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"Will you have fun tonight?" -Me
"I'll keep drinking tequila until that makes it fun!" -Kat

Tuesday 3-30-21: To quit or not to quit? Pissing off the biker gang = bad idea.
I keep going back and forth in my mind as to whether or not I should give my 25% stake in the bar to Kat. I was going to just fork the entire metaphorical pile of shares (that do not physically even exist yet) over to her and be done with it, but then I decided that I worked damn hard on building that bar so if she hauls on my ass then I don't wanna be left with nothing. So at first I told her I'd trade her all my shares for her half of the tax office building. However, that is a crap deal for her right now since the shares of the bar are still worthless and the tax office building has considerable value. A business that has not proven it can be profitable = very high risk. So then I told her I'd just trade her my shares for the little piece of land we jointly own across from Jimmy's...

We had a sorta deal in place and in writing, but I don't think either of us is ready to move forward with it just yet. We both want to do what is right for the bar since over 20 employees are now counting on us. If Kat can run the place mostly without me then great, we can do a deal. However, if she still wants me to help out a lot then why would I give up my shares if nothing changes for me? I don't want to be selfish about it, but at some point I do have to strongly consider my own mental well-being. Right now that part of my life seems fractured and unwell overall, and that is solely because of the bar. What a bunch of crap!

I was ready to quit the bar Friday night when it turned into a shit-show. We were under-staffed again, and the place got really full. Managing the crowd was incredibly difficult and stressful, and then these biker-guys came in and just took a table except they really didn't. We have a host up front, and her and I team up on crowd-control when things tend to get crazy on a Friday and Saturday night. We only have a certain amount of room for everyone so when the bar seats and the tables all fill up then too bad so sad for everyone else who wants to come. We try to be nice about it and take phone numbers, but some people just get pissy and whine and cavetch about it all.

The host told me the biker-guys just came in and took a table when I was away from the front for a few minutes dealing with other issues, and I was stressed out to the max anyway so I walked right up to their asses and told them they can't just walk in like they own the place. The guys were not impressed and I thought I might get thrown across the room since one of them is the size of a small house (and one of the others looks like he could benchpress the house hehehe) Things almost got all-bad, but we smoothed it over (sorta) when the host said she made a mistake and there was a table for them. What a bunch of crap! Make me confront pissed-off biker guys = do not want. We are NOT a biker bar, there were only three of them in a sea of people, but I still don't want them pissed off at our bar or at me.

By then I was ready to quit and just go live a simple life. Game over, man. I felt like I don't need that stupid shit in my life, all the chaos and stress. However, I stuck it out and finished the night with plans to just give away my stock in the place and be done with it. At the time that would have been the right thing for me to do for myself, temporarily, but it would have been the wrong thing to do for the business and for Kat so I'm glad I didn't do it.

Saturday night at the bar was super-busy as well, but we had an additional server and we managed the crowd much better. Both Friday and Saturday nights the bar did awesome revenue numbers, and we needed it to make up for other slow times of the week (like now.) So far I won't go so far as to say we will be profitable, but I see we can make a go of it and we are on the right track so far and are meeting goals. We're still so new we all have to learn how to run the place effectively. We have to learn what works and what doesn't work, and we are getting there.

What doesn't work right now, at least what doesn't work well, is our hot-water system. We have a 50-gallon residential-grade electric hot water tank that we inherited from the old City Side/Jester's, and it is a bunch of crap. On busy days the hot water will occasionally run out, and even on slow days it has randomly run out/stopped working a couple times that I know of. What a bunch of crap! It's time to get serious about upgrading that bootleg thing, and I'm thinking of something like this:

^From 2018, nearly three years ago, when I had Bruce install this 75-gallon AO Smith unit over at Allen Rd. It's a natutral gas direct-vent unit, and it is badass. AO Smith actually has a 98-gallon unit that I think we will get because I'd rather have too much than not enough. Right now we have an electric water heater so converting to gas only makes sense. We were going to do this before we opened, but it would have cost over $2000 installed and we were way over budget. Being over budget and business-poor = what a bunch of crap! Thankfully we have charged up the business bank account some since we opened.

Kat is at the bar now managing, and I am home with the dogs killing a few more minutes before she finishes. I had to spend some time at the tax office earlier, but I had a 1330 cancel so that gave me time to do a light workout in my bootleg gym before coming home to clean the house. It seems lately we have had no free time so getting a little free time this afternoon = ME WANT MOAR. House is clean, laundry about to go in, and hopefully we can chill out at home this evening and bivouac early. I was gonna jog, but I feel too exhausted so fuck it. I'm not quite 100% lately thanks to all the work and the weird schedule. What a bunch of crap! Hopefully life can start to get at least a little more normal for Kat and I next month. The tax deadline is now May 17 so that will spread out my remaining clients over the next 6 or 7 weeks and I can focus more on the bar...

So for now I guess I won't sell, trade, or give away my 25% stake in the bar. I want to just ditch the place, but I feel like that would not be the right thing to do just yet. I only want to haul on my shares if it frees me up, and right now that will not free me up at all. Right now the place needs all four of us owners to have the best chance to succeed so I'm not quitting or selling out... yet.

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Friday 3-26-21: Planning for a busy Friday night.
I have a little free time before I have to go back to the tax office and then over to the restaurant for work. I just did yoga and I was thinking of going for a jog, but I'll skip the run since the weather isn't so great and since I don't have much time before I have to scoot again. Laundry in the dryer, 10 minutes left, just enough time to write a few thoughts on this bootleg site of mine that almost no one will ever read.

