from a Lesbian Wait Staff herself

hollywood farm girl [writing about working in NY]:

I remember bartending one night at a ladies' bar.... We ended up so packed full of people, they had to start turning people away at the door. Seriously packed. The ladies who were able to get into the bar were not that happy about it either. Not really any place to sit, barely a place to stand, and forget about using the restroom. I turned to the cocktail waitress who was helping me: "What the hell is going on?" She laughed and shouted back, over the din: "A Melissa Etheridge concert just let out!" and then I lost her in the crowd. I worked my ass off that night. I saw some friends who had been able to attend. I didn't. Couldn't afford to: every last penny was getting saved up for my big trip to LA. So I missed a lot of Melissa Etheridge concerts, but I sure as hell waited on her concert-goers. Just FYI: lesbians are the worst tippers. Gay men are the best. Straight men come in second, straight women come in third, and my sexy sisters come in dead last. I figured it's cuz women make less than men, and PE teachers make less than everyone else. But I loved being around "family". I loved working in a gay bar. I'm sure my regulars all freaked out when I started becoming successful and lied my ass off to the press about my sexuality. Ugh. How shitty of me. My eyes were on a prize that others had insisted was The Prize for me, and I had forgotten my goal in the first place: happiness. It's easy to lose yourself when you place so many others in charge of your life.