Revellian

Thoughts and Fiction of Bobby Revell

Archive for category life personal

Freakish Jobs: Copa Casino – Worst Employee Ever

Jun 22

Posted by Bobby Revell in horror, Humor, life personal

Maybe I am the worst employee ever, or maybe I’ve had the worst employers known in the history of Earth – you be the judge. I was once employed by the Copa Casino in Gulfport, Mississippi – one of the most freakish jobs I’ve ever had. It was for the most part a great place to work – the money was fantastic and the atmosphere was extremely fun. If you are a long time reader, you know I’ve had some bizarre experiences, which is one reason my horror and fiction stories are so freakish. I just had to share this experience with you all. The Copa Casino was completely destroyed by hurricane Katrina. It was less than 10 miles from my home.

copa casino

copa casino

The Sexual Harassment Incident

This first story occurred on the original Copa, which was an old ship, not the one pictured above. I worked on the original and the new one. I had a manager, who was a creepy overweight guy in his forties and everyone knew his dad was a state senator – he often bragged about it. He often talked the beautiful young cocktail waitresses into playing a game with him called “trust”. It involved the girl falling backwards and “trusting” him to catch them. He had been after this girl, Amber (who was 18 years old and recently had breast enlargement surgery), to play the game with him. I was busy working and the perverted manager (Fred) convinced Amber to play the game. Fred thought I wasn’t paying attention, but I was onto his game. Amber fell backwards and Fred caught her – simultaneously cupping her breasts in his hands and morbidly staring down her top. As she leaned forward, he kept his hands on her breasts, fondling them gently with a sickening look of molestation in his eyes. She turned and slapped him while screaming, “Get your fucking hands off of me you old pervert.”

He replied, “Oh, I’m sorry…it’s just the way you fell.”

Amber was feeling sick about the situation and began crying. I had forewarned her but she didn’t listen. I convinced her to report him for sexual harassment. In a casino, sexual harassment cases happen everyday and most go unpunished. She felt more confident about it because I was a witness. The next day at work, I learned that Amber had quit and no charges had been filed. I am quite sure they took her in a back office and threatened or scared her. Fred told me and I quote, “If you ever say anything about me again, you are finished…and I mean six feet under. I know people who can make you disappear.”

I retorted, “What? You’re threatening my life? The last three people who threatened me ended up dead or paralyzed and I didn’t have to know any ‘people’ – I did it myself,” hey, if you play hardball with me, I up the stakes. The storm blew over after a few weeks. I feel bad I ever said that to him. Read on and see why.

The Sickening Cook Incident

I was on lunch break and ordered a hamburger and fries at the employee cafeteria. I specifically asked for no cheese. I received my meal and noticed cheese on my burger. I asked the cook, a gay black guy named Bobby to to please make me another burger as I didn’t want cheese. I could see into the kitchen – apparently, the cook didn’t know I could see him. He bit the cheese off of my burger (with his saliva drizzling mouth) and spit it into the garbage. My eyes almost popped out of my head in disbelief. He wrapped it back up and brought it to me. I took it to my manager, the perverted Fred, and told him what happened. Even he was disgusted and said he would fire the cook. A little while later he said, “The cook said he would call the NAACP. He said you just don’t like him because he is black. Besides, he said you are lying…sorry dude.”

So the cook kept his job, but I was viewed as the bad employee…again.

The Evil Manager Incident

I was out $5.00 for my oral infected hamburger and was told to shut up or I would be fired. You have to understand that the main boss, another creepy old bastard named Russel, just so happened to despise me. I am quite sure that Russel was responsible for all this but couldn’t prove it.

The first day I ever worked there, the main manager Russel, screamed at me, “Hey boy…yes you! Do this, do that!”

I screamed back at him, “Don’t ever talk to me like that. You will treat me like a person.”

After that day, he hated my guts. I was the only person out of 50 employees in his department that actually screamed back at him, as difficult as that is to believe. Alright. Now to the most unbelievable aspect of all:

The Twilight Zone Occurrences

My days off were Tuesday and Wednesday. I checked my schedule on Monday and stayed home on Tuesday and Wednesday, just like my schedule ordered. I was fired on Thursday because they changed my days off Monday night – after I went home! They said it was my responsibility to recheck the schedule Tuesday morning, before enjoying my normal days off.