Tonight is karaoke night at the revamped and brand new Mad Kat & Company Bar & Grill. We plan to have karaoke Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights there. Last night was actually quite busy for a Thursday night. Oh Jesus, hell ya! It was almost too busy for a brief moment and I had to go help in the kitchen. I am NOT qualified to make anyone a meal there, but I can throw some fries and mozerella sticks in the fryers. We had a lot of late-night food orders coming in so I'm glad we are keeping the kitchen open late. We have to keep the kitchen open anway due to Covid-19, but after Covid ends it is nice knowing we actually can make money with a late-night kitchen serving food.

Today is pay day, and I got my second ever paycheck from the place. I signed up for direct deposit, but I guess that has not been processed yet? Funny Kat and I did our DDS forms at the same time and her check today went right into her bank account. All I wanna know is why? Why is mine still a paper check? What a bunch of crap! Oh well I don't care that much because I had to go to the bank anyway to do other deposits for both the bar and the tax office.

^Hey look my ass is an employee again... of my own company hehehe. In 2020 I was not an employee at all for anyone; it was all rentals, tax office, and subcontract work all year. It was probably the first year in my adult life that I did not get a w2 from an employer. I don't know how long I will be an employee of the restaurant/bar? Weeks? Months? Years? I guess the place has to make money first and then we can decide. I don't mind working there part-time, but I fear full-time will eat my soul if I do that for too long.

I'm actually NOT going to get 40 hours at the bar this week. I definitely did last week and then some, as did all four of us owners. This week I might end up clocking in for 25-ish hours. I've had a pretty busy week at the tax office so I can't be at the bar as much. I'd rather do taxes anyway so it all works out. I don't even look forward to working tonight, but I have to do it. We'll bivouac around 0300 again, just like we did last night. No nap today due to other obligations, but that's okay I don't have any tax clients at all this weekend. Oh Jesus, hell ya! Maybe I can catch up on sleep Sunday when Kat and I both take the day off...

Alright turds, all two of you who read this shit-show of a site, I gotta go put away the laundry then get ready to go back to work. Again. Kat and I work too much. What a bunch of crap!

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Tuesday 3-23-21: My second bootleg update in three hours.
I'm back, beotches! It is only 1803 and I am on my third drink. Not wasted yet, but feeling pretty good. Stiff coffee brandy and milk for the win. I ate a deer steak supper, watched some news, fed the dogs, and played some SNES Classic. Super Metroid. I made it to the Ghost Ship, I beat the piss out of the bad guy*, and I saved my progress.

*I barely beat him it was totally pathetic I used up all my missles and was down to 40 life-units what a bunch of crap! I only played this game 1.5 years ago, but I already forgot a lot of what to do. Epic failer me...

Dolly Parton sings 9 to 5 on channel 1928. Those hours are a fuckin' joke in my world! More like workin forever. However, I did not work til 5 today. I worked less than that, but I'll make up for that and then some later in the week. That is why a Tuesday night shall be my drinkin' night this week. I'm gonna finish this bootleg update that no one will ever read and then my ass is heading down to the bar to sit and have a drink or two. I plan to be a paying customer, and Neil can be my bartender. As an added bonus Kat is down there hosting so I can hang out with my awesome wife for a while. The place closes at 2300, but we likely won't be there that long.

I wish I didn't have to work so much. Not only am I busy with the bar but I am also busy with the tax office. The tax-filing deadline was just extended out to May 17th so that is a win for me. However, this week the tax office is really busy. Busier than I thought it would be. I'm not even there half the damn time I just have a sign on the door that says "By appointment only call my cell or email me." That is not the exact verbiage, but it is close enough. I've already done 82 paid tax returns and I have several more in the queue with at least a half-dozen more people on the schedule over the next 3 days. My goal was at least 100 for the entire year. Last year my goal was the same, but I "only" got to 98. I did my 98th in October last year. This year I'll probably be at 98 by the end of the month. Maybe? Hopefully! Anything after that will be a bonus.

Th extra time for the filing deadline is great for our personal taxes because I can spend some time and get it done at a more leisurely pace. Kat did get some unemployment last year, and that will now not be taxable so it is a huge win for us. Up to $10,200 in unemployment is not taxable for 2020; that law just passed a week or two ago so dealing with all of that also creates extra work for me. Everything lately creates extra work for me. What a bunch of crap!

I was gonna call Mom and Dad tonight, but F that Mom will want to talk for an hour and I'd rather be at the bar drinking beer. We have 12 beers on tap and I have only tried two of them. Some I won't need to try, staples of any bar like Budweiser, Bud Light, Miller Light, and Coors Light. Been there done that. However, the other 8 deserve a spot on my pallette. I've already had the Citizen Cider and the Rock Harbor, but a couple others await my taste-test and tonight maybe that can happen. I swear to the gods who do not exist I have only had a couple beers from our $13,000 draft system since it was installed. What a bunch of crap! I won't drink when I am there working. Sets a bad example and is a slippery slope. I did have a Rock Harbor at about 0130 Saturday, but we were closed and it was only us there.

Maybe if I get boozed up I can sleep some tonight. I slept 11 gods damned hours last night, way too much, so I am concerned I won't sleep tonight. I should eat half a pot-cookie before bed and that should finish me off until sunrise. One day, hopefully soon, I won't work so much every week. Maybe? Hopefully!

