This is the story of a close friend of mine: a cutthroat career woman who started dating…a bartender…at nightclub Kiss & Fly. (Don’t judge her.) I know what you’re all thinking – that this scenario seems a little weird, but trust me, after seeing Hannah with eligible-executive-suit-type after eligible-sporty type for years (and it never working out), everyone in our group of friends was refreshed to see her with someone who was actually a great match for her. Not only did it mean a lot of free lemon drop shots at Kiss & Fly, but she was the happiest we’ve all ever seen her. The bartender, Kev, is her age, responsible, with a great personality.
Who ends up actually seriously dating “the bartender?” Especially, in a cruel, loveless place like New York?
It seemed Anna had done the impossible. Weeks went by and this guy had yet to reveal himself a douche. Anna glowed, cheerful, almost offensively optimistic and on the fast track to love. After the three-month period upon which the fast track to love train usually derails and explodes in flames, we met up for coffee. Knowing that love has as much of a chance of survival in our city as an infant bunny does in Times Square, I’m prepared to hear about how everything’s gone down the crapper.
Instead, Anna’s still love-stoned as ever and I have to suffer through three Chai green teas worth of he’s the ‘cleanest boy ever,’ ‘raised right’ and ‘roasts chicken better then Jean Gorge.’ Just when I’m contemplating how to hang myself using my tea bag as a noose, she finally says:
“There’s just one problem…”
“Yes…?” I lean in eagerly.
“I can’t stand it that every morning, I go to work and he gets to sleep in. I mean, I work from 7am to 8pm. He works from 8pm to 4am. It’s brutal. We work reverse schedules and I’m so tiiiired.”
Finance folks always look super sleep deprived, but now that she’d said something, I did notice that the circles under her eyes were a brighter and more Barney-shade of purple.
Anna goes on to tell me about how Kev finishes up at 4am if he’s lucky, 5am if he’s not, comes over to her place where they have sex, talk, laugh and play until her alarm goes off and it’s time for her to go to work. If she’s lucky, she gets in another 20-minute nap before her 6am buzzer.
“I’ve started taking 30-minute naps at the handicap bathroom at work. I can barely keep my eyes open. All day, the only thing I can think about is my bed.”
It was like that Miranda and Steve episode of Sex and the City where they’re suffering sleep deprivation with different schedules, but this was the drawn-out, in real life, for three months version.
“The only reason I’m even awake and able to have this conversation with you right now,” Anna confessed, “is because this is a double, and my third,” she held up her espresso cup.
Alas – the course of true love never does run smooth.
I’ll be updating about Anna and Kev should anything else of interest proceed to develop. True ‘wuv’ or not, I don’t think they can live happily ever after unless someone does a career change. Meanwhile, Kiss & Fly lady frequenters stay away from the hot guy at the main bar – he’s taken. And anyone else ailing from Reverse Schedule Dating Syndrome please share.
Photo Credit: http://www.hotelchatter.com/
August 13th, 2009 at 12:14 pm
OMG this sound awful!! You’re poor friend
They should start hanging out on weekends only, or else she is gonna burn out soon. Hopefully her man gets another job at a different bar with a more reasonable sched.
August 13th, 2009 at 11:49 pm
Dating is usually a horrible experience!
October 6th, 2009 at 2:57 am
I suffer from this, except I’m the night worker who cant find a date!