  • Two weeks after I was fired, the manager Russel had a stroke and was paralyzed from the waist down. He also suffered severe memory loss and will live the rest of his life in a wheelchair.
  • A year later, the cook who chewed the cheese off my hamburger, was murdered in a crack-deal-gone-bad by gang members.
  • My manager Fred had a massive coronary and is now dying of lung cancer and emphysema.
  • I saw the waitress Amber recently working – of all places – as a waitress serving hamburgers at a Sonic drive thru. She still has a great body and is quite beautiful; however, her teeth are all rotted out and she’s married to a crack dealer. She didn’t remember who I was. She said, “I think I worked at the Copa Casino, but that was back in the day and it’s all just a fog.”

I thought to myself, “Back in the day? Hahahaha….you’re only 22 or so and it happened just a few years ago.” Thank God they fired me from that place before I ended up next on the grim reaper’s list. I often wonder if I had placed an evil curse on them. Nowadays, I try my best to handle things more wisely. The final incident was the casino being destroyed by a hurricane. It’s definitely from the twilight zone.

*The picture is from Hurricane Katrina Damage Photos – Mississippi Gulf Coast. Check out all the incredible pictures by clicking the link.

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Interview With a Blind Homeless Man

May 19

Posted by Bobby Revell in critical thinking, issue awareness, life personal, philosophy

A few months ago, I was invited by a coworker to come to an outdoor picnic. I had an uneasy feeling about going, but accepted because he was so insistent. He is a married guy with six kids – being single, I feel weird hanging out with a bunch of married people.

To my surprise, the event was sponsored by a local Christian church. I felt really uncomfortable because I thought they would try to convert me to Christianity, something I really wasn’t prepared to deal with. I live in an area of the US known as the bible belt, so I guess I’m used to it. The main reason I went was because my friend Jason wanted me to meet his sister, who hadn’t arrived at that point as she was running late.

I noticed an old homeless man standing nearby. He was struggling just to walk and was blind. He asked a few people if he could have something to eat because he was weak and very hungry. One of the church members said, “Leave you filthy old man, you stink. Leave or we will call the police.”

The old man replied, “I’m so sorry sir,” and began walking away, using a mop stick to feel the ground.

I felt really bad about it. The guy who rudely told him to leave said, “Can you believe that? Every time we have a cook out, a goddamn trashy low life comes crawling out of the woodwork trying to leech a free meal off of us.”

I was shocked and thought everyone else would’ve been too, but they weren’t. My friend Jason and his wife agreed, telling their children to stay away from the old man so they wouldn’t catch a disease from him. I was so offended! I became angry and tried to avoid saying anything but couldn’t help it. I said, “I thought you people were supposed to be Christians. Aren’t you supposed to help people? I’m looking around and everyone here drives expensive cars, wears designer clothes and act really superficial.”

Jason said, “That old man isn’t a person, he’s trash. We can’t feed every vagrant that walks up.”

I replied, “I cannot believe how callous you people are. Real Christians don’t worry about material things and are supposed to love every human being…unconditionally.”

Disgusted, I walked away from the discussion, preparing myself a plate full of food and a cup of apple juice. I brought it to the homeless man and we sat down on the ground while he ate. The crowd stared at me in disbelief, offended at what I had done. I talked to the old man for quite a while, and wanted to share what I remember of the conversation. I decided to present it in an interview format for ease of understanding:

Me: How long have you been blind?

Old man: I was born blind. My parents pretty much rejected me at a young age. I’m really sorry about begging for food, but I haven’t eaten in three days. I suffer from dementia, and being blind makes things so much more difficult.

Me: So you’ve never been able to see your entire life? You’ve heard of words like ugly, pretty, fat, stupid? What do those words mean to you?

