to the people we meet in bars: an ode to little trouble
As we enter mid-September, I find myself entering my sentimental season. Each of us have our fondest memories tied to a season, and mine is definitely fall. Even though it is rare we experience a proper fall in Georgia, a slight reprieve from the extreme heat in exchange for slightly less extreme heat is good enough for me.
September holds a special place in my heart because it marks my anniversary with my partner. Our story began in an unromantic manner: we matched on Bumble, but quickly realized we worked for the same company at the time. I felt comforted in that fact because I knew that if he was a creep, I always had HR to fall back on (it truly is a love story for the ages). We also coincidentally scheduled our first date to be the 21st night of September, just like the Earth Wind and Fire song. This fact alone makes our our initial Bumble officially romantic.
At the time, I was juggling two jobs, working as an intern at the same company where we were both employed and as a hostess at an upscale seafood restaurant. On the night of our first date, I was characteristically running late, partly because the restaurant was swamped and needed extra hands, but mainly because I was incredibly nervous. It wasn't the usual "oh god, I hope this guy isn't a serial killer" kind of nervousness. No, I had genuine butterflies in my stomach because I didn't want to mess this up.
We met at a brewery, even though I am not a fan of beer, because it felt like the closest coffee shop vibe you could get after 7 PM. I’ll spare you from most of the small talk, but our initial time together went well. Well enough that he eventually suggested we go to a different bar, because we both eventually admitted we’re not beer people. Thats when he suggested we head to Little Trouble.
Now for those of you who didn’t get the pleasure to experience Little Trouble, it was a bar themed after the 1982 version of Blade Runner that lived in the Westside Provisions. The cocktails featured a lot of Asian alcohol, specifically Japanese Whisky. To enter, you had to walk through a dark hallway that was illuminated by a bright red and blue neon sign at the end. Needless to say, it was cool.
It wasn't the first time either of us had visited that bar, but from that unforgettable night onward, it became undeniably ours, much like the way the beloved Earth, Wind, and Fire song belongs to millions. When I look back at that night, I think about the hours we spent chatting under the neon lights shouting over the house music. It may not have been our first time in that bar but it was the first time it felt like it mattered.
It might not be immediately obvious, but I've always found it challenging to publicly embrace my romantic side. I can easily sit here and tell the world the things about my boyfriend that make me proud. I can lament how he is truly one of the greatest people I have ever met, and how lucky I am that I found him, but talking about us and our relationship feels a bit out of my boundaries.So, rather than crafting a love letter to our relationship, this is more of a heartfelt tribute to the place where it all began.
Who knows, Little Trouble may emerge again one day in a new place with new magic.
As I approach our 4 year anniversary, I am sad we won’t be able to visit our bar. I know throughout our lives, there will be other bars that will be ours, just like there is our coffee shop, our Kroger, and our song, but it does feel like a chapter closing even if we were just a small part of Little Trouble’s bigger story.