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Tuesday 3-23-21: Our intruder made the news. Oh, great weather!
It is 63 degrees outside and sunny again. Oh Jesus, hell ya! I've been able to go for a jog midafternoon for each of the past two days. 2.25 miles yesterday, 2.33 miles today. My ass is slow and I walk a little of it, but that always happens this time of year after being cooped up all winter. I have gone for a few other 2-mile jogs earlier this month, but I am not in great cardio shape at all yet. I haven't gotten enough exercise at all this month because I am always working. What a bunch of crap! I was going to do DDP Yoga this morning, but I blew it by sleeping almost 11 hours.

Ang closed the bar last night so Kat and I were home in the evening for the first time in many days. We were both tired, and we bivouaced pretty early. I thought by going to bed early I'd get up early and have a chance to shovel in some cereal, watch a little news, do yoga, then go to the bar to open. Unfortunately my dumb tired ass did not even wake up until 0754 and I had to be to the bar by 0800. OMG WHAT A BUNCH OF CRAP! Thankfully we live close so I got dressed and at the bar in exactly 6 minutes. Just in time to meet one of the beer distributors for our bi-weekly supply restock. We go through a lot of food and alcohol at that place, but that is not a bad thing. More product moving = more sales!

I had tax clients today so I didn't stay at the bar more than a couple hours. Tonight Neil bartends and Kat will host until things get slow later in the evening so I will hang out at the house, eat some deer steak shortly, and probably even have a few drinks. I slept too much last night, I won't sleep tonight too well, but if I have some booze maybe I will? I dunno but I need some drinks to unwind anyway. Maybe I'll even give Mom and Dad a call later. I haven't even talked to them in about a month because I just don't have time. What a bunch of crap!

Overall this has been a stressful and shitty month for me. Hopefully things get easier come April. Maybe? Hopefully! The restaurant is making enough money to justify its existence so that is great. Having a break-in at the place = not-so-great. The dumbass guy who intruded last Saturday actually had the balls to come back in broad daylight yesterday PM OMG! Employees recognized his dumb ass, cops came, he got cuffed and stuffed. Sadly the cops had to let him go because maybe it is not the same guy? We await DNA samples.

This actually reminds me that I need to call the landlord again. I tried him yesterday, but his phone rang and his voicemail is full. What a bunch of crap! I doubt he cares, but I want him to know we are not impressed that a homeless vagabond started living in his private quarters next door and raided out spread. Guy calls now...

VOICEMAIL FULL AFTER NO ANSWER EPIC FAILER. I emailed him with a link to this story:

Cops arrested what we hope is the guy yesterday later PM, broad daylight. OMG. He came back to the bar, poked his head in the door only briefly, but it was just enough to get his dumb ass noticed. Then he lingered around for a while, went to the back of the plaza, and I guess the cops had time to get him.

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Sunday 3-21-21: Intruder alert!
This fucking bar of ours, wft? All I wanna know is why? Why did my dumb ass agree to it in the first place? For the last four nights we bivouac after 0300, we are always working, there is drama and chaos, and I am sick of it all. But hey the place is making money! We have had a great past 4 days, and we really needed it so we can build up a little reserve and pay down some debts a little. Both Wednesday and Friday nights were incredibly busy for karaoke, and last night started off quie busy before we posted freshly printed AT CAPACITY signs on the entry. Then we had an intruder and that turned the place into a circus.

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic that has now affected us for about a year we can only have 50 people max per room, and people have to wear masks when up and walking around, entering, exiting, etc. (enforcing that on drumk people = what a bunch of crap!) For many months last year bars and restaurants could not be open at all so we are lucky to at least be able to open on a limited scale. We often fill up the bigger bar/karaoke side of the place with 50 people, but we do have a little room for overflow on the dining side that used to be Jester's. When we get full we take phone numbers and turn people away. Some people are good about it, other people not so much. It is stressful dealing with it all and keeping things somewhat orderly. Thankfully there is no karaoke until Thursday so things should be easier down at the place for the next 4 days. Maybe? Hopefully!

This happened last night in our event room:

^WHAT A BUNCH OF CRAP!

We had an intruder. Neil, Kat, and I were at the place when it happened and Ang was at home after working all day. She was looking at the cameras on her phone when she noticed movement on the camera watching the dark loading dock door. A guy was in there! She called the bar to see if we had an employee back there, but we don't go in the way back at night because taking the trash out after dark is unwise. Not well lit out at the dumpsters. Once we realized we had a problem Neil, Justin (employee), and I went to the back and searched around but to no avail. We saw no one, but the loading dock door had been "fake closed" so it was slightly propped open for access. Red flag there.

We reviewed the footage on Kat's and Neil's phones (noy my bootleg old phone hehehe) and I called police dispatch to make a report. We did have the guy's face on camera so apparently he didn't know the camera does infrared at night. He definitely tried to mess with the camera, probably to disable it, but he epic failed. As I was on the phone with the police dispatch Neil, Justin, and Kat kept looking around and one of them realized the guy was still in our space, in the event-room ceiling. UP IN THE DROP-CEILING OMG! Kat went up through the catacombs of our space to dive into the ceiling, and she was crawling through the insulation and up in the ceiling giving chase shouting "I'M GONNA GET YOU MOTHER FUCKER!" Neil was trying to poke the guy with a 2x4 from below, and Justin was also trying to get the guy. I was giving dispatch the play-by-play and waiting for cops to roll in.

