On the Verge

I have been on the verge of quitting the bar lately. Every week I get several calls to work for someone hours before the shift. The longest notice I have been given was roughly 12 hours on Memorial Day. The Tuesday opening bartender wanted me to work for her.

The final straw came yesterday. I had worked the lunch shift and was just turning down my street looking forward to nothing more than a shower when my phone rang. When I saw it was work I thought maybe I had a check left open or something so I answered. It was my boss saying that he needed someone to work that night at 5. It was 3. I told him I'd rather not, the nice way to tell your boss to F off. He actually told me that sometimes we need to do things we don't want to do and that they needed someone to work. I get that, but it's not really my problem, is it? I already worked that day and I work open to close on Fridays. Seriously, piss off. He got mad and said he would call me back.

He never called me back so after an hour of waiting around smelling like grease and bar I finally called him. He was cheerful on the phone and had found someone to work. Great. But then he asks me about working Sunday and Monday. I hate being put on the spot about working. Is it strange that I like to take a minute to think about it? I told him I might be able to do Sunday, but I'd let him know for sure the next day. Several hours later I got a voicemail from him saying I would be working Sunday. Does he not listen?

I am seriously close to quitting. I am tired of people only asking me to work last minute, but asking others in advance. It really backs me in to a position where I always have to say no and the owners think I am not willing to help.

I really think they need to hire more employees. Let one of the waitresses cover bar shifts and hire another part time waitress. Two waitresses and four bartenders are not enough to run a place smoothly.

I never thought I'd say this...

Sometimes I miss waitressing on Friday nights. I have been bartending for about a month now and have seen the other side of things. People at the bar are annoying. They may not be rude in the same way as customers at tables, but they are rude. The thing I miss most about waitressing is the movement of it all. Bartending I feel like I am in a little box, moving back and forth. Sometimes I feel like I am in a pinball machine, bouncing off one side of the bar to another. It's like a crazy dance and at the end of the night all I want to do is sit down.

One thing I am thankful for when bartending is not having to serve on the patio. I hate the patio. That will never change.

Things are changing

I learned today at work that one of our bartenders who has been acting like a manager has actually been given the title. I'm not sure what this truly means since there are only 7 employees in the front of the house. To me it would be more appropriate to call her "head bartender" since we don't really have a need for another manager. It's been a long time since I've worked for a manager that was not part owner, but I seem to remember managers being people that had to help out when it got unusually busy and coordinate scheduling. I hardly see that happening with this girl. I don't often use names, but the bartender I am referring to is Chris.

Another development is the bartender that got fired. Out of respect for her I am not going in to any more detail than my last post about why she is no longer with the company. I will say, though, that I have been given her Friday night bartending shift. I am excited to begin this as it should mean better tips and a bit more fun than waiting tables. I will, however, miss some of my regulars. There are quite a few that I have been serving on Friday nights for about 2 years now and a handful are a pleasure to serve. The girl replacing me on Friday nights is not what I would call fast, but I am trying to stay optimistic about her ability to handle the rushes we sometimes get.

On a more personal note, my dog and I have passed the Canine Good Citizen test and we are on to the next challenge. Soon we should be registered with the Delta Society as a therapy team and will be able to visit hospitals, schools, and nursing homes.

Oh Wow...

So the drama of a small bar has reached its height. I can't really go in to too much detail now, but here's the basics:

One of the people at my work got fired today. Not sure if this will actually be a permanent firing or a temporary one. I guess that depends on how rehab goes.
The waitressing shifts were promptly given to a new waitress who wants to quit her other job. No biggie since no one else wanted the shifts. The bartending shift however...there is drama. None of the other bartenders want the shift, but I do. I already waitress that night so they need to find a person to take my shift. It's a Friday night, a good night to waitress (especially on a one server floor). For some reason no one wants the shift. They don't want to work weekends. I have no idea what is going to end up happening with this, but I am staying out of it. Yes, I want the shift, but they all know that. Either I get it or I don't.

I have decided that I like not being involved in the drama. I'd much rather hear about it than be pulled in to it!

