Days of the Down and Out

Nobody loves you when you're down and out
Nobody sees you when you're on cloud nine
Everybody's hustlin' for a buck and a dime
I'll scratch your back and you scratch mine

--John Lennon

Over at Pacific Brew News, Rick sings a familiar lament about how to afford drinkin' when the economy's stinkin'.

Is it cool to cheap on a tip? Hell no. But is it so bad that we stay at home to drink bottled beer bought at places with shitty service and marginal quality? I guess I'm thinking about the owners of the bars more than I am about the servers, and maybe that's where my argument goes south, but I just can't help but think it's better to drink and be "cheap" (or economical) than it is to stop patronizing your local watering hole - be it a bar, brewery or pub. Is it cool to just order drinks, cut the food (eat at home), and call it a night?

It's an existential complaint, really. I hear you man, I hear you. But whatever you do, don't start drinking the Pabst. Hamm's ... well, maybe. But never Pabst.