Bartender Vision pt 8 "The freaks come out at night" weekend review

It's been kinda slow at the bar....REAL slow. Slower than last year...Slower than winter. But I still make more bartending than I do at my day job.

Well this Friday and Saturday were especially slow. Around midnight me and the twin were looking at each other and the empty bar hoping they would just give up the ghost and close early so we could go party somewhere. You can blame it on the rain. People eventually stroll in and the party finally gets underway, but it still not super busy.

I don't know what it was about this particular Saturday, but there was a spike in the general freakiness of the patrons... I mean dag! I thought I was the only one not getting any?! Isn't that what people do during recessions and blackouts? LOL

But I digress. My twin was reporting that there were more McNasty comments and hand rubs that lingered far too long.

Touching patrons = bigger tips

Another patron crumples up dollar bills and throws them at me while I'm ringing up orders at the register. At first I though he was tryina get my attention, you know, for more drinks, but he just told me in the syruppy drunk voice how segzay I was. Geesh! I wasnt even dancing on the bar! I thanked him and moved on, winking at people all willy nilly as I went. Usually such comments don't bother me, and are kinda funny, but that day, I was grossed out. Maybe I wasn't drunk enough.

I also worked Sunday this weekend. Sunday was also a little slow, but Wednesdays and Sundays are like that...party doesn't get underway til about 12:30-1am.

I've probably already mentioned this before but

Few patrons = Free shots

The few people who were there early get to taste new recipes I come up with...in essence, they are my guinea pigs, but who doesn't want free liquor in this economy?

There's a group of three young guys who come in from time to time...I always take good care of them and they take good care of me...it works! They have a few shots (count: 4 rounds of 4) and a budweiser, then leave and return later...Later a gentleman comes in and orders a corona...this is not his first drink of the night and he hands me his card... he wants his card back but I explain to him we have a $15 dollar minimum...nothing he says makes sense but I take it he concedes because he stops trying to explain.

We've been getting cussed out lately about not being strict about the card minimum...I just roll my eyes and move on... the way I see it, I can sit there and argue, or get someone to charge money thay dont have, and risk ending up with a declined card, or just swipe the daggone thing. I mean I try but I think it's time not spent raking in more money to sit there are try to convince people to get more stuff if they didnt happen to carry cash. but I'm digressing again.

Ole boy has CLEARLY had too much to drink... and I know I should cut him off...but I'm not in the mood to get cussed out. But after the second corona I just give up and swipe. I decide that I would much rather him pay and leave than to have him collapse or barf at the bar...(both have happened by the way, perpetrated by members of both genders)...and believe me, THAT looks worse.

Bartender Vision pt 4 "Flex, Time to have Sex "

Last night I had a BALL at work. Even though its a reggae club that plays reggae 95% of the night, the Wednesday DJ, though he is from Trinidad specializes in R & B, and he knows I'm from Cali so when its slow he tends to play more hip hop and R&B til the crowd arrives. Last night he is playin all my jams, Candy Rain, Back that Azz Up, Danger, I Got Five on it, the list goes on, so I'm partying hard...early.

We've also added a new bartender to the staff to help us manage the summer crowds. The veteran on staff is quitting also so it is uncertain whether or not the owners will hire yet another bartender, but we will see... she she's been training with each of us. Last night was her night with me. She seems cool..a little quiet for now, but that will change I think. She's thick like me and likes to dance so we partied especially hard, because the night was kinda slow so we didn't have to make that many drinks.

Gyrating shapely women + scant clothing= many tips, even when the bar doesn't make that much. Because she is training, she can't collect her own tips. As the head bartender for the night, it is up to my discretion to decide what she gets to take home above her hourly, if any.

I'll say I'm probably the nicest. The veteran, she doesn't' give one red coppy cent; my twin, who revels with me half nekked on Saturday nights, may give a "couple dollars" as she put it, whereas I have traditionally allowed them to keep what they make...I feel kinda bad though because I had to re-evaluate that practice because they train on slow nights where I usually don't make as much anyway.....so now I just tip 20% of my tips, as if they were bar backs....of course that is determined by how hard you worked that night... because some I have trained have just stood there.... needless to say, they weren't hired.

I like the new girl, she's friendly enough, understands customer service, is observant, learns quickly, and has the potential to bring in big tips, which is especially important now that we will begin pooling tips on nights where the 3 of us will be working.

Well she and I are partying hard, the bar isn't that busy, and even though we are not packed, the crowd is Definitely getting it in. My regulars are loving it..I usually wear more clothes on Wednesday night but it's hot! And generally speaking my personal philosophy is the hotter it gets, the less I wear. Naturally, sometimes customers will try to holla at us. It comes with the territory, but this one customer, the horny toad, hand me his phone with his credit card receipt, indicating that I should give him my number. I hand him his phone back, sans my number-- It is against my bartender code of ethics.

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There is nothing wrong with giving out your number, I just prefer not to do it because:

1. I try not to mix business with pleasure- (could you imagine some random I'm dating who I met @ the club always being there to "check up on me"?)

1a. The club is a very close knit environment. If you allow it, they will know ALL your personal business, I don't want the goings on of my private life to be fodder for the workplace.

1b. this includes not dating people associated with the club in any capacity, whether it be one of the owners, friend or family of the owners, etc.

Could you imagine the kind of drama that would ensue if I had a thing with someone that went south? One of the regulars was dating the DJ way back when and that STILL causes trouble so I could only imagine.... I like to stay drama free.

2. It's not so easy to tell if you are a stalker or otherwise crazy just by standing behind the bar.

3. I'm half nekked for crying out loud!..that is NOT the first impression I want to make on a potential boo.. I tend to dress much more conservatively in real life..no need to have the poor man deceived.

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Well anyway, the horny toad seems undaunted. he says, in that forward, drunk voice, give me your digits. I smile, slide his phone back and move on to dance and serve others, and give some pointers to the newbie.

Horny toad (HT): You need to stop fakin on me and give me your number

ESS: I'm sorry but I don't give my number out at the club

HT: But how am I going to get to know you?

ESS: Come see me next Wednesday

Horny toad grabs my hand, caresses it

HT: I mean I ain't coming at you wrong, I just wanna make LOVE to you

ESS: oh. Insert smile here...set-up for classic move. Reach back for napkin and a pen, instructs HT to write his info down so that I may call HIM later....it never happens. The napkin usually doesn't even make it home

I really is a delicate balancing act to make that work. I don't wanna piss any customer off so that they stop coming or stop getting drinks from me, but I don't want half of DC wearing out my number either.....

and yes, I apply the same rules to the cute ones...