Lines said to me Saturday...

On kicking someone out:

"Suck my dick, motherfucker!"

On rejecting someone at the door:

"You just lost your job."

On continuing to reject someone at the door:

"I'm the owner and I'm going in. I don't care what you say."

On kicking yet another retard out:

"Don't fucking touch me. I'm stronger than all three of you and I'll beat your ass!"

Reaction from a valued customer after being thrown in the gutter by myself for trying to fight my coworker:

"I didn't even do anything! What the fuck!"


Needless to say, Saturday was stressful and exhausting. More on this later.

I think this is awesome. I can't wait to see what sorts of things get posted.

Also, this fucking infuriates me.

My Reply

Several recent comments and emails have prompted me to reiterate my position as far as it goes in terms of bar work and what I hope for and/or expect from customers.

First off, if I give you great service (which isn't hugely difficult as a bartender, unless we're ridiculously slammed) then I expect a 20% tip - at least. I've gone over proper amounts of tipping based on what you order. Read it, know it, do it. No excuses.

To those who know me and are friendly, I'm an easy going guy who enjoys his job and is excited to see you night after night downtown. More often than not, I like most of our customers and generally have more good nights than bad downtown while I'm at work.

Then there's my other side, the one in which I show on here because of the shitheads who make my night less than pleasant.

Yes, I'm an asshole - to those who deserve it. If you treat me like subhuman garbage, I'm going to be a dick to you, and in all likelihood I'm going to kick you out because I don't have time for your shit and you're a dime a dozen. This isn't a corporate restaurant, it isn't a fucking fine dining establishment and there's no 1-800 number you can call to complain about me. This is the bar business. Get used to it. It's practically the same everywhere.

And I'm the only one you get to deal with, and if you want our encounter to be pleasant, then I recommend that you smile back at me when I approach you respectfully and ask you how you're doing and offer you a drink, or ask to see your ID at the door.

And while I'm on the subject, yes I know where I work and where I'm at on the "food chain" of bars in this world, if there is such a thing. Yes, it's a "college" bar. No shit. You think I don't know that? I still continue to choose to do this because I enjoy it. The other bullshit I endure at work, I complain about on my website, the one that you chose to come read.

I feel I speak the minds of many a doorguy/bartender/bar employee (especially in Athens), because you, as a customer, have no idea the kind of shit you put us through when you drunkenly stagger inside, puke on the bar, treat us like your personal servants, yell and scream at us to quickly fill your drink order, fight with other customers, and then tip 10%. And even more so, you come to my website and tell me to go do something else with my life if I find your actions unacceptable.

So to that I say...fuck off.

Don't like my reaction? Then go eat one.

Thank you.

Update

Twilight is next weekend and I'm pretty excited.

Sorry for the lack of any posting whatsoever recently. I promise to have something new up soon. I'm sure I've gone over it all before, though.

And another thing...

My name isn't "hey", "chief", or "bro". I get even more frustrated (and creeped out a little, too) when people yell my real name. Do you like random people yelling at you at your job? I don't, either. Don't begin to order something when I'm obviously making a drink or otherwise doing something else besides paying attention to you.

In fact, unless I make direct eye contact with you and ask you what you need, then please keep your drunken mouth shut. You cheap ass can wait an extra minute or two for your Hi-Life. Money or credit card in-hand is enough to tell me that you're ready to order.

Thank you.

Red & Black Article

This was sort of funny.

Aside from the fact that the Red and Black are writing about bathrooms downtown (and I can't compete much, seeing as what I write about on here), I would challenge them to visit a few more bar bathrooms around 1am on any Friday or Saturday night downtown and then hear about the horrible things they discover in them.

Now that would be entertaining. And probably extremely disgusting.

From My Perspective

So here's the scenario. You've decided to square off with me over some trivial issue. We might be at the door and I've refused you entry, or I'm inside and asking you to leave. Either way, you and I aren't on the same page, and you've let me know, in no uncertain terms, that you're dissatisfied. You're so dissatisfied with me that you've made it clear that you'd like to hurt me over this perceived downtown barscene slight.

And that's where we find ourselves. You want inside and you can't get in, or you don't want to leave and you've turned to face me and are considering showing your anger to me through physical violence.

And what's going through my head immediately before you decide to take the first swing, or simply turn around and walk away is this:

I'm watching your hands. Are they in your pockets? Is there a weapon in there? A knife? Are your fists balled up, ready to swing? I'm watching your shoulders for that first move, usually a big, wild right haymaker. I'm looking at your face, your pupils, to try and see if you're on something more than alcohol. I'm looking at your ears, to see if you've got the infamous "cauliflower ear", which isn't uncommon in wrestlers and fighters. I'm watching the people behind you who could possibly be your friends, ready to jump in as soon as things start going down. I'm watching my peripherial vision for my friends, ready to come and help me. I'm looking at my surroundings.

If I'm outside, then all I need to do is create some space between us if things start happening. If it really gets out of control, then I'll try to get behind you and choke you and just wait for help to get there. If we're inside, then not only do I have to get the upper hand, then I've got to drag you out to the front door. In some ways, it's much easier at the door.

Most importantly, I'm evaluating and trying to determine how badly, if at all, you're capable of hurting me should you decide to escalate the situation that you've created into physical violence.

But most of all, I'm simply hoping you'll just turn and walk away because it gets fucking old after awhile. If you find yourself on the receiving end of one of these encounters with a bar employee, just turn around and go the fuck away. Don't try to go out with dignity or save any face, because while I might take your shit on the way out, there are plenty of other bars downtown that won't, and you'll quickly find yourself drug into the back alley or parking lot for some personal one-on-three time simply because you can't bring yourself to back down. There's 30 other bars downtown that you can go be a jackass in besides this one.

