December 29, 2007
Holidays and Cheap, Freeloading People
For Christmas I went to visit my 2 brothers in Boston. The doctor one lives in Rhode Island, and my eldest brother lives with his wife and 2 daughters. I stayed at the Marriott Hotel with my ungrateful boyfriend in the downtown shopping district, and the 3 days I was there was spent enjoying quality family time. I was able to reset my internal clock and by 9pm, I would pass out in bed. By 7am I am (cheerfully!) up and ready to go. I love my family, because they are all very well-read, extremely intelligent and successful people who know how to treat people right.
On that note, someone else had to be on social party-business duties in Chicago while I was away. He went through the SAME SHIT I always go through. Frustrated by mooching friends who seem to have no clue about getting a job and basic social skills such as buying a drink. This is the email I received:
After last night, I am so 100% in agreement with every complaint you've ever had about freeloading people on your tab. It's unreal. Where were these people raised? Say what you want about my gutterpunk friends, and you might count the silverware after they leave but I've never come across such brazen rudeness among anyone anywhere else but this scene. And I think I can say I'm pretty well fucking traveled in different social circles.
It's sad but maybe we have to write a guide to nightclub etiquette. To wit:
1. Do not enter a nightclub expecting to drink with less than $10 on your person. If you go out so often that you can't afford to bring more, perhaps you should go out less.
2. When a person buys a round, it is classless to get the next round for yourself alone. If you have to sneak away to do so, you're not fooling anyone.
3. When a person buys a round, you should probably not order any drink you wouldn't pay for yourself.
(this one's for you): 4. Someone leaving their credit card with the bartender does not mean everyone's drinking free all night.
Seriously, we should do an experiment: neither of us buy any drinks for anyone other than ourselves for 30 days. See who's still our BFFs in the whole world after that. I expect that the results will be astounding, yet utterly predictable.
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