REAL STORIES FROM REAL BARTENDERS >>>

I've been a bartender for a long time. I have met countless freaks, jerks, pervs, sweethearts, rockstars and crazies. Even though it's a physically and mentally exhausting job, these are the colorful people that make it all worthwhile. Well, that and the tips.

I'd like to share with you some of my personal experiences behind the bar, along with the stories from some of my fellow bartenders. Each week - under the clever heading of "Behind Bars" - I will dig into my memory bank - and the incident log books that all bars keep - to bring you some of my favorite stories.

Names of bars, bartenders and patrons have been changed or withheld to protect the innocent.

And the not so innocent.

Cheers!

This week...

JUST LIKE FAMIILY

Many people refer to the bar as a  "home away from home," including myself.

I am there every weekend, pouring good drinks and chatting with the regulars. And often, on my time off, the roles reverse and I'm the regular.

Most regulars are like the family you wish you had.

You know, the kind of family that brings in dishes of their favorite tater tot casserole to share with everyone. The kind who asks about the kids and shows you pictures of theirs. The kind who might even let you borrow their truck to move that big-ass bed out of your basement.

Then there are the patrons who are like family you do have. 

You know, patrons whose booth table not only acts as a convenient place to put their Bud Light, but also as a place for slopping their dinner on, a place to set their girlfriend's butt while they make-out, a place to collect their finger nail trimmings as they groom, or a place to bunch a hoodie to use as a pillow and catch up on sleep.

Despite these occasional faults, being at the bar is just what home should be - a place full of love, food, laughs and shelves and shelves of booze at your fingertips.

So, until next week, brothers and sisters, cheers!

"BEHIND BARS" LINK HUB

LINK: Say Cheese!

LINK: The importance of details

LINK: Exotic tastes

LINK: Lactose intoxicated

LINK: Thanks for playing!

LINK: After hours trivia

LINK: Bartending abroad

LINK: Oh puck!

LINK: 86'd

LINK: More Aural Adventures

LINK: Big & Rich

LINK: Tales From the Incident Log Book

LINK: The Tip Jar

LINK: Aural Adventures

LINK: Smooth Transitions

LINK: The Pooper