I guarantee this scene repeats itself night after night downtown. And personally, I'm pretty sick of it.

New Orleans

This appeared in the news recently. I remember when it hit the news 4 years ago. Yes, I was working downtown at that point. I remember that a similiar inicident almost happened right in front of me in downtown Athens less than a week later, and I was relieved when things didn't play out the way that they did that night in New Orleans.

So my stance on the subject? Let's look at the facts, first:

Jones was drunk...twice the legal limit, in fact. He was denied entry to a bar, reportedly because of a dresscode violation. He sucker punched one of the doormen with a closed fist. He resisted arrest.

My conclusion? His death was a direct result of his decision to go out, get drunk and fight. How should a doorman be held responsible for his death when physically attacked by a drunken stranger?

He shouldn't. Plain and simple. Did Jones deserve to die? Absolutely not. I can't begin to try to expain the door policies at Razoo because I'm not familiar with them. I wasn't there when it happened and I've never worked at a bar in New Orleans.

But what I can draw from is my own experience. And my own experience is this. The customers are out to get drunk. The bar employees are there to do their job, make their money, and go home. Who do you normally believe? The drunk or the sober kid?

It sounds sad, and it's a shame. I truly believe that. A human life should never be lost because of bar scene bullshit, but it happens sometimes. Alcohol makes people do dumb things, and when you throw in a few variables here and there, sometimes people get hurt or get killed.

I can only imagine Jones' family and friends frustration, and it may be hard to believe that the person that's not around to stand up for themselves possibly could have not made the best decisions that night, and those decisions may have ultimately led to their death, but facts are facts. I can imagine they want someone to blame, and they feel it couldn't be their son, their friend, or their boyfriend who's ultimately responsible for actions that may not be becoming of them. But sometimes people make mistakes. Sometimes people make mistakes that cost them their life. And I feel bad that Levon Jones did that while he was under the influence of alcohol, but he did.

And it's not the bouncers fault.

A Night Out, etc.

The same retards are out every single night. Every single night. I actually went out the other night - to a bar that I typically don't go to, and I saw the same little fucks that I see at my bar on the weekends. I saw people that I see when I'm at work, and they were doing the same stupid shit that they do at my bar, except that they were doing it at the bar that I was at.

So I did the people watching thing. I watched the hot girls dancing, and I watched the dudes hitting on them and getting rejected. I watched the guys who managed to strike up a conversation with some of them and the few that left with some of the girls. I saw a few douchebags who we banned some time ago standing outside the bar next door yelling at each other. It seemed to be a waste of time, to me, to stand outside a bar and scream in each others face. But that's just me. I figured the shitbag meatheads would notice me as I walked by and say something to me, since it was me who banned them, but they were too busy yelling at each other.

It was interesting being a fly on the wall with a little bit of a buzz, especially when I didn't have to get involved in any of the fights or altercations. I just stood there and watched. It was interesting, to say the least. And after a night of watching, I came to the same conclusion as I always do: People are fucking stupid.

In other news, this story makes me happy. That woman is a great example of someone who has no respect for authority, and even has the audacity to try to take a firearm from a fucking cop and try to shoot him. People like this are the scum of the earth and I hope she has fun for the next 16 years. While only loosely related, we deal with idiots like this all of the time. Mind you, they're not always trying to kill us, but they're trying to hurt us. They're railing against an authority and refusing to cooperate when we order them to do something. It usually ends with us manhandling some poor little fuck, like the "law student" that was tossed out Wednesday night.

And while I'm thinking about it, who the fuck is in charge of the goddamn traffic lights in Athens? I hope no one is because if you are, then you're doing a fucking disgrace of a job. At 12:45am early this morning I hit nearly every single light on a deserted Atlanta Highway. By the time I made it downtown I wanted to fucking dropkick someone. What the fuck??

Joseph Mills Back in the News

Joseph Mills is in a serious world of shit right now. I've followed the developing news stories over the past few months, and it's becoming more and more interesting.

Instead of the misdemeanor charges that he initially was facing, now he's facing some fairly serious felony charges. He's been indicted by a grand jury and he'll be arraigned April 18th.

I haven't seen him downtown anymore. This is good. But that doesn't mean that there aren't other people out there that have the intentions of harming girls who are drunk while downtown at night. If you read this blog at all, then you'll know there are always shithead guys downtown looking to take advantage of girls. Every single night.

I've heard whispers that Joseph Mills shouldn't be held accountable for his actions because he "isn't right". He shouldn't be held accountable because he's socially awkward and perhaps even a little mentally challenged. He didn't know what he was doing and he shouldn't have to be punished for something that he did without malicious intent.

I say that's fucking bullshit. The only thing that really matter is the end result, regardless of his intentions or mental capacity. Those girls had those terrible things happen to them and I seriously doubt they really care whether Joseph "meant to do it" or not. A guy who's a little slow or socially awkward can go and murder a family, but if he didn't "mean to do it" it doesn't bring back those who were killed. The end result is all the same, and I say that he should be punished for the things that he did to those girls downtown.

He needs to know his actions are not acceptable. They're not invited, they're not excusable and even more so, they're against the law and the people won't stand by and allow him to slip by simply because he isn't like the rest of us. And shouldn't that make us feel better, too? A person who did things like that isn't like all of us. He's different. And we should all feel perfectly justified about sending a guy like that away, because we'll know the odds of it happening again are a lot lower now that the different guy is off the street and is being punished for his uninvited advances.

But then again, that's just one door guy's opinion.