Eden Cafe

Never in my entire life have I had a 9 to 5 job, or anything similar to that. I just don’t operate that way. First of all, I need at least two hours to go from awake to fully dressed and out the door. And until about ten years ago I couldn’t wake up before 10 am. But that’s not the only reason I don’t do regular daytime work. Mostly it’s because I’m very independent and just not a conventional person. Those types of jobs would drive me crazy with boredom. I can’t handle the 40 hours a week, making the exact same amount no matter what I do or don’t do, types of jobs. So my resume, though it may seem unusual to some, consists of all kinds of odd jobs where what I’ve made was in direct correlation to how well I worked. And one thing’s for sure, it’s been interesting.

Many of them were in the restaurant business. When I was just 13 years old I got a job bussing tables at a restaurant that my mom worked at. I only did that for a few months, but I learned very quickly that you can make a lot more money doing that type of work than babysitting or working at a fast food place. That little taste of what you can make in tips alone is what got me hooked. So when I was 16 years old I started waiting tables, and I did that on and off for a couple of years. I really hated it though. It really sucks when your tips are dependent upon what everyone else around does or does not do. If the food wasn’t good enough, I got stiffed. I was always like…WTF…I didn’t cook it! So as soon as I turned 18 I became a cocktail waitress. Now that was definitely more fun. I made some decent money. Got to flirt with cute guys. And the place I worked at had different bands each weekend, so I got to enjoy the music too. But one thing I did notice was that the bartender was making a lot more money than I was. Here I was running back and forth, up and down stairs, with trays of drinks. And all he was doing was standing there making the drinks. I wanted to do that! But I still wasn’t old enough. So as soon as I turned 21 I went to bartender’s school. And I tended bar, on and off for about 20 years, and I loved it. I’m totally a people person. I’m also very customer service oriented, super fast and I love to multitask. So it was a perfect fit for me.

The first place I worked at was a shot and beer bar. That’s where I learned how to do a million things at once. That job helped me to become an insanely fast and proficient bartender. It’s also where I learned how to do shots of Jack Daniels. And you just never know when you’re going to need that skill. But I did have a blast there. I was young and loved to party. So after work, which was about 2 or 3 am, some of the customers and I would go out to breakfast or stay up all night and play poker. In which I would either end up losing all my tips or go home with quite a bit more, usually the latter. The year I worked there we had an especially hot summer and the bar was on the lake. So there were several nights that we all went skinny dipping. After I left that job, I worked a few more places and then took a short break from bartending.

After eight years in the restaurant/bar business, I was getting bored and decided to try something completely different. There was an ad in the paper for lingerie modeling. I really had no idea what it was about but I decided to check it out. So, for about a year, when I was around 24, I ran around (guess where) lounges and bars in lingerie. I’ll never forget the first night. I was scared to death! Our changing room’s were always the Ladies washroom. My first outfit was this little babydoll that was not the least bit see through, nevertheless I could not leave that bathroom. I sat there for most of the show, frozen, scared stiff. Finally I decided either I was going to go out there in that outfit, or I was putting my clothes back on and going home. There were two other ladies that I was working with and they were so sweet, one of them was actually my boss. She was only a couple of years older than me, and we really hit it off. She was so patient and kind to me, and she understood how nervous I was. So I did finally go out there dressed in that nightie. And for about a year that’s what I did. To say it was an unusual experience is an understatement. I definitely met some interesting people. One thing that job was great for was it helped me overcome many of my body image issues. And it also showed me that I’m very good with sales, because what we were doing was selling tickets for the people to win outfits just like the ones we were wearing. And I consistently out sold everyone else who worked there, which for me meant extra bonus money.

Once I got tired of running around bars in nighties, I returned to bartending. I found a great job at this beautiful fancy restaurant that was in a very upscale town. I loved it there. I worked in a piano bar where everyone there was so much older than I. And they were the sweetest people I had ever encountered. The piano player was this little old man in his 80’s who was one of the first black men to graduate from Julliard. He had played all over the world for many famous people including royalty. But you would never know it by his demeanor. He was the sweetest, humblest person I had ever met. The crowd that hung out there were mostly people would come to hear him play and many of them came to sing. Occasionally we even had opera singers who would come and perform for us. I worked there every weekend for eight years. And I was so sad to have to quit that job. But life goes on and things happen that make us have to move on.

Since then, I started a cleaning business with my husband. I hate to clean, so for the most part I run the business end and he does almost all of the cleaning. I did bartend in several other places before I quit doing that for good. After a while it just got old. For several years I did a paper route. Don’t laugh! It paid a lot of money for a very part time job. And I did all this along with homeschooling the kids and running them everywhere and back. My last job was working at a women’s gym as a fitness trainer. I really enjoyed that because I love to help people. Plus, once again, I love to talk and I met some very nice ladies there. But unfortunately the recession hit and they ended up going out of business.

So now what? I’m not completely sure. Whatever I do, I know it won’t be a typical run of the mill job. I’m just too independent and nonconformist for that. I think I might like to write for a living. Not exactly sure what I’m going to write, but at least I know it won’t be from 9 to 5. Because, for some strange reason, I seem to only be able to think clearly enough to write in the middle of the night. Then again it’s really not so strange since I’ve never been able to work normal hours before. So why would this be any different?

Written by Newme21 (LP)

December 7, 2009