Observation Of Bar Culture

On Tuesday, November 21, 2017, I attended an Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meeting at the Chandler Lodge, a sober living facility for men that was established in 1960. The facility is fairly decent but can use some renovation. The racial mix was a combination of Hispanics, Caucasians, with a few Asians and African Americans. The gender mix was a combination of males and females, with a few more men than women. There must have been a total of fifty people in attendance. The capacity of the room could hold about one hundred people.

Drinking patterns of minorities are influenced by stressors related to social adjustment to the dominant U.S. culture. These stressors

When an individual discusses alcohol consumption and stereotypes the first thing that comes to mind is Australia and it’s ‘boozy’ culture. According to the Alcohol in Australia: Issues and strategies report undertaken by the Ministerial Council on Drug Strategy in the early days of Australia’s civilisation it shows that in the 1830’s in New South Wales 13.6 litres of alcohol in its pure state were consumes each year by an individual, predominantly males. Furthermore in more recent time’s mass media events have highlighted the positive framing of alcohol, with alcohol developing an identity with high profile sporting and cultural events (Strategy, 2001). This is ‘proven’ to be true in relation to stereotypes given to Australia around the world as a common theme in any alcohol advertisement is the relation of alcohol and having a good time at a major sporting event. When watching a sporting event the viewer is often bombarded with alcohol messages through “Teams, athletes and coaches often being captured in the media celebrating a win with alcohol” (Cox, 2014). Also the viewer is bombarded in the way that

Alcohol-Related Windows on Simmel’s Social World by William J. Staudenmeier Jr. from the text, Illuminating Social Life, dives into the topic of alcohol and how its role in society can be directly reflected back to Simmel’s work. The text was introduced by explaining how alcohol has been a major influence throughout American history and how it has shaped the interactions of difference cultures, races and ethnicities by characterizing drinking as “conflict between coexisting value structures” (98). Simmel’s ideas about the core differences between dyads and triads was applied in the context of how group interaction significantly changed when the role of alcohol becomes a factor to socializing. Three different group stratifications can be seen

City Tavern is a place of delectable entrees and a wonderful lively atmosphere. Famous for its skirt steak, which it has perfected over the last 20 years, there are several variations of it in which you can order. The entrana primavera is skirt steak topped with sautéed spinach, artichokes, black olives and garlic in a sherry wine sauce. The bandeja paisa is crafted with grilled skirt steak, rice, beans, seasoned pork rind, fried banana and egg.

The Detroit News even had an editorial called “TO THE HIGH SCHOOL INTELLECT,” encouraging kids that it is hip and cool if one drinks and it helps with getting girls, “It is chic and charming to have an intrigue with a bootlegger, to carry a flask on the hip, to produce it where its possession may enhance a reputation for derring-do, and to imbibe from it in the presence of lovely and impressionable femininity” (Okrent 213). The editorial influenced many young people to drink in Detroit, and was the reason why a high school dance at the Hotel Statler was shut down because of excessive drinking (Okrent 213). America’s youth was changing due to false and immature motifs and ideals of drinking. Because of Prohibition there no limits or restrictions that regulated drinking, this led to many teenagers to

In Sacha Z. Scoblic’s essay, Rock Star, Meet Teetotaler, she recounts her societal struggles after coming out from troubles involving alcoholism. At the age of thirty-two, she had been a Teetotaler for six months and was meeting people at a restaurant in hopes of finding friends to be acquainted with her new found sobriety. However, when she declines an offer of wine, she displays conflict between her drinking and non-drinking self because she once conceived that entertainment could only be met through the consumption of alcohol. She portrays a desire for social acceptance, yearning to

Some underage students feel the need to involve alcoholic beverages in their social gathering because of social media’s portrayal of party’s, peer pressure and other reasons. Little do they consider the problem of underage drinking, especially on college campuses or fraternity and sorority homes. First of all, students drinking underage are violating the National Minimum Drinking Age Act of 1984, which declared that only individuals over the age of 21 were legally allowed to consume alcohol. In Paying for the Party: How College Maintains Inequality, by Elizabeth A. Armstrong and Laura T. Hamilton, their research depicts that at Midwest University, “The alcohol-fueled underage party scene on campus is mostly located in fraternities” (52).

