Snug on the 4thYet again, it’s been a while since I last posted. I’ve been at the new job 4 months now. I “converted” to a permanent employee after just a month! So now I have all the bank-style benefits, which is very cool. I was always too lazy to find and pay for my own benefits, so this is good for me, even though it’s slightly less money. The psychology of taking vacation when you are a consultant is also difficult for me, so thats another good thing. As a consultant, if you don’t work, you don’t get paid. They pay you more, so you are supposed to save up and just cover vacations on your own. I never was able to justify that in my head, and always felt “I could be making some money” every time I took time off. Anyway, all that is past, and I feel like I’ll be here for a while.
The Snug went through a change of ownership. It used to be owned by the company that owns Vynl. It’s now owned by McCoys and Dalton’s (Irish/sports pubs) The character has changed a little, but most of the old staff are still around, so it’s still my bar.
This summer has been good so far. It hasn’t been hot at all, just really humid on some days. I have been getting a steady stream of visitors this whole time. I guess that tends to happen if you live in NYC. It’s just interesting that as soon as one group leaves, another one happens to show up.
I had a good time on the 4th of July. I thought the Snug would be open early. I went by around 3 and it was still closed. I found out later that the new bartender quit and didn’t come in for the shift. It was cool, because I ended up doing a little bar hopping. I started out with Risa at the House of Brews, on 51st and 8th. I never actually went inside before, and this time we ordered some food and had a few beers. I liked it a lot, I am definitely going back. Scott from work showed up. We heard about the possibility of a foosball table in ESPNzone in Times Square. We walked out into the sprinkling weather and made our way through the throng of tourists. It’s a pastime in NYC to complain about tourists, and Scott and Risa were indulging! We finally got there and scoured the multiple floors, but didn’t find the table. I think some internet guy referred to a dome-hockey table as a foosball table. Stupid internet! Avoiding Broadway, we just went straight to 9th, and ended up on 43rd. We decided to go to Landsdown Road for another round, and I forced mini-burgers on everyone. Stayed there for a bit, then moved back to 9th. We found Snug open, and set up shop. We stayed there for the rest of the night. It was sort of a British “fleet week” and Risa was getting a lot of attention by the navy boys. She dismissed them all as being too young, but she still had a good time. Scott and I fell into a couple dart games with some theater folks. The next thing I know, I’ve finished my fifth drink and its midnight. I had to be at work, 8AM next morning! I got peer-pressured into another round and game, and finally ended up home around one-ish. 2 drinks is normally my limit! I actually didn’t throw up, but was dragging ass the next day at work. Scott didn’t even show up, claiming genuine sickness for the past week or so. Likely story!