Old Man: Yes, I’ve heard those words, but I don’t understand what they mean. People don’t understand…I have never seen anything so I don’t have a concept of what things look like. It’s so strange to have someone ask me about that. No one has ever asked me about that. I don’t know much, but I do know I’ve been called many of those words. I don’t get upset when someone calls me old, stupid or whatever because I don’t know what it really means when describing a person.

Me: You go by smell or sound mostly huh? When you hear someone speak, do you feel a certain way about them because of the sound of their voice?

Old Man: No. People all sound different. I go by what they say and how they say it. Some people are mean or rude. Some people speak kindly. Some women smell pretty like flowers, and some don’t. I wish I could see, but I got over it years ago. You are so lucky to have eyes that work.

Me: No my friend, you are the lucky one. If you could see, you’d know why people are cruel and treat others based solely on what they look like. People who see, live their lives based on it. They like nice clothes, cars, houses, pretty things and so forth. Every one of those things are unimportant and irrelevant. People live their lives based on what they see on TV or in magazines.

Old man: I’ve never watched TV of course. I can read braille, but really don’t understand much of it because many stories are about what things look like. I don’t know what anything looks like. Thank you very much for helping me today, you are a very kind person. Just from talking to you, I feel like the weight of the world was lifted off my shoulders. Thank you.

Me: No…thank you sir, you are the luckiest man alive and I will never forget you.

He smiled and we shook hands. I offered to drive him somewhere but he immediately cut me off. He wanted no more help from me and slowly walked off into the woods. It may seem strange that I got into a philosophical conversation with him, but it does happen to me quite often. I couldn’t help but wonder what the world would be like if we were all blind. There would be no ugly, fat, short, black, white, pretty or any other superficial judgments. It was a powerful experience and I am truly thankful for having met him. All those people missed out on something truly meaningful because they were filled with so much hatred and bigotry. I do realize these people are not representative of all Christians, but only one small group. I know in my heart that not all of them were like that; someone had to appreciate my actions.

My friend Jason hasn’t since spoken to me for embarrassing him in front of his church group. It doesn’t bother me at all. I would be embarrassed to be like him. Just so you know, I never did meet his sister and don’t even know if she is aware of me giving my food to that old man. I read in the newspaper a few days ago that the old blind man was found dead on the side of the road. He died from dehydration and had been there for a few days before they found his body.

All my life, things like this have happened to me. This is why I am not materialistic. While watching TV earlier, all I saw was perfect, beautiful people; living perfect, beautiful lives. Everyone has perfect hair, expensive clothes and perfectly straight white teeth, capped with expensive porcelain veneers. All I could think is how ugly it all is, how shallow people are and how this world is filled with superficial ideals. My friend J.C. in his post, On-Line Television, put his TV in the closet. I’m not quite ready to do that yet, but there’s not much on it I want to see anymore.

It’s so funny how animals, like cats and dogs, don’t care about what things look like. They love you unconditionally. In many respects, people just aren’t as smart as animals.

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113 Comments

Winning Attitude Comes From Within

Apr 13

Posted by Bobby Revell in blog marketing, law of attraction, life personal, thought

One thing I rarely discuss on this blog is my experience in selling and closing deals mostly because I became disgusted with the way most money blogs operate on line. You know the deal – you plaster endless ads all over your blog and pray for people to click them so you can make .05 cents. Then you focus your content and hone in on keywords trying to follow the advice of “experts” who will teach you how to do it efficiently. Hasn’t it crossed your mind that these experts are just wanting your traffic so that you may click their ads? Overall, it’s a very poor way to make money. Most bloggers make like $100.00 per year, but many lie about those figures so they will seem more successful than they are. I hope this article will help you understand something that can help you in many ways – not just for making money, but in life as well.

Money Attracts Money?

In the summer of 2004, I was working as a bartender in the Grand Casino Resort swimming pool cabana. It was the highest paying job I have ever had for the short time I worked there. I made $27,000.00 in tips alone – in four months! I learned some unusual lessons about money while working there. We had this gigantic glass tip bucket sitting on top of the bar. A regular sized tip jar would have been far too small.

