I've been playing poker since I was a teenager. I learned from my dad playing stud and other variants including the recently popular texas hold'em.
About five years ago, hold em became one of the hottest things going. Right behind the national exposure of Chris Moneymaker who won the 2003 World Series of Poker. It was also the first year that ESPN dedicated extreme coverage on it. After that, it spread like wild fire, including bars accross the country.
Several bars including Uncle D's, Legends and The Felix Street Pub started hosting their own free poker nights. Five years later, the only one left still hosting is the Pub. I wrote an article on it at the beginning of the semester for the Griffon News which highlighted it, but at this time of going towards the final table, i have to give props out to the people playing and the people hosting.
It is important to remember that to some its gambling, but to others its entertainment. It's a free and fun way to promote your establishment and a quick way to build comradere and atmosphere.
Friday, February 22, 2008
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
All things considered, in drag
Snow, snow everywhere. Two parter too!
Im a straight guy and I DJ in a gay bar. Gay in the sense that the owners are gay, the place is gay friendly; but its not like every cliche you see running through every television show. Most of the time, the patrons are straight. On most nights, we run at a 80/20 straight split. Get the pun... haha.
Im not trying to make any political statement here. My blog is about bars, drinking, and the atmosphere created down here, but i have always felt that this needed to be addressed. I think having a gay bar in a pretty conservative town is a good thing that probably gets people to get out of their 70s laden stereotypes.
Everynight that I work, I dont see gay, lesbian or straight. When Im in the booth, its people dancing and having fun and thats what makes this job worth it. There is a lineage of bars downtown and there has always been a place in town for everyone who wants a piece.
I consider myself lucky to be a part of this.
I brought this whole spiel up because we are hosting a regional competiton for the Miss Gay Missouri. The club actually supports two competitions, which sends winners to the state competition on their way to the national competition. Its men, dressed in womens clothing, who perform dance numbers.
Only in St Joseph eh? This thursday night will see the crowning of a new Miss Gay Northwest.
Im a straight guy and I DJ in a gay bar. Gay in the sense that the owners are gay, the place is gay friendly; but its not like every cliche you see running through every television show. Most of the time, the patrons are straight. On most nights, we run at a 80/20 straight split. Get the pun... haha.
Im not trying to make any political statement here. My blog is about bars, drinking, and the atmosphere created down here, but i have always felt that this needed to be addressed. I think having a gay bar in a pretty conservative town is a good thing that probably gets people to get out of their 70s laden stereotypes.
Everynight that I work, I dont see gay, lesbian or straight. When Im in the booth, its people dancing and having fun and thats what makes this job worth it. There is a lineage of bars downtown and there has always been a place in town for everyone who wants a piece.
I consider myself lucky to be a part of this.
I brought this whole spiel up because we are hosting a regional competiton for the Miss Gay Missouri. The club actually supports two competitions, which sends winners to the state competition on their way to the national competition. Its men, dressed in womens clothing, who perform dance numbers.
Only in St Joseph eh? This thursday night will see the crowning of a new Miss Gay Northwest.
Saturday, February 2, 2008
I say hello, you say goodbye
One opening and one closing.
Technically, two... but who is counting?
It's not quite a Kansas City shuffle, but its close enough. The downtown is losing two bars and is opening a new one. The owner of Mirrors, Tracy Myers, is closing the popular establishment located on the corner of 4th and Felix. The mainstay has been controversial, but packed on a regular basis for the better part of eight years. Tracy is using the building to move one of her other bars, The Buffalo Club, into the building. She is also concentrating on her
The new bar opening up downtown is Lost and Found, which is aiming to add spice as a new dance club. The work on the club started in December and is scheduled to open within the next couple of weeks.
I work at a competing bar and while most people would see it as competition, We dont. Business downtown is built upon all of us doing well as most of the customers float between the different entertainment options. Things will keep going and business will be better because of it.
Mirrors, we hardly knew ye.
Technically, two... but who is counting?
It's not quite a Kansas City shuffle, but its close enough. The downtown is losing two bars and is opening a new one. The owner of Mirrors, Tracy Myers, is closing the popular establishment located on the corner of 4th and Felix. The mainstay has been controversial, but packed on a regular basis for the better part of eight years. Tracy is using the building to move one of her other bars, The Buffalo Club, into the building. She is also concentrating on her
The new bar opening up downtown is Lost and Found, which is aiming to add spice as a new dance club. The work on the club started in December and is scheduled to open within the next couple of weeks.
I work at a competing bar and while most people would see it as competition, We dont. Business downtown is built upon all of us doing well as most of the customers float between the different entertainment options. Things will keep going and business will be better because of it.
Mirrors, we hardly knew ye.
Friday, February 1, 2008
Its the first of the mooooooonth.
Being a DJ downtown is fun... sort of. You're underpaid, you're main customers are usually drunk, and the hours are terrible. Regardless, it is a stepping stone for many people into a *gasp* career.
Dan Michaels, known around town as DJ Dan, was the person who got me started on a live radio show called the Nova Pimp show. Dan is a graduate of Kansas State and has worked for Eagle Communications for almost 15 years. He is now a director there which has led him into several other events into town including mc'ing for regional events and to lead him into his own self-made business of nightly dj'ing for the local scene.
Whats the point? It doesnt seem like a lot, but jobs in this industry can be a stepping stone. I doubt that Ill do this job for the rest of my days, but its something that I excel at and something thats going to let me build on everything else I do, regardless of my career.
Being a DJ downtown is fun... sort of. You're underpaid, you're main customers are usually drunk, and the hours are terrible. Regardless, it is a stepping stone for many people into a *gasp* career.
Dan Michaels, known around town as DJ Dan, was the person who got me started on a live radio show called the Nova Pimp show. Dan is a graduate of Kansas State and has worked for Eagle Communications for almost 15 years. He is now a director there which has led him into several other events into town including mc'ing for regional events and to lead him into his own self-made business of nightly dj'ing for the local scene.
Whats the point? It doesnt seem like a lot, but jobs in this industry can be a stepping stone. I doubt that Ill do this job for the rest of my days, but its something that I excel at and something thats going to let me build on everything else I do, regardless of my career.
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