The Square

The intersection of Trade and Tryon in the middle of downtown Charlotte is referred to by those that were born in Charlotte as The Square.

Today at work I had a four o'clock lunch because I am working from noon until 9 pm. After eating my lunch at Salsaritas I moseyed over to the square so I could sit in the park with the waterfall-like fountain and read a bit surrounded by chess players. I like to eat out when I work evenings since lines are generally shorter and therefore quicker then. Of course there are fewer choices at 4 but there seems to be more choices all the time. I got the ground beef burrito at Salsaritas. I don't recommend. Stick with the chicken or the steak. The ground beef is tasteless. Ground turkey from Harris Teeter has more taste than the ground beef at this joint.

I got the heck out of that restaurant after finished eating. They were playing bad music over their sound system and Fox "News" was on the television. Fox News! Ha!! I recall for a while on his old NBC show that David Letterman would say "Fox Network" and then burst into maniacal laughter. That is the same impulse I get when I say "Fox News." One of their douche bag anchors was interviewing a retired American general. (How many retired American generals are there?) The douche bag anchor was trying to insinuate that the Iraqi military was going to slaughter their own civilians without "jumping the gun" into insinuation. It truly was expert double speech delivered by a very handsome and very American young anchor. No matter how shitty their approach is you do have to admire the skill with which they manipulate their viewers. Who needs indoctrination camps when you gots Fox "News."

I did make it to the brick and water park and sat down kaddy corner from the Big Ole Tower. Although I hate banks almost as much as Mojo Nixon does I do love this building. I am a sucker for skyscrapers, man. Before I got down to reading my book of short stories by Ursula Le Guin I took a moment to lean my head back and admire the Big Ole Tower. I was treated to what must be a unique site when you consider skyscrapers. Since Charlotte's downtown area is small when compared to other metrogolopises the afternoon sun was shining down Tryon Street and fell fully on the building from about the third floor on up. Everything else around me was in shadow except for the Big Ole Tower which was illuminated like a slide projection. I felt like I was in a deep valley that was dominated by a high peak catching the last rays of the day, almost like Mt. Fuji in the morning sunrise. Ok, forget that. Nothing is like Mt. Fuji in the morning sunrise.

Again I thought to myself, why don't they have an observation deck? The black balling bastards.