The first busy day we had there, the tip jar was filled to the top in cash. It was so full, it was obscene. It was rude, tacky and was in every customer’s face. The three bartenders (myself included), left with over $500.00 each that day. Our manager told us she thought (yes, I had a female manager who was one of the best I have ever had – her name was Ruth Crane) that the tip jar was offensive to her. She asked us to empty it into a bag when it got so full so we wouldn’t have this insanely money stuffed beast in everyone’s faces.

So, the next day, we did just that. We were actually busier that day than the day before. We emptied the colossal cash bucket just as she had asked. I left work with $90.00 that day – ouch! I took in over $17,000.00 but only made $90.00 in tips – Strange indeed. Why was that? It seemed logical that an empty tip jar would attract lots of tips…right? No, it doesn’t work like that, or so we thought. We talked to the manager and told her what happened. She agreed that if it hurt our tip rate, we should go back to putting the overstuffed jar back up – shoving it in everyone’s faces. We did just that and our tip rates exploded through the roof!

Attitude Was The Real Reason

Was the tip jar being packed or empty the real cause of success or failure – or was something else at work? I suspected it was something else. I talked it over with the other bartenders and we decided to try something based on my suspicion. I thought, because we had that huge tip jar out, loaded with cash, it affected our attitudes during work. We got used to seeing all that money and were much friendlier and enthusiastic with our customers.

We started keeping the tip jar completely empty at all times, but paid attention to our attitudes and customer service 100% more. We pumped each other up and kept ourselves excited throughout the day having loads of fun. We learned to make even more massive amounts of money without even noticing how much we had made. We depended on ourselves, not that tip jar. I earned the well deserved nickname, “Cabana Bobby” because I loved my job so much. It was lots of fun. I worked wearing comfortable shorts and a tank top, looking at girls in bikinis all day – all while making great money.

It’s definitely not that money attracts money. A winning, enthusiastic and positive attitude is what really attracts money. This really defines what people think of as the “law of attraction”. Originally, this idea comes from ancient India. It is a concept from Hinduism, which is by the way, the oldest known religion. I have studied similar ideas from my life long study of yoga and it’s inherent philosophies. I am just now beginning to truly understand what I learned.

Although my blog is not about how to make money, I thought this cool little story might be beneficial to anyone, regardless of what kind of blog or website you have. True success and a winning attitude really does come from within. We proved that working in this simple job. We learned that we had been depending on that full jar to make us money, while the real solution was inside ourselves. It’s really amazing to think about.

It Comes From Within

My wonderful friend Morgan, told me that when looking for love, we must look within to find it. I wanted to thank her because she has really helped me on numerous occasions. Though this money making example is not about love – the same principle is at work. The answers truly do come from within, in every area of life. It’s so cool how someone can say such a little thing that has a huge, resonating effect. It has helped me piece together many things I already know, but didn’t truly understand. You see, we made huge money without looking for it. It’s much like people saying you find love when you’re not looking for it. Life is just funny that way.

I believe it has a lot to do with being relaxed internally and not being desperate. You must be at peace with yourself inside. If you’re not, people notice – maybe only subconsciously, but it does have a powerful effect on your attitude and how people perceive you. Your personal vibe is more powerful than you may believe. You must learn to be aware of it and how to control it – from within.

Just for your information, the Grand Casino resort was destroyed by hurricane Katrina. The storm lifted the gargantuan casino up and slammed it onto the middle of highway 90 in Gulfport, Mississippi. It was an absolutely unbelievable sight to behold. I thought I would show you some awesome pictures of the casino. I live only around 7 miles from this location. I am a hurricane Katrina survivor.

Grand Casino before and after Katrina

Grand Casino before and after Katrina

Above left is before the storm, right is after. Note how all the trees were annihilated

The casino pictures are from Tullis Trees.org

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Storm of Tears

Apr 4

Posted by Bobby Revell in life personal, thought

I was driving along the beach last night and decided to stop for a little while. I took my shoes off and walked down to the water’s edge and sat down. I never go to the beach anymore, especially at night, as it reminds me of my an ex-girlfriend. It was warm, but a nice balmy breeze rolled across my face as I stared into the starry sky.