In today’s American society, the consumption of alcohol is commonly practiced. It is quite uncommon for one to attend a social event where the presence of alcohol is obsolete. However, society has deemed it fit to tell our youth that they are not allowed to participate in the traditional social pastime of drinking until they reach the age of 21. Hence, when they encounter methods around this predicament-and most of them do-young adults often participate in the reckless consumption of alcohol in large quantities.

While tending bar can be an interesting job with clientele of all walks of life that can make for a very exciting shift, it's also one that's quite a bit more difficult than it looks when on the other side of the counter and watching someone mix and pour drinks. Good judgment, interpersonal skills, and the ability to be firm in decisions and not easily be swayed or talked out of them are necessary in this position, in addition to possessing observational skills.

In America, drinking is like a sport. It’s an activity, it’s fun and we love to do it. Drinking is all around us, it’s a social norm. We drink at family parties, sports events, restaurants, etc. Almost anywhere there is alcohol beverages being served. Americans are known for being “binge drinkers” or a bunch of “Alcoholics”. This dates all the way back to our founding fathers. Our first president George Washington spent a full 7% of his income while in office on booze. His infamous farewell party tab totaled over $15,000 present-day dollars just on alcohol (Smith 1). John Adams and his family were also big drinkers, Moreau de St. Méry, a

In the United States, the consumption of alcohol is more or less ingrained in American culture. Whether beer at the baseball game, wine from Napa Valley, or bourbon from Kentucky, alcohol has shaped American culture. The rise in immigration during the late 1800s and early 1900s led to towns establishing saloons in order to lure in potential customers and boost the local economy. By 1900, there were nearly 300,000 saloons—Kansas City alone had over 100 saloons for every one person (Okrent 27). These quickly became associated with vice and excess, and often doubled as casinos or even brothels. Most Americans saw these as foul, repugnant and vile institutions that were at odds with their cities’ values. This rise in shady saloons and alcohol consumption led to a rise in alcohol-related offenses, which accounted for nearly half of all crimes committed. Not merely limited to criminal offenses, excessive alcohol consumption during the early 20th century led to high rates of cirrhosis (15 for every 1000000) and chronic alcoholism (10 for every 100000) (Blocker, 235). Factory managers disapproved of their employees drinking, noting that it lowered productivity, but the largest and most vocal opponents of alcohol were middle-class women, who argued that alcohol degraded the morals and virtue of men, left children fatherless, and left wives abused and neglected.

While young people in foreign countries learn to regard moderate drinking as an enjoyable social activity, young Americans view it as something they have to sneak around to do. If 18 year olds do not have legal access to even a beer in a public place, they are ill equipped to deal with the responsibilities that come with drinking when they do have the right.

In the United States alone the drinking patterns throughout history have changed dramatically to reflect the times. Starting out in colonial times the usage of alcohol use was seen as a blessing, and harmless to society. It was acceptable to drink while at work, and during social events, however drinking alone was highly frowned upon. Many early religions believed that alcohol was a gift from God, “man should partake of God’s gift with out wasting or abusing it”#. To enhance and encourage the social

In addition to dinner, the menu included an open bar. What originally started out to be an innocent and business appropriate function turned into a wild free-for-all that lasted into the late hours of the night, and behaviors erupted that should never occur in any business relationship. The following morning, a large percentage of those in attendance at the party were absent from work, and many of those who did show up were tardy and ill, incapable of performing their duties. Productivity was significantly decreased for the entire day, and for some, even into the following day. In light of that single event, the practice of “open bar” social gatherings between the financial office and the dealerships was abolished. It is not surprising to note that according to the United States Office of Personnel Management, the rate of absenteeism is estimated to be 4 to 8 times greater among alcoholics and alcohol abusers (L'Etoile, 2011) .