Blog Love Omega Glee: Talk About, Prop Music! (9 March 2012)

In the kitchen at Yaws, Francine's getting a tray together for table 7, when a fight between two of the cooks, or, as they like to be known, chefs breaks out over what music they're listening to on the radio. Manuel, a man in his forties with lots of tattoos and piercings, says, "I want to listen to alternative oldies tonight. We listened to dance trance music last night."

"Man, you know I can't deal with that," says Ritchie, who's younger, "I need some booming beats to bliss out to or I can't work."

"Yo, put on some hip-hop," the dishwasher chimes in, clinking together a couple of dishes.

"No, it's my turn, dudes. I pick," Manuel says, tuning the receiver to a station playing "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana.

The other workers grumble but go back to whatever they were supposed to be doing. "Damn! Those young folks are whiny fothermuckers," Manuel says, going back to whipping together the night's special, Mom's Zombie Meatloaf with macaroni and goat cheese, "You like Nirvana, right Francine?"

"Yeah, I had just turned twelve when Kurt Cobain committed suicide, and it freaked me out."

"He didn't commit suicide; he was killed by the CIA. They were too afraid of him getting too popular and leading a youth revolution," Manuel says, putting a dinner on Francine's tray, "They did the same thing to John Lennon. They told him to retire, but when he came back to music, they whacked him."

"I can believe it."

"Same thing with Dylan. They tried to kill him with that motorcycle accident. After that he was all nonpolitical. Whereas with Phil Ochs, he wouldn't back down, so they drove him nuts. Today's pop music ain't nothing compared to the sixties or even the late eighties/early nineties. It's all propaganda now. They want us to keep whistling, and not thinking. That's why these kids today are hypnotized by that dance trance music. That shit doesn't even have lyrics. It just has subliminal messages like 'Obey authority' and 'Work harder to make rich folks richer,'" Manuel pauses from what he's doing, and points to his head with his right index finger, "Think about it. Did you ever have a song's hook get in your head and you just hear it over and over. If a melody can do that, then so can a subliminal message, and you aren't even aware of it. They're trying to control us and most people don't even know it."

Michael, the restaurant manager comes by, "Manuel, are you ranting about pop music as propaganda again?"

Manuel stands up straight, "No, sir, I wouldn't do that. I was talking about how the meatloaf is particularly excellent tonight."

"Right," Michael says, "If you guys keep fighting over the radio, I'll take it out and make you listen to that godawful dinner lounge music the customers listen to. Francine, table 7 is getting hungry!"

"I'm on it, Michael. See you later, Manuel," Francine says as she picks up the tray, and heads out the kitchen doors to feed table 7.

"Francine, don't listen to him, you should quit and go pose for those porno mags that sent you offers," Manuel says, "If they offered me money to pose nude, I'd sure as hell do it rather than work here. Hey, you guys have never seen all my piercings! You should see all the piercings I have down below!"

"Actually, I'd pay money not to," Michael says, before moving on.

"How much?" Manuel yells, but Michael only replies by saying "Just keep them out of the food" over his shoulder as he walks away.

Blog Love Omega Glee is a novel by Wred Fright about two bloggers who fall in love while the world falls apart, which is being serialized on his blog. To start reading from the beginning or read another installment, please visit Blog Love Omega Glee Central on WredFright.Com. If you like what you've read, or you've read all of Blog Love Omega Glee and want more Fright, then please read his first novel, which is available in print and as an ebook.