…one more time.

If you look hard enough though you’ll see things to keep it interesting.

As I mentioned in yesterday’s post, when I returned home from my morning walk I discovered I had no access to the internet. A couple of hours of being disconnected from the world later, I headed back into town and used the WiFi at Outback. Later in the afternoon, the internet was restored at my place and life was back to normal. It being beer o’clock on a Saturday afternoon, I made my way once again to Barretto.

I honestly wasn’t sure what I wanted to do or where to do it. I considered starting with some food at Sit-n-Bull, but I wasn’t really all that hungry. So, I went upstairs to BarCelona to contemplate my immediate future. I hadn’t seen Samantha for a while, so that would be another plus. Except she wasn’t there. A waitress who didn’t even know my name(!) brought me a beer and disappeared. And when I finished my beer she still hadn’t come back. I took the bottle out of the coozie so someone might notice it was empty, but no luck. When waving it around didn’t draw any attention, I gave up and went to the cashier to pay. Yeah, I could have gone to the bar to order, but why should I have to? BarCelona could be a great place to hang out, but it is very poorly managed. This is not the first time I’ve had service issues there. I doubt I’ll be back anytime soon.

Back on the street and still undecided about where to go, I started walking up the highway. Passed by It Doesn’t Matter and wasn’t feeling it, so I kept going. Hesitated at Blue Butterfly but didn’t stop. Ran into “mama” and gave her the usual100 pesos, but when another beggar approached, I rudely rejected her pleas. I was in a grumpy mood, but no excuse for that behavior. I felt bad enough to look for her later but she was gone. Shame on me.

I wound up at Hideaway and Joy gave me an enthusiastic welcome. I got one of the few seats left at the bar and Joy pulled up a stool beside me and grabbed some napkins to wipe the sweat off my neck, then gave me a nice back rub. That softened my mood and naturally, I rewarded her with lady drinks.

After three beers I was ready to move on. Next stop: Cheap Charlies. Yes, indeed, things are getting back to normal around here. Some “two-week millionaire” tourist had every girl in the bar surrounding him as he plied them with lady drinks. I noticed several of those were bottled beers that cost twice as much as the standard lady drink (I never buy doubles as a matter of principle, but will usually get the girl two singles. Yeah, that’s how I roll.) Anyway, there would be no company for me with the big spender present and I’m okay with that.

So, even with all the girls busy with their benefactor, someone would always come by to bring me a refill on my beer. That’s the way it should be and something the staff at BarCelona should learn.

In a weird coincidence, while I’m drinking at Cheap Charlies I got a message from Samantha, the gal I had looked for at BarCelona. I hadn’t heard from her in a couple of weeks. As I suspected, she no longer worked there. Instead, she is now employed at The Green Room, a bar I very infrequently visit (I prefer the next-door venue, Wet Spot). She asked if I would come by and see her there and I promised that I would later on.

My next stop though was Hot Zone. I had a “buy one, get one” coupon I wanted to use. It was nice to see the girls on stage again even if there were only a couple of other customers present. It was still early for a Saturday and Hot Zone is more of a late-night venue. Not that I ever see late-night these days. Drank my two beers and treated my friendly waitress to a lady drink, then I was off to The Green Room.

Wow. The place was packed! I felt lucky to find an empty seat. Ordered a beer and a couple of GROs (guest relations officers) approached to ascertain if I might be interested in their company. I told them I was looking for Samantha, but they’d never heard of her. Hmm. About that time, Sam came over saying she hadn’t recognized me because I’d put on some weight. Thanks for noticing! Turns out, she’d only been working two days here and that’s why her co-workers didn’t know her name. About this time, the waitress from Sit-n-Bull came by. I ordered us a pizza to eat and share.

So, did a little drinking and caught up with Sam. The circumstances of her departure from BarCelona only confirmed my poor management thesis and convinced me they have no intention or desire to improve. And screwing an employee out of wages is completely unacceptable. Fuck them!

It was time for me to go, and on the way out I popped into the CR (which is located in Wet Spot) to take a leak. As I was leaving Wet Spot, Daddy Dave (the owner of both venues) called me over to his table and bought me a beer. Always a pleasure to chat with him and get the lowdown on what’s happening in town. The big news is the SOB dance competitions will be starting up again soon. That’s always a fun way to spend an evening.

My 9:00 p.m. bedtime was fast approaching so I said my goodnights and headed home. Made a smoothie (banana/mango/pineapple) as my nightly treat and called it a day.

Oh well. Just me trying to make the best of things and doing what I do best.

And when you're looking for your freedom
(Nobody seems to care)
And you can't find the door
(Can't find it anywhere)
When there's nothing to believe in
Still you're coming back, you're running back
You're coming back for more

So put me on a highway
And show me a sign
And take it to the limit one more time