Just as a cop showed up the guy managed to escape through another back exit, and he was outside hopping a fence just as the cop shone his flashlight. Other cops showed up to give chase, and it was mayhem. I went back to the front of the house to do some crowd-control and to let some employees know what was happening. It was like a chase from a movie where the bad guy just makes it over the fence as the cops close in. What a bunch of crap!

The police spent quite a bit of time investigating to try to discover how he gained access. We were able to figure out that he had been squatting in the vacant area of our plaza next door to us, probably for quite some time because he had a camp set up, and he had been going through the ceiling to get into our space more than once. We still need to review all the footage to see how many other times he's been in our back areas. How much has he stolen? Probably some food, maybe booze? Oddly enough no money has been gone from what we can tell. It does seem that whatever he did take from us, if anything, was not noticeable.

The worst part about our vagabond intruder is the fact that the event-room ceiling is pwned. It's bad. In a cruel twist of irony a local wrestling promotion was in talks with Kat to book the room for a good sum of money for an April 10 show. We don't plan to have wrestling there, but their other venue cancelled on them so they are screwed.

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Wednesday 3-17-21: Grand opening, I feel like crap, this sucks.
Today is the big day. Today Mad Kat & Company Bar & Grill is officially open. We have been open for several days, but the grand opening date has been set and advertised for the 17th, St. Patrick's Day, for weeks. I should be excited for the bar to finally have its grand opening, but I really don't care that much. I care some, just not as much as I should. Is that bad?

Part of the problem is I feel kinda crappy. I'm not 100% sick, maybe 50%. I crashed out pretty hard last night very early, just after 2000, and I was in bed and mostly sleeping for 10 hours. OMG. I got my ass up feeling beat still, I had breakfast and watched some news, and then I fell back asleep on the couch for about an hour. I know I don't feel right, but at least I have an appetite and I actually did force myself to go for a 2-mile jog not long ago. The weather is perfect with sun, light winds, and low 50s so it feels awesome when compared to the 17 degrees we had Monday.

I cleared my schedule today so I could help at the bar all day if needed, but so far I haven't been needed much. I did update the books (income/expenses) and a bank deposit. I also put a "FIRE EXIT ONLY PLEASE USE OTHER DOOR" sign on the old Jester's door and I fixed the broken OPEN sign. It was weird doing the old Jester's door because not only did I do the sign but I also removed the exterior handle so now that door really is just a fire exit. Cannot open it from the outside if we forget and leave it unlocked.

I went through that Jester's door many times over the years, and I have some awesome memories of Jester's. Meeting my awesome wife there is the obvious highlight of the place. Also fun stuff like this:

^From 2015 Tommy putting my ass in a wrestling move late-night hehehe. Jester's was a total bootleg piece of shit dive bar, but I will still miss it. I won't miss it a shitload, but I do miss it just a little. Now we turned what was Jester's into a dining area for families and people who want a quieter side of the place.

I think if my heart was truly into this new bar I would be there right now. However, I chose to come home, update this bootleg site that almost no one will ever read, and earlier I spent an hour or two at the tax office getting caught up on dropoffs and other things. I didn't schedule any tax clients today in case Mad Kat did get crazy busy and I was needed. Kat just texted me that things are find there for now we have plenty of staff on hand and it's not crazy busy yet. Will it get crazy later? I hope it stays busy so we can make precious... precious money. However, I don't really want the place to turn into a zoo. We shall see...

Kat is hosting t. Patrick's Day karaoke starting at 2100 later so it will be a very late night for both her and I. I do feel better than I did this morning, but a nap would be great so I'm gonna lay down for a bit and see if I can snooze before I go back to the bar and officially clock in for the evening.

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Monday 3-15-21: I'm beat up from the feet up.
I didn't feel good today. What a bunch of crap! I didn't lay around all day being sick, but I was beat. I know I'm fighting off a cold so I hope I can round the bend and feel better tomorrow. I'm not sleeping well enough and I have too much work every day. What a bunch of crap! I wish I could rewind time and not do this reataurant. The place is awesome with mostly great reviews so far, but it is too much for me. Too much work, too much stress. I hope in time these feelings abate. Right now I just want to quit the place. I'm not excited for it at all; I wish I didn't have the responsibility of it. This feeling is probably indicitave that I made a good life-decision to never have kids. That restaurant is like my child and I don't even want it. What a bunch of crap!

I'll like the bar more when it starts making money and when I can only work there part-time each week. Do a few repairs, do some bookkeeping, let everyone else run the place. I really need to put Kat in charge of it all since she has the passion for it way more than I do. She is good down there, too. Unfortunately I can't put it all on her or she will burn out from too much work herself. She was walking badly yesterday as it is. Too much time on those damn concrete floors walking around/standing = what a bunch of crap for someone with her bad knees. I give her all the credit in the world for going day after day and not complaining about it.

I have the menu. It looks great! I gotta get it to the design team for our website along with our phone number. I don't even know the phone number for the place. What a bunch of crap! I guess I should get on that before I email this website chick...

^Hard to read when it is so small on our bootleg website that almost no one will ever read. The Side A and Side B were Kat's idea as well as the cassette-theme. I won't post side B (pizzas, kids menu, etc), but I will post this part because it is the best:

^CHILI AND CORNBREAD OH JESUS HELL YA! It is awesome and I have already had it a couple times. There are a lot of things on the menu I have yet to try, but over time I will get to all of them. Maybe? Hopefully!

