "Bo", I had dinner with at a burgers & beers restaurant in East Nashville. We had met the day before, when he had offered to show me the city. He's tall, good looking, super fit, and very personable. The dinner, the conversation, the restaurant, and East Nashiville... were all good. I had a drink. He did not. We went downtown to Broadway to one of the showcase clubs/bars that populate the area. Live country music, and mobs of people filled the sidewalks. The club was fun because he was very good company, and we met two funny, and gregarious women from LA, in town for a convention. (Shout out! Hope to see you when I get to California)
Otherwise the club was typical of a tourist area almost anywhere, poor service, or no service, by employees who seem to be preoccupied with other things. And, the breaks between sets, or acts on stage, were longer than the sets themselves. What was not typical was the interaction we had with some fellow patrons seated next to us at the bar.
Bo was telling his personal story, that he had already shared with me at the restaurant, to the LA Ladies. He was recently separated from his wife of twenty-plus years. After sleeping on the couch for a while he had taken an apartment nearby, but he and his wife were friendly, and with the kids schedules, he was often back at the house for one reason or another.Although he had never cheated on her, and she had been the one to ask him for the separation, he blamed himself for the love lost between them. He was gay, and he had come to grips with that. He went on to talk about the new life he was making for himself and his family, the new gay friends, etc. I knew the people around us could hear him, and I expected they would have opinions on the matter. But, I didn't expect any to insert themselves into the conversation, and then confront us.
The young couple in their twenties, seated next to us, got up to leave. They had been looking around the bar, keeping to themselves, very quiet, but obviously taking in all of Bo's story. As they stood to leave the young man grabbed Bo by the shoulder, and pulled him in closer. Their positioning prevented me from hearing or seeing what was happening, and I, like the LA ladies, thought these must be people Bo knew. Nope! He did not. After literally giving him an earful, the young man turned and left, taking his girlfriend's hand and walked out. Bo spun back towards us and was speachless. I asked what had happed. What was that all about?
He said the couple wanted him to know that they had overheard his story, and they wanted to shake his hand, and let him know that they supported him 100%!!! You could have knocked me over with a feather. Then I was the one who was speechless.