I thought about my life. I thought about how I had to sever ties with so many friends the past few years. Nearly every friend I’ve ever had has either moved away , died, gone to prison or are drug addicts. I don’t judge people for using drugs and I have used them myself. I grew up and no longer do things like that. If someone is using drugs and especially if they carry them around in their pockets, I cannot be their friend. I’ve seen many of my friends go to prison and many have died from them; however, I can and will help any of them if they want it. As I looked into the sky, I felt relieved that I am strong enough to make wise decisions no matter how much they hurt.

I watched shrimp boats off in the distance and felt a sadness in my heart. I realized how alone I am in my life. I have my family and my blogging buddies – that’s all I have. I was thinking about how many people I know who are happily married with families and how they celebrate life. My life is so different than theirs. It’s extremely difficult to not be bitter when people have wonderful relationships – while your own life is filled with rejection and unbelievable disappointments.

Imagine that you’re starving and someone is telling you about their new house, new sports car and how they just ate a huge meal – all the while, you’re sick and stomach is extremely empty. Imagine being poor and unable to buy your children a toy. Someone then tells you about how they received endless Christmas gifts. You tell them how wonderful it must be for them – inside you are in pain, holding back a storm of tears. Bitterness is like fire, it engulfs your soul and fills you with sadness. It can destroy your life.

Storm of Tears

Storm of Tears

I choose to not be bitter. I choose to not allow myself to feel bad because someone has a great life. Instead, I will celebrate with them. I congratulate them and truly mean what I say. I choose to not hold sadness in my heart. So I sat thinking all this while staring into the midnight sky. The place that used to bring me pain and only remind me of lost love has taken on new meaning. I feel like I am just starting to love my life and myself. I felt tears well up and one trickled down my cheek. At that very moment, a shooting star blazed across the heavens. I wished that I would find my soul mate – someone to spend the rest of my life with. I don’t necessarily believe in such wishes, but that shooting star came at such a strange time. I sat there crying, sitting in the sand. It started to rain soon after, and I cried even more. It seemed that every drop of rain were tears from the bottom of my soul. Lightning struck the water and tentacles of electric fire danced across the waves. I smiled and awaited the thunder.

The lightning picture is from Moonsheep.

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How To Cope With Stress

Mar 24

Posted by Bobby Revell in life personal, philosophy, thought

I often see people struggling to find something to write about. I have the opposite problem; I have too many ideas and have to separate one from the collective, whittle away the unessentials and find some semblance of direction. I imagine carving away all those things unnecessary in my life – leaving splinters of anger and stress all over the floor. There I am, buried up to my neck, trying to crawl out of my own pile. While thinking, I remembered something that affected my personal life and how it helped me to become a stronger person.

Stress builds up in our lives and we must release it somehow. We hold it in, sometimes for years. Some of us unleash it on the people closest to us by screaming hurtful things at them, trying to balance the hatred and angst we hold within ourselves. Then we read articles about relieving stress. They tell us we need a massage, exercise, psychotherapy, a hot bath in a dark room filled with candles, soothing music and God. All of these things may help, but I see another way.

Before stress even begins, we must learn to let go of thoughts that fester and nurture stress. It has a lot to do with whether we, in some way, decide to be stressed or not. Ultimately, we decide how we feel. If we allow other people and situations to control how we cope, we lose. We fall prey to the intentions of others, not ourselves.

A paramedic friend of mine became so stressed out from his job, that he attempted suicide to kill the inner pain he was suffering. I’ll tell you what happened so you will understand why:

The Man Who Destroyed Himself

A few years ago, a medical emergency was phoned in. He tried to avoid going to the scene because it was his brother who had called. He wanted another paramedic team to handle it because of the stress of dealing with his own family. It’s generally a good idea for EMS workers to not handle their relatives’ emergencies. Unfortunately, no one else was available, so he had to go.

His brother and sister-in-law’s new born baby was choking on a plastic hair clip and couldn’t breathe. He placed the infant on his forearm angled towards the floor, giving gentle but forceful taps to the infant’s back (the standard technique, please don’t attempt this yourself without proper medical training). The baby was blue, fighting for life. He did everything he could, but the baby suffocated and died.