Saturday night at the bar was crazy. It started off nearly empty just before karaoke began, but then people poured on in and we were crushed. We filled right up to capacity and had to turn people away. We were under-staffed (joys of learning a new business) so Kat and I had to step up bigtime. I served a couple tables; my first ever time being a server at a restaurant. I didn't really know what the hell I was doing, but I handled it well enough and thankfully the two guys whom I served spent a lot of money and seemed happy. In between serving tables I had to deal with drunk idiots and puke in the men's head. What a bunch of crap! I also had to toss some dumbass kid the fuck out because he was too wasted and then he was pissing off some of the ladies. When the ladies get uncomfortable then that is a huge problem, and it will not happen on my watch. Any drunk douche bothering the ladies will be politely asked to spread out first and then will get the boot upon further FFI (Failure to follow instruction hehe)

I was like Patrick Swayze in Road House at the Double Deuce, but thankfully no one put a STOP sign through my truck window and slashed my tires hehehe.

"Be nice until it's time to not be nice." RIP Swayze. If you don't think the movie Road House is awesome then I hate you. I probably hate you anyway, but I'll hate you a little more.

All I want to do is bivouac, but I gotta go back to the bar for a couple hours to help Kat close. I don't want her there closing all alone in case bad guys appear in the parking lot when she is locking up. The place was really slow yesterday and today, slow enough to actually lose money after payroll and other costs, but that is okay we will do well in two days (St. Patrick's Day and our official grand open) and we did very well Thursday through Saturday. I still don't even know what our monthly break-even revenue needs to be so I should get on that this week and keep good track of it all.

I don't hate being a restaurant and bar owner, I just feel like I have too much on my plate right now. Thankfully the tax office is slow so far this week with only one appointment on the schedule (but several drop offs and other things to do) so I can put in more precious... precious time at the bar. Our grand open will be busy and a long day; hopefully we can make some good money.

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Friday 3-12-21: My first drink at the bar as a patron.
I have tonight off from the bar. Oh Jesus, hell ya! It is my only night off for a while so I need to make the most of it. However, my ass is tired and will bivouac pretty soon. Just kidding it's only 2112 so I can stay up for a while more and blow some more of our precious... precious money at the bar! Kat and I had a supper-date down at the bar a few hours ago, and I had a coffee brandy and milk with me meal. That was my first official drink there, ever. We did have some booze there a couple times last month and into the very first part of this month, but that was before we actually opened to the public and we brought our own. BYOB pre-open! Tonight I popped my booze-cherry there as far as buying booze from our actual business establishment, and it was glorious.

I will NOT drink at our bar when I am on duty, and I've had to work there every night since we soft-opened just over a week ago. Jon Taffer from Bar Rescue says a drunk bar owner is a failing bar owner, and I 100% believe it. I was going to eat a meal with my awesome wife then come home and play my SNES for a while, maybe call Mom, then go back. However, Phil and Danielle came up (unexpectedly but more than welcome) so I sat with them and had a few drinks while we caught up and visited. I know half the people in that bar so it is always social-hour when I am there. Not a complaint, but it does tend to keep my ass there.

I finally did get a chance to come home to put the dogs out so here I am. So far our customers have LOVED the place. Bigtime. A few complaints pop up here and there (no breakfast waaaaaaaaaaa no pool table waaaaaaaaa STFU BEOTCHES!) but overall I feel like we have what it takes to succeed. The place is inviting and looks great. Food is pretty good, too. Beer pours from the tap cold, and it should for the price we paid for that draft system. I had a Citizen Cider not long ago, my first draft beer, and it was great. I am an owner, but I paid full-price because fuck it. I don't need to get free stuff from there. I will work as an employee and spend half my paycheck there as a customer. Hehehehe.

I actually did clock in as an employee for the first time ever last night at the bar. I got there for a while and then decided I should clock in since I was the manager on duty. I didn't know what I was doing. What a bunch of crap! However, I sorta figured it out as I went along. Talk to customers, talk to employees, learn a few things, close it up, go home, bivouac. I know how to manage people, I just don't know how to manage a restaurant. The basic concept is easy enough to follow, though.

When we were doing the carpentry and building the bar I got into a routine. Bivouac early, get up early, go work. A lot. Now that the place is open everything changes. Last night Kat and I closed so we went to sleep closer to 0200. Epic late! We were both up before 0700 to go open for prep staff, but we did take a nap this PM so that helped. Thankfully I did not have tax clients today so I could go for a slow jog (50 degrees Oh Jesus Hell ya!) then sleep for a little while. If I hadn't taken a nap I'd probably be in bed right now sleeping. I will go back to the bar tonight for a while becuse I want to, but I don't think I'll stay until 0200.

Since it's not too cold outside I actually plan to walk down to the bar. It makes life safer as far as a potential OUI in the middle of the night. First I'll update this bootleg site that no one will ever read then I'll head on down. I can listen to Iron Maiden's Stranger in a Srange Land on my nearly-obsolete cellphone music-player as I walk down to the place. It is only a 5 or 6-minute walk so I'll finish the song just as I get to the plaza. I would not walk if it was stupid-cold outside so thankfully the weather is not bad tonight.

I think Kat should sing this song tonight during her karaoke show:

^Laura Branigan Self Control. That is an awesome song and if you disagree with me then I hate you. I probably hate you anyway, but I'll hate you a little more. I can't sing it due to my in-curable medical condition called NFT (no friggin talent hehehe) Plus I don't wanna take away from other karaoke singers. Me singing karaoke in public = what a bunch of crap!

