The Airtight Out.

Ooh. Yahoo music helped me stumbled across one of those ultra-catchy songs you here a few bars of in the preview, only to have the song not make the sountrack. The full-length Matrix Reloaded preview had a set of striving beats at the end of it. It turns out that's I'm Not Driving Anymore by Rob Dougan, who of course did Clubbed to Death on the original Matrix soundtrack.

Not surprisingly, there are a bazillion places to find this information. In the digitally convergent world, Tivo will you show you an add, and in addition to "buy this product on Amazon" there will be "buy the album with the CD on Amazon". It's going to happen. Minority Report is clearly the most realistic future shown in a movie recently.

[Scene: Int. A non-smoking BAR, somewhere in northern Belltown, late evening/early nighttime. Two twentysomething guys, Stuart HIGGLEBOTTOM and Justin MIGGS, wander somewhat aimlessly. Both are at a measley three drinks, but MIGGS, a twig, is a lightweight and it shows though he stays under control.]

HIGGLEBOTTOM: That's because you're not approaching anybody. It's not that hard.

MIGGS: You know I don't do know what I'm doing here. And the only people you're approaching are people you've already dated.

[ Enter two attractive yet seemingly down-to-earth twenty somethings, Heather CHEERBYL and Andrea JASPER.]

HIGGLEBOTTOM: It's not like I know what I'm doing, either. ... oh that's what you mean by things changing.

[They commence smalltalk. The gents purchase the ladies a customary drink. MIGGS asks for hers not too strong, showing is acute paranoia regarding a man's propensity to do all sorts of only half-protestable offenses such as drink her under the table, not that he could. At some point during the conversations, the two parties discuss their plans to move elsewhere as the night rolls on.]

JASPER: Well, we're meeting some people at this other bar. It's a long walk, or a short drive.

[Slightly awkard silence. Everyone glances each other in an elaborate game of CHICKEN.]

MIGGS: We were going to head out soon anyway and go somewhere else. Probably the Frontier Room. But whatever, anywhere's fine. 'You good to drive?

JASPER: okay, well we'll meet you outside. I've gotta head to the bathroom first.

[Ext. Outside the bar. Occasional half-drunks stumble past, usually talking very loudly. Higglebottom and Miggs twiddle their thumbs, regularly glancing back towards the ladies room. After a brief eternity, Jasper and Cheerbyl emerge]

CHEERBYL: Hey guys! We're sorry, her boyfriend just called. He got off work early and is going to be meeting

MIGGS: ... oh. I guess that means we're not splitting a cab. [he smiles weakly]

[Miggs and Higglebottom head to the next watering hole with their TAILS BETWEEN THEIR LEGS.]

There are two lessons to be learned in this tale. For the estrogen-inclined, this shows the perfect out. Whether or not it's true (and let's give the benefit of the doubt here and say it is true), it clearly articulates that you have no interest in spending any more time with your counterpart this evening, without being offensive. There's no way the guy can try and weasel his way into hanging around after this. On the spur of the moment, the best he could do would be some mostly-awful line like "let me get your number anyway, for when you break up". On the other hand, he could stick around, but he'd be a tool and he'd know it (sadly, this probably happens more often than I wish it would. Alas.). For the estrogen-challenged, this shows the perils of the group bathroom trip. But there's nothing you could really do to prevent the trip, anyway, so just know that when the conference takes place, the caucus is giving the thumbs up or down on someone in your party.

Surprisingly, this whole bar scene, in-the-game schtick was even a little bit fun, despite "losing". Now if I can just find some smoke-ridden establishment in Seattle. There's one somewhere, right?

The Airtight Out. Stuck in my head: Talib Kweli, "Get By"

The Airtight Out.
Stuck in my head: Talib Kweli, "Get By"