He followed procedure and did everything he could possibly do. He has over 25 years experience and had similar experiences before. His brother and sister-in-law blamed him for the death. Imagine the anguish this man lived through. Eventually, it became unbearable as his family never forgave him. He turned to alcohol and drugs, sinking into the wretched claws of intense depression. He attempted to kill himself with painkillers but survived. He lost his career and his wife left him, siding with his brother. To this day, he has not recovered and has destroyed himself. I haven’t seen him in over a year.

Solutions and Reasons

This is a real world example of self-inflicted stress and depression. Yes, what happened to him was horrific. Yes, his unforgiving family was wrong for blaming him. I don’t want to sound insensitive, but it is his fault for allowing this to destroy him. He wasn’t prepared to cope with such a situation – that is the key. He could recover if he learned how to.

The point is, being prepared with strong life coping skills is something we all need. Perhaps if he had a forgiving and understanding family, none of this would have happened in quite the same way. Envision yourself in the same exact situation; furthermore, imagine how you would handle it.

This post is not about alleviating stress, it’s about preventing it by having strong coping skills. I’m not saying we shouldn’t have heartache, but we cannot allow that heartache to continually linger – thus, destroying our lives. It takes a great understanding of family and relationship dynamics to get through a dark event like this.

Every element in the situation feeds off of one other. We must throw a wrench into the gears to stop this perpetual stress machine. We must allow ourselves to heal and not hold in self blame. We must let go of it and be strong – without feeling guilty. All it would take, is if my paramedic friend to be strong and truly let go – being an example of personal love. If only one person in his family came to the rescue and forgave him could also be the key. Something must change for healing. Keep doing the same thing and you’ll get the same results – a self-perpetuating cycle of gloom.

The answer in nearly all situations is love. We must love ourselves. Be your own best friend and forgive yourself. Be compassionate to yourself and everyone in your life. Sometimes we have to end relationships, but we cannot hold the feelings in – as you can see, it destroys lives and allows no room for living. To me, this has more to do with spiritual growth than in does mental or psychological. Don’t ever be afraid of seeking help. You can find it professionally, from friends, family or a friendly blogger. There are wonderful people everywhere who can help you. If you don’t have anyone to talk to, come to me – I’ll help you in anyway I can.

Remember, don’t feel guilty about not feeling guilty – it doesn’t mean you’re a bad person because you can get over things. To make it through life, you must learn to help yourself and not be afraid to ask for help. Be strong and have a wonderful day!

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Memories of Sweet Sadness

Mar 7

Posted by Bobby Revell in life personal

In 2001, I had a job managing a health food/vitamin store which I absolutely loved. There were lots of available women around every corner as it was in a very popular outlet mall. One day, this incredibly charismatic and attractive woman came in. We were both smiling and couldn’t stop looking at each other – my heart was pounding and I became this giggling little kid unable to hide his nervousness.

We talked for around twenty minutes and finally, she said she had to go because she was shopping with her mother and had to meet back up with her. She walked out and I thought, “No…how does this happen to me?”

I wished she would come back and I waited, pacing the floor; staring out the front window…hoping. Finally, I decided to give up and started to straighten up some shelves. Suddenly, she walked back in with her mother; catching me off guard. The three of us had a fantastic conversation – intense but fun questions and answers flying about – it was absolute fun!

Her mother, almost on cue, said goodbye and left her daughter to chat with me a little longer. What a great mom she had! I knew I had to take action right then. I told her, “When you left earlier, I was devastated…even though I just met you. Right now, my heart is beating so fast, I can barely talk…”

Her face became flushed in crimson – I knew mine was too but I somehow asked her, “Would you…”

She cut me off, blurting out, “YES! I will go out with you…hahaha!”

We both exploded in laughter…tears welled up in her eyes and I walked over and asked her if I could hug her before she left – she threw her arms around me and I held her for what seemed like hours. Her mother popped up, gawking through the window at us…leaving us both red faced and intoxicated with infatuation.