Not a Darn Thing

Nothing much is going on at my work lately other than some employee drama. Yes, even with a small group of employees there is plenty of drama. I think it comes with the heavy drinking that seems to be a requirement to work in the industry. I prefer not to drink much. We're talking maybe 3 drinks a month or less. Maybe this is why I am not really good friends with the other people I work with. They all seem to make plans together that I am left out of. Don't get me wrong, there's no sadness in that for me. With the stories I hear about their outings...I'm better off staying at home.
So this post is taking a more personal turn isn't it? I guess that's bound to happen when business is slow and the weather is keeping the oddball customers home.

Things may be changing at the bar soon. Two of the employees seem close to confessing to drinking problems and another insists on coming in late every shift. Keep in mind there are less than a dozen of us. I will be happy to stay out of the whole dramatic thing. I have enough to worry about with school and other obligations.

This semester makes my first at a local university rather than the community college. It's amazing how little community college did to prepare me for "real" college! I am finding that my grades are not as good as I became accustomed to. I have had to dedicate more time to each class than in the past.
Also, after 6 months of training my dog will be testing for the AKC's Canine Good Citizen test in less than a week. If we are able to pass this test we can move on to our ultimate goal and begin training as a therapy team. I can't wait to become therapy certified and begin visiting local nursing homes and hospitals.
Lastly, I am possibly going to be involved as a witness in a lawsuit pertaining to an accident I was involved in over 2 years ago. That, my friends, is no fun. Trust me. Even the anticipation of this is no fun.

I know this is not the type of post you have come to expect from me, but sometimes there's nothing going on at the bar. I just can't stay silent until something happens.

Patio Days

My work will most certainly be opening the patio today since it will be roughly 80 out. Next week will be back to the 60's, but the bar doesn't close the patio on a day to day basis. While I enjoy the summer and the business the nice weather brings, I hate the crazy people who want to eat lunch on the patio in sweltering 95 degree weather, the people who can't let go of summer in the end and want to sit out there when the weather drops back in to the 60's, and the people who expect to receive service when it begins to rain.

This is the first place I have worked that had a patio. Is it normal to run it like this? My boss's attitude is if someone wants to sit out there, we serve them no matter the weather. What would you do in this situation? I am tempted to tell people that there is no table service when the weather is wet, sweltering hot, or cold to the point that I want to wear a coat. Would you?

How is this my fault?

"Hey, that lady said that she waited for 9 minutes before she got a drink when she came in." Manager G started in. He was pointing in the direction of the entire bar area of the building.

"Which lady?" I ask, straining to see beyond the people at the bar to the tables. I didn't have anyone sitting on that side of the building, but it was possible I missed someone if they were standing.

"That one." He continues pointing in the same direction.

"At a table?" I ask.

"No. M______." He finally tell me. M______ is a woman who comes in several times a week. She is friends with Chris and Stacy and is usually very nice. She came in at 2 in the afternoon. It is now about 8 at night.

"But she's at the bar." I tell him, confused.

"She said that when she came you were sitting at the bar ignoring her. She said she looked at her watch to see how long it would take to get a drink and it was 9 minutes."

What is this? I am waitressing!

"I didn't know where Chris was when M______ sat down so I gave her a chance to come back. She hadn't asked me to watch the bar, and I had tables I was taking care of. After about a minute or two I started looking for Chris to tell her someone was at the bar. She was talking with a customer on the restaurant side but was on her way back to the bar so I didn't say anything. It was only about 2 minutes."

"Why didn't you get Chris right away? Or get the customer a drink? She said she was pissed because she thought you were the bartender and you were ignoring her." His tone is angry and accusatory. I am actually getting in trouble for this. M______ knows I don't bartend on Fridays. She's friends with Chris and knows she works every Friday. But then, she can't complain about her friend, can she?

"G, no one asked me to watch the bar. I have talked to the girls about this and they prefer I don't help their customers unless they ask me to watch the bar. Besides, it was only a minute. I didn't know where she was and for all I knew she'd be back in a minute anyway."

"Well I don't believe that at all. We all help each other out here. We like helping each other out!"

"Yes, but I didn't want to step on her toes." I give up. Somehow this has been made my fault. "I'm sorry G."

How the hell can the bartender not doing her job be my fault? Is it part of my job to know where the bartender is all the time, to track her down no matter where she is to let her know immediately when a new customer comes in? To help her customers when she is not there? I can tell you, no one does it for me.

This is crap.