I just ate a package of peanut butter crackers, and they were awesome. I love these "Munchies" crackers. imagine what would happen if I got baked and had a box of them? Or a carton? I hear that when you get high you get hungry, but I dunno for sure. When I get drunk I get hungry! I do have a few pot-cookies in the fridge thanks to Kat's family or friend-conection, but I am too limited with those to know what happens when I eat one. I think eating half of one makes me want to go to bed and gives me weird dreams, though. What a bunch of crap!

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Thursday 3-11-21: Massive changes to the schedule begin today.
The grand opening of our new endeavor, Mad Kat & Company Bar & Grill, is officially scheduled for next Wednesday the 17th (St. Patrick's Day.) However, we are actually opening for good today. Seven months to the day and about a quarter-million dollars later we are finally ready to do this thing for real. Soft-opens last Friday and Saturday went well so we feel ready. Staff is in place, food is stocked, booze is stocked, and it is go-time.

Today marks what will be a huge change in the life-schedule. Even more-so than what has already taken place since August last year when we got the keys to the place and started with this:

^What a ghetto bunch of crap! We did an amazing job turing that place into something that looks nice now so I hope our customers share our vision and we actually make money. I don't give a crap about a profit, that's bonus, I just want to at least break even so we can meet payroll, cover overhead, and stock the food/booze.

I still have carpentry to do there, but not too much. Some touch-up paint, a little FRP in the kitchen, minor stuff that I can work at here and there. I will be at the place this morning for a while before I have tax clients this afternoon. We open at 1100 for lunch to the public, and karaoke happens this evening/tonight after the dinner-hour. Will people come today? I dunno. Maybe? Hopefully! I'll work a lot of hours again today both at that bar and at the tax office. Maybe I'll take a little time to go for a jog this afternoon since it will be 50 degrees outside.

The four of us owners will share in the management duties. The place will be open 90 hours a week so that is a lot of hours to fill. We plan to be open 1100-2300 Sun-Wed so that's 12x4 = 48 hours. We are hoping to stay open until 0100 Thurs-Sat so that's 14x3 = another 42 hours for a total of 90. However, a manager will need to be there by 0800 so the prep staff can start their day so that adds 21 hours to the week and makes it over 100 manager hours needed. OMG.

Sometimes only one of us will need to be there, but a lot of the time two of us will be needed. Neil will do some bartending and Kat will obviously host karaoke Thurs-Sat (she does have Heather to fill in some of the karaoke) so more than one of us will be needed to actually manage at times. Today Neil plans to bartend until 1900 so I'll be there as acting manager later PM until we do close. We'll stay open until 0100 if there are karaoke singers. If things die off we will close earlier. Since we're not 100% officially open yet we'll see how it goes.

The four of us owners haven't made a concrete schedule yet. It's hard for me since I have tax clients to take care of. Plus congress just passed a massive 1.9-trillion dollar stimulus package that includes another round of $1400 stimulus checks and up to $10,200 in tax-free unemployment retroactive to 2020 so that sucks in the middle of tax season. Half my friggin' clients got unemployment last year so all the ones I filed will need to be amended. It makes a lot of extra work. What a bunch of crap!

^Awarded to the federal government for spending all our precious... precious money during the Covid-19 pandemic. HEY I DO NOT WANT TO PAY 20 BUCKS FOR A LOAF OF BREAD GODS DAMN IT. The $1400 stimulus for Kat and I will help a lot since we owe a shitload of precious... precious money, but it sucks knowing the kids and grandkids have to pay it all back pretty much forever.

The exclusion of up to $10,200 in 2020 unemployment from taxation helps us because Kat was unemployed last year thanks to the pandemic. Most of her weddings cancelled as did all her weekly karaoke gigs. She did get off unemployment last summer, and I give her all the credit in the world for not going back on it in the fall while we were building the bar. She definitely qualified since most local bars were not doing weekly karaoke.

I'm really looking forward to the end of tax season in 5 weeks. I hope and pray to the gods who do not exist that the filing deadline is NOT extended like it was last year. Doing taxes into the summer = what a bunch of crap! However, this new wrinkle in the tax laws regarding unemployment might F everything up. I guess if the deadline does get extended it actually helps us since we are going to owe about $18,000 this year. OMG. Selling two rental properties = capital gains, depreciation add-back, income, all the things that make you have to pay in when you are doing your own taxes. Oh well, I've known it was coming so there is no sense crying about it.

It is 0335 and I have been up for 1.5 hours. What a bunch of crap! I should go back to bed and try to sleep more since today will be a long day. I really want my life to be more simple again. That is the goal for the rest of my 2021. Get through tax season, get a regular routine going at the bar, and then reduce my work-load and other obligations. Will I succeed? Maybe? Hopefully!

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Tuesday 3-09-21: Hey cool we made the news again. Drink on a Tuesday?
I'm on my third alcoholic beverage at this relatively early hour of 1825. I have channel 1928 on the TV, and Steve Winwood sings Valerie. If you don't like Steve Winwood then I hate you. I probably hate you anyway, but I'll hate you a little more. THIS IS A GREAT SONG. Why I am drinking on a Tuesday you ask? Well why not? My life is 95% stress so this helps. A lot. I might also eat part of a pot-cookie before bed. I probably won't, but maybe. 50/50. I almost never do marijuana edibles because they are not for sale in aisle 10 at Paradis by the Teddy Grahams. They should be, though!