We dated for a brief period of time after that. Really, it was quite wonderful and I will never forget her. I was calling her endlessly for weeks but noticed that she never called me. I wondered what would happen if I stopped calling her. Would she call me? Would she forget about me? It was something I really needed to know. I didn’t want to ask her because I felt like actions speak much louder than words.

One day, I stopped calling her. Several days went by and I incessantly thought for sure she would call me back. That was seven years ago…I never heard from her again. What she never knew, was that I fell in love with her the day I met her. It’s a beautifully somber memory to have – though I did get over it – I often wonder what became of her.

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Coping Skills – Dealing With Life For Happiness

Feb 27

Posted by Bobby Revell in life personal, thought

This is my entry in Jamilla’s Share Your Happy Moments With Jamy contest. Please visit Jamilla and say hello; she’s a wonderful person with a big heart!

Happiness has long been elusive for me. I have many happy moments to remember but one recent event in particular really stands out for me. It’s about letting go. What I mean is that by letting go of my expectations of others, I have learned about a fantastic new ability. I tend to get perturbed when people don’t understand or accept my point of view. I think many people experience this.

I thought I understood that it was up to me to be at peace with myself, but I really didn’t understand that. As many of you know, I suffer from depression. I tried anti-depressants and they didn’t help. I now talk to a psychiatrist, some of which is in a group therapy setting. This has helped me more than anything I have ever tried.

Talking to these people has been both powerful and profound. There are people from every walk of life – from doctors to store clerks – all there for one common goal. Just a few weeks ago, I would get irate when thinking about president George Bush. Sometimes it would literally make me angry. When I’d talk to people who disagreed with me, it would burn me up if they didn’t see it my way. Thus, I learned that I had to let go of those negative thoughts.

I don’t mean just ignoring my anger. I mean that I truly released myself from the grips of the root; the place where these thoughts were born. In one group therapy session, I argued with another person about these things. I told them, “If the world thought like me, there would be no war and people would never suffer from greed and many other things.”

My therapist laughed at me and said, “That is the absolute silliest thing I have ever heard. You aren’t even happy. You may have wonderful ideas, but the reality is, you cannot make others think the way you do.!”

We talked for several more minutes and it hit me. We all cracked up laughing and I really learned something. It’s one thing to understand a concept and another to actually employ it. Now, when I start discussing something and that knot starts building in my stomach, I just let go and smile.

It’s happened hundreds of times in the past week. I was able to catch myself! I have never been able to do that before – not to that degree of efficiency. I am not really learning anything new, but a new way to cope. That is the keyword: coping.

In order to experience happiness, we must be able to cope with all that life throws at us. I never once considered that I had poor coping skills in so many areas. It’s amazing to realize the truth. I am on the path to inner peace and no amount of money could compare to that feeling of liberation. I still have much more to learn but I feel certain about my progress.

As I wrote this very post, my blog went off line. I smiled and patiently waited for it to come back up. I realized I lost half of what I had written and I laughed – made a calibrated decision and finished up in my desktop editor to prevent the same occurrence. Because I remained calm, I was able to remember exactly what I wrote and simply retyped it. Now that is unbelievable. That my friends, is happiness.

I hope this post helps somebody out there. I must admit, writing this has been a wonderful experience. Thanks Jamy!

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18 Comments

The Reality of Casino Bartending- Sex, Drugs and Videotape

Feb 22

Posted by Bobby Revell in life personal

While I could get many types of jobs, some more respectable than others, few can equate the starting pay of casino bartending. I have many years of experience in it and need to make enough money to pay for my 3rd round of college. Believe it or not, I’ve had over one-hundred different types of jobs in my life. I am truly a jack of all trades.

I am taking a brutally honest look at working as a casino bartender and I don’t even care if what I write here gets me fired; I can simply go work at another casino, there are plenty here. Besides, these people don’t read blogs anyway. If someone is good at it, they can easily make $50,000.00 per year; that’s less than half of what could be made in Las Vegas but is still a hefty starting pay.

casino bar

casino bar

Drugs, cutthroat politics and prostitution are the name of the game. It’s generally a terrible job for a young person with a drug habit. However, someone who is above these problems can do very well. Within three days of working, I already knew 23 drug dealers who openly sold drugs – while on duty – to customers, game dealers, casino management and of course bartenders and cocktail waitresses.

