The Uniform

I stopped into work before my shift, and saw the tall blonde sexy lady bartender foil to me dressed as my equal. Be that the written nonsense line of a man that has two manhattans (the best cocktail) before he begins writing? Yes, to you I say don’t boss me. I am sad to say I am currently dressed in, as is my co worker in what I have come to call Cruise classic, and she the lady version thereof. That is to say the way that Tom Cuise dressed in the movie cocktail. The black collared shirt with black pant, or for the more casual, black and jeans is the classic bartender look. I remember seeing a national enquirer headline once that read “ Angelina to brad, -you dress like a bartender.],” I thought, “awesome.”

But I digress. Steve Martin said it best when he quoted one of his mentors (who was no doubtibly quoting one of his) when he said, “dress better than they do.” Steve understands that a performer is whom you are coming to see, if they wanted to stay home in sweats they would, they are here for the performer. So, give them some bait. I take this a bit further and say, dress like the real you. Me? When I work at a nightclub, I wear Cruise classic. When I’m in fine dining I wear cufflinks and a tie, and when I’m in between I dress as a friend’s father so insultingly but memorably put it “as a river boat gambler.” To that I say, own it. It is paramount to be prepared for every shift down to being comfortable in your clothes. I wear a pocket watch across my vest and handlebar moustache on my face; this works for me and makes me, “that guy.”

What to remember:
Look better than they do
Be comfortable
Know when to hold ‘em, know when to fold ‘em, know when to walk away, know when to run.