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By jwb71913 Date: 2004 May 27 Comment on this Work [[2004.05.27.10.43.17485]] |
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I sat in the bar pondering the mistakes I had made and the paths that I had chosen. The back bar had strings of colored Christmas light strung along it, although it was mid-July. The air conditioner was woefully inadequate, and the air in the bar was heavy with the smell of pine-sol and smoke and vomit. I'd been kicked out of worse bars in my life, but I couldn't remember when. The condensation from the bottle had caused the coaster to stick to the bottom, so I asked the barmaid for some salt. She brought it from the service bar and watched as I sprinkled salt on the coaster. "You gonna eat that thang"? she asked with a smile. "No", I replied, "just watch". I raised the bottle from the coaster and showed her how the salt kept the bottle from sticking. "I've never seen that before" she said. Old Alabama tricks. Learned from old men who knew how to drink beer in 99% humidity without being uncomfortable. As I let my mind drift, the third and fourth beers went down my throat unnoticed. I ordered a double Grandad with my fifth beer, and sat and watched the images of her reflecting in the glass. Her face mocked me through the amber nectar, just as it had when she'd left. I stopped at the jukebox on the way back from the restroom, and dropped a half a dollar in. The selection surprised me, with more rock and roll than I would have expected in an East Texas town of less than a thousand. I punched 'Double Vision" and "Victim of Love", and went back to my seat at the bar. The second double went down quickly, washed as it was by my seventh beer, and I figured I'd better get going before I got myself into trouble. Left two bucks on the bar for the girl, and walked out into the dusty heat of the Lotta Beer parking lot. My car had accumulated a film of reddish dust while I'd been inside, and I wondered how long I had been in there. I was less than ten miles from her, but I wasn't going to call. But the trip wasn't wasted, I'd taught an Alabama trick to an East Texas barmaid. |