Many cocktail waitresses and bartenders I’ve personally worked with have nasty drug habits (including myself, but I’ve since quit drugs). While working during a busy shift, I overheard two girls complaining about getting a much needed break so they could get a fix. To fit in, a bartender’s relationship to the waitresses must be open and honest.

I am experienced enough to know how to deal with the situation. Though I no longer use drugs, drink or smoke – I must appear to be “cool” with those who do. They must be comfortable with me as 20% of their personal tips come to me. In turn, between 15-20% of my tips go to the barback (the guy who keeps my liquor rack full, washes my glasses and helps me keep the bar clean). A good barback can make a lot of money but it is an extreme, physically demanding job.

The Story of Two Cocktail Waitresses

cocktail waitresses

cocktail waitresses

When my waitresses came back from their break, I could tell the girls were highly intoxicated – not on cocaine or meth, so I guessed it was heroin or something similar. I made 31 drinks for waitressX. While waiting for me to finish, she slightly lowered her head and puked a mighty stream into a large garbage bin next to the bar.

I said, “Three points! Good shot…you didn’t spill a drop!”

She wiped her face with a bar napkin and giggled, “Hehehe…you’re so funny Bobby! I snorted oxycodone ( a powerful narcotic alkaloid used as an analgesic and sedative), it always upsets my stomach!”

The other inebriated waitress said, “That’s nothing.”

She stood three feet away from the trash can, put her hands on her hips and in true American fashion, proudly retched a more streamlined projectile – her stomach contents into the can – perfectly and with no splash back! She proclaimed, “That’s how it’s done…and I don’t even need a napkin.”

I stood in amazement by these two. I’ve done this job for years and this was my first cocktail waitress vomit spitting contest. After the shift slowed down, I was free to converse with these two lovely drug addicts. They are both twenty-one years old and incredibly beautiful (wait until they turn 30! They are in for a rude awakening if they live that long).

Because they had already lowered their guards, I knew I could give them a speech (a screed actually) about how they would end up dying from their actions. They were actually talking about going out after work to drink alcohol and snort cocaine!

I told them a story of three people I know who had died from mixing pain-killers and cocaine. It was quite a horrific tale which I thought would scare them. I was so wrong! They laughed and laughed, continually puking and spraying fluids from their nostrils. One told me, “You should be a professional comedian Bobby! That’s the funniest story I’ve ever heard. Don’t worry about us, we do this everyday!”

I was mortified, I couldn’t believe it! How could 21 year old girls be that far gone? Heroin, it turns out is their favorite drug and it is at epidemic levels here where I live. From the Mississippi Gulf Coast to New Orleans (which is around 120 miles from my house), heroin is available for school children. This is only where I live, I’m sure it’s nation wide. These two girls were doing all this right in front of the customers with absolute reckless abandon.

My sister, who is a child psychologist, deals with 7 year old heroin addicts every day. One important job that needs more people is drug counselors. The money isn’t great but the job’s importance is. I am personally thinking about becoming one. It’s unbelievable to see this going on. It’s impossible to keep drugs off the street, however, effectively educating people can be done.

Other Freakish Incidents

During the same shift, a guy was caught smoking crack outside during a smoking break and was escorted off premises by the police. I also witnessed a blackjack dealer selling pills across the table like they were casino chips!

I walked into the casino liquor room trying to find my barback. He was snorting cocaine off a case of Crown Royal. He said, “Wanna line? I only snort off of Crown Royal cases…that’s why I’m late…I had to get one out, we just got a shipment of liquor in!”

He grabbed a large garbage cart with wheels as I needed him to empty the puke filled bins near the bar because of the noxious odor. As we peregrinated back to the bar, he strutted stylishly pushing the cart and said, “Dude, I make pushing garbage look good.”

He then fixed his hair with a free hand in one of the many casino mirrors. I began feeling sick to my stomach because I know…this is reality.

The casino bar picture is from Matthew’s public gallery.
The cocktail waitresses in the picture are not the girls I work with.

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