I have my evening all planned out. Just kidding not really. I accidentally slept 9 hours last night so that probably does not bode well for tonight. It is possibly to sleep too much! I was exhausted and obviously needed it, and I dreamed about some kind of weird boat competition. Is that because I was once a sailor? Probably need a psychologist. Have one, next meeting in 6 days hehehe. Kat just came over to talk, but we are not talking about the bar tonight because F that we always talk about that place and I'm sick of talking about it. I'll write about it, though!

The bar made the news a few days ago. Channel 7 or Fox or some shit was on the schedule for 1100, but I left around 1050 because I didn't give a crispy crap about myself being on the news. Where is my Morla photo from The Neverending Story gods damn it?

I don't even care... whether or not I care about being on the news. I did see the news story on the Interweb, though! Plus Kat recorded it and we saw it on TV.

https://www.foxbangor.com/news/item/restaurant-opens-amidst-pandemic/

BREWER — Many businesses have suffered or even closed during the pandemic. However, that didn’t stop a group of friends from living out their dream. Four friends met at what used to be City Side restaurant in Brewer. Now, they are co-owners of Mad Kat and Company Bar and Grill, which is located where City Side used to be.

“Music brought us together,” said Co-Owner Kathleen Markwith. “So we decided that we needed to keep the music going.” Markwith had been disc jockeying for City Side for seven years before they had to abruptly shut down. She said while there have been challenges opening during the pandemic, there has also been a lot of opportunities.

“We’re crazy. Everyone is like why are you starting a business during a pandemic? We’re like, why not,” Markwith said. Markwith said it’s allowed them to plan accordingly for when the restrictions are lifted. “Seven tumultuous months later and we are about to do our grand opening,” she said. They are a rock and roll inspired establishment but it’s not so much about the music as it is about the experience. “Friends meet and become family,” said Co-Owner Angela Guay. “That’s important to us. That’s what happened to us and that’s how we want people to feel when they come here.” Their grand opening will be on March 17 on St. Patrick’s day, which is also the day most bars closed last year.

AWESOME JOB NEWS GUY WHOSE NAME I DO NOT KNOW BECAUSE I WAS NOT THERE.

My tax business > running a bar. Half the time lately I think owning a bar = what a bunch of crap! Is that bad? Probably. I am just tired and need a break. We did take most of Sunday off, my first almost-day off of the year. Oh Jesus, hell ya! If someone offers the right price I might sell every single one of my shares to that fuckin' bar. It is just not worth the stress. However, it cost a lot of money and I want my money back so I guess I'm sticking around the place... for now.

We were able to soft-open the bar Friday night for friends and family. Sadly it sucked because Kat got boozed up and said she wanted a divorce within earshot of some of the brand new staff. OMG EPIC FAILER WHAT A BUNCH OF CRAP! Nice job on opening day. The kitchen filled with smoke for a few minutes until we could get a fan going. Those were the negatives. On the positive side of things the food was well-received and the few customers we did have seemed mostly happy.

Saturday night was a much better soft-open night two. Kat put on an awesome karaoke show, we had more people, and we made more money. Unlike Friday the POS system was 100% online and working mostly well. Our food is pretty damn good so that is a huge plus, especially since I was 100% hands-off on what was going to be cooked, how it was going to be plated, etc. I don't give a shit about the food just make it happen. I guess that's how I feel about the entire place. What a bunch of crap!

^A fully stocked bar was a great sight no matter how much stress we are all under as a result of trying to do this thing. The bar does look awesome. Mirrors are a little crooked, but we can fix that.

^People in the bar Friday night hanging out. We did stay open until last call. Friday was a very long day for us all. I got my arse out of bed just after 0500 and worked a lot. We had to get the bar ready during the day, I had tax clients, and then that night it was go-time for the soft-open. Epic hours worked = what a bunch of crap!

We are opening for good Thursday. Less than two days! Are we ready? Maybe? Hopefully! I think we are ready.

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Thursday 3-04-21: Can we open and sell anything tomorrow?
Our first soft-open, a limited event for friends and family, is supposed to happen tomorrow at our new bar. Will it happen? I think so, but it's not a given. The fuckin' dishwasher sat in a local warehouse for 6 gods damned days because they had the wrong phone number to call to set up a delivery time. What a bunch of crap! The dishwasher is badass, and it is rated for heavy commercial use. We can't wash all the dishes by hand given the amount of volume we will *hopefully* do once we are fully open.

The dishwasher is heavy. HEAVY. Getting it into place was a challenge, but we had most of the new hires there for training yesterday morning when it finally did arrive. A bunch of us maneuvered the nearly 500-pound machine through a few doors and into place. Bruce was a champion and came right over to plumb it for us. Ben stopped by to figure out the materials needed for the 3-phase wiring, and he plans to get most of that part done today. If we don't have that dishwasher running by tomorrow AM we will be hurting for precious... precious time since we are trying to open for our friends/family by 1700 (5PM) tomorrow.

Today is more staff training starting at 1030 so I'll head down to the bar in a little bit to take care of a few things and meet with Neil and Ang before I have to go take care of a tax client at 0900. The AM tax appointment should be easy, and I think I can get it done well within an hour. Maybe? Hopefully! If I can get my ass back to the bar by 1020 that would be great so I can give a little pre-work speech to the staff and start them at 1030 for more training.

Yesterday was hectic and stressful down there, and I had more than a few second thoughts about doing this whole thing. I still do regret agreeing to open a bar and restaurant so I hope we can get it up and running smoothly enough to at least pay back the initial investment. I don't even give a shit about making a profit anymore, I just want to break even to pay back the loans to the business that I made. I do think the place, if run properly, can turn a great profit and be a huge boost for the community. Things are looking awesome now. Liquor is in place on the bar, beer is pouring from the taps, and yesterday the new kitchen staff helped receive our first massive food order.

