Day 21 - Thoughts On Writing About Jack's

After returning home from today's rainy post-work trip to Jack's Bar & Lounge, I got to thinking about what this thing is that I'm doing.

How would I feel if I were in another person's shoes, such that I learned my conversations with someone at the bar ended up on the internet in a blog? Would that make me not want to come back to the bar? Would that make me angry or leave me feeling spied upon or tricked, etc...?

Could this blog negatively affect business at Jack's? Is there an unspoken Las Vegas-style rule to bars? (I.e., "what happens at the bar stays at the bar" sort of thing.)

I sure as hell don't want to be the cause of Jack's losing business. Nor do I want to piss anybody off. Overall, I think I've been careful in deciding what to write about (and what not to write about).

Part of why I write this blog is that I can use it as a conversation starter. Lots of fun things happen at Jack's and saying to someone "I'm going to be here every day this year and write a blog about my experiences and the people I meet" is a great way to get a potential new bar friend talking.

(As an aside: I'm amazed at the number of people I meet who tell me they're visiting Jack's for the first time. They're curious about the bar, the scene, who mixes what music and on what nights, and I like to do my part to fill them in so they'll come back.)

What I realized tonight is that telling someone I write a blog sort of serves as an unintended warning in the sense that I'm basically saying to someone that I might write about them. Forewarned, they can make their own choices about what to talk about or to not talk to me at all (for what it's worth nobody's refused to talk to me yet).

There have been several instances already where I've participated in conversations and felt the need to say, "Hey, do you mind if I write about this?" (again, no refusals).

Going forward, I'm going to make sure I continue to let people know what I'm up to and observe closely how the regulars and the bartenders react to my presence.

See you Friday (God it's Friday already?) at Jack's!