Day drinkers

 The basement bar was smoky and damp. The regulars crammed together, bellied up, with the common goal of forgetting their day. The barmaid had been slinging drinks for so long that she knew everyone's choice of liquid courage and sat it down before the customer could ask. She must have been a looker in her day, and she still tried hard to use her charms, often getting her a good tip, but mostly just a half-baked attempt at a smile.

An old Wurlitzer jukebox played the same songs. It mainly featured hits from the fifties, but no one seemed to care, as it was better than silence. At eight o'clock, the three-piece band played requests as the bar began to fill up with a younger crowd as the day drinkers finished their drinks and said goodnight. A much younger barmaid took over with plenty of skin to show off as the day bartender left without fanfare and a half-filled tip jar.

A few day drinkers stayed until their money was gone, trying to act half their age and usually making a fool of themselves as the crowd turned away in disgust, not realizing that they would probably become day drinkers themselves one day.

Closing time meant last call, and although nobody needed another drink, the barmaid filled their glasses and poured more beers assuring her a good tip to top off her already overstuffed tip jar.

Once the bar had closed and everybody had left, some with a sure thing if they could make it home without getting sick, and one lone ranger who believed his flirting with the barmaid would make for a lucky night found himself being shown to the door by the night janitor.

Just a few hours, and the day drinkers would file in as the barmaid stocked the liquor shelves and tapped a new keg. Sometimes, she would fill wooden bowls with peanuts or some salty treats to keep them thirsty in an attempt to make them happy and donate to her tip jar.

She looked around the joint, happy with what she saw, and plugged in the old jukebox, which played the same old songs nobody noticed. As the door opened and the bell above it rang, her day drinkers, whom she knew by name, bellied up and smiled, and her shift began once again.

Mike 2025