It has become a habit for me, a movement in my mind. Sometimes friends join me, sometimes I go it alone. Mrs. Tiki has come along once, but it kind of goes against the grain of thought. I am talking about “Tuesday Afternoon Social Club”.
I love my job, in case it isn’t evident. But Tiki, one might say, you have to work nights and weekends. Doesn’t that suck? Well, I would reply, not really. First, think about your days and nights. Wouldn’t you say, for the most part, that you run into more interesting people at night? Second, most people have to wait for vacation (or unemployment) to experience the pure hedonism of being drunk in the middle of a weekday.
There is something very liberating about being on the deck of Finnegan’s looking down at the buzzing workers going by on A1A.
Or sitting in the Fisherman’s Net eating and drinking as people come and go for lunch.
Or drinking Coronas from the owner as we browse the wares at Bahama Mama’s.
It really just further adds to the feeling of being a “perma-vacationer”.
Perma-vacationer
(n) As defined in the movie The Heartbreak Kid, someone who lives and works where others come to vacation.
Seriously, when I get a little stressed out all I have to do is look at my life from another point of view. I work 120 feet from the beach. I park in sand when I get to work. I can walk from my front door to the ocean in about 14 minutes.
By the way, when I drive to work or walk to the beach this is the view as I crest the causeway…
Since leaving Missouri and my job in juvenile corrections behind, this is my resume:
April 1996-May 2001 Palm Coast Golf Resort / Ocean Hammock Resort
After starting as a bellman, worked as a front deck clerk and a night auditor. Spent the last three years there as the Front Office Manager. While there, I was involved in the Grand Opening of Ocean Hammock Golf Course. Met a few noteworthy people such as Brooke Shields, Dan Marino, Kyle Petty, Jerry Springer, Joseph Simmons (Run from Run-DMC), Luther Campbell (from 2 Live Crew), Jack Nicklaus, and other golf and tennis names.
July 2001-June 2002 World Golf Village
Although this was not my favorite job, it was still pretty cool. I was the Operations Manager at a hotel in the World Golf Village. Got to meet golf dignitaries such as Bill Murray, Gary McCord, Ben Crenshaw, & Gary Player.
August 2002-September 2004 Tee Times USA
Besides sitting in a beachfront office watching dolphins and talking golf all day, I also got to play some of Florida’s top course for free. in fact, for the first 9 years I lived in Florida I didn’t pay for a round of golf.
September 2004-July 2005 Henry’s Harborside Bar
Back to my roots at the Ocean Hammock Resort, my first bartending job and the birthplace of the nickname “TikiTender”. I was just telling a customer last night, I was hired here with no experience. The bar manager, Beth, and I worked together when I was the Front Office Manager. She knew that I was good with customers, hard working, and wasn’t a thief. Attention future bartenders, these are the keys that potential employers look for. All the bartending schools in the world will not guarantee you a job. Restaurant owners will expect you to prove your mettle, most likely as a server or a barback, before they will give you the keys to the kingdom. So Beth gave me my shot, and I learned the easy part (drink recipes) from a great team of bartenders and tireless research on my part.
June 2005- Golden Lion
My own private margartaville, the Golden Lion is where I flourished as a bartender. I have signature drinks there and I am forced to stare at the beach during my shift. See the picture below, from our Full Moon Luau? See in the background? You guessed it, it’s the Atlantic Ocean.
So….those Life Is Good t-shirts really should have a picture of me. Life is truly good. I really do live in a postcard. Of course, it’s a state of mind too. I see people living and working right here where I do that are stressed, miserable, & incessant whiners. I especially enjoy watching them from where ever I might be perched on Tuesday afternoon. Which brings me back around to Tuesday Afternoon Social Club. It’s Tuesday. Join me for a drink!!!
If you aren’t local, just join me in your mind. Or go out for drinks in your town. Take a long lunch, leave work early. Call me and we will have “phone drinks”. Jason & I have had many drunken fantasies of Tuesday Afternoon Social Club catching on all over the country. Let’s start it today!!!
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