Social media, a platform I do NOT use at all, is a big part of our advertising, promotion, and hype for the place. Failbook can eat the peanuts out of my ssssssssssssshhhhhhhhhhhhheeeeeeeeeeeeeiiiiiiiiiiiiiittttttttttttttttttttttttt. However, there is no denying the girls have done a great job managing the business Failbook page in order to create a buzz. I should go look at it now since I have not seen it maybe ever? Kat probably showed me some things on it, but I don't remember ever going to it on my own computer. I can't do it on my phone since that thing does not do Internet hehehehe!

Okay I did a Google search for Mad Kat & Company Bar & Grill and saw two reviews. We are not open yet so all I wanna know is why? Why are there two reviews already? One from Adam says awesome place awesome people. Thanks, Adam! Do I know you? Did we hire you? Hehe.

This review, WTF?!:
Not much to go on here. Can't find their hours. No website. All it says is that it is a Grill. But what kind? Is it sports oriented. Do they serve alcohol with meals? I just don't know and I'm not traveling there to find out.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! WHAT A BUNCH OF CRAP! Hey "Major Pike", we have not even opened yet you useless pile of civilian shit! I looked for a REPLY button, but there is not one. Gods damn it! Okay where is that Faibook page of ours? I hate going to Failbook because I will get that stupid popup every 5 seconds asking me to join the cult or to log in. Sometimes I have to get on a Failbook when I am looking up a business that does not have its own web page, and I hate doing that shit.

^Hey cool those were from yesterday awesome. Yesterday was another long day, and I am getting tired of the long days. I did make time to play racquetball for the first time in a couple weeks, though. I lost as ususal, but it was great exercise. As an added bonus my tennis-elbow, something that has been bothering me quite a bit more often than not over the past 6 months, is not too bad lately. The carpentry is finally coming to an end. Oh Jesus, hell ya! We still have a lot of little things left to do, though. Once I finish this bootleg update that almost no one will ever read I plan to go install new toilet seats in the ladies' bathroom and secure one of the two vanities to the wall properly before I do go to the tax office.

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Tuesday 3-02-21: Three days until we make our first dollar from food/alcohol?
Our epic soon-to-be bar/restaurant is opening for friends and family in just three days. Maybe? Hopefully! We should have a better idea by later today if we can actually do that or not. If not that will suck. A lot. Code comes this morning at 0830 to *hopefully* give us a COO (Certificate of Occupancy) so that part is quite critical to us being able to do any business. Also quite critical will be the POS (Point of Sale) system that has already shipped and arrived. The company we are using, Upserve, is supposed to be sending someone to hook it all up for us no later than tomorrow. We could do a little opening for friends/family without Upserve, but that would also suck. A lot. Having the perfect technology there for new hires to ring in sales the right way is incredibly important.

Finally, we still don't have a dishwash machine. What a bunch of crap! It was supposed to come last Thursday so not having it yet is all-bad. Once it arrives it is not plug-and-play so we will need our contractors to wire it and plumb it. Without a dishwasher we will have to serve pizza on paper plates and that is not ideal. We want to have a full menu with all products available; the food order is already written up and is going to be finalized today assuming we can locate our friggin' dishwasher. Washing all the kitchen pots and pans by hand is not an ideal scenario for us, and I don't even think we are set up properly to do that. We've always planned to have a commercial dishwash machine.

All our new hires officially start today, including the four of us owners who are also going on the payroll as employee/owners. We hired 21 people plus the 4 of us, and I think we have a good mix of people to start. Almost everyone whom we are hiring has experience in the industry. The plan today is to have our initial company meeting at 1030 so I have my part of the welcome-speech all ready to go. Just kidding it's not ready at all! However, I can just talk on the fly no worries at all. We have a lot to do today. A LOT. I guess that is why it is 0100 and my loser-ass is awake. Could not sleep. What a bunch of crap!

We hung out again down at the bar last Friday, but not as long as we did the week prior. I did take some pictures:

^Kat singing karaoke. Once we open we have a Covid-19 barrier for people to stand behind. Gods damned 'ronavirus = what a bunch of crap! It set us back on our opening for sure, but we also set ourselves back some by underestimating how much work was needed just to get it mostly code-compliant and not looking like a dumpy ghetto.

^Thanks to Jason all the TVs are working great as well as the sound, cameras, and even our phone. I have no idea what our phone number even is. What a bunch of crap! The liquor bottles will sit on and in front of that illuminated shelf under the mirrors and should look awesome, especially at night. The 12-tap beer system to the right of the mirrors is not hooked up yet, but we are getting kegs this morning and our excellent beer guy, Jim, is coming later to get it all finished. We might have draft beer by the end of today at our bar. Oh Jesus, hell ya!

I hope I can go back to bed because being up at this hour sucks a little. I got about 3 hours of sleep, give or take, so that is enough for now. It is only 0114 so I can rack out for a couple more hours at some point. Maybe I'll shovel in a little food and read some tax forums. That tends to get tedious after too long and it might help put my ass to sleep. If I still feel wide awake in a little bit then I will just do yoga. I hope we don't lose power. Temps are falling and will be around 5 degrees at first light with 40-50MPH winds. Winter ain't done just yet. What a bunch of crap! It is almost done, though. One frigid day then things look a little better. Sunday was in the mid 40s and I went for a 2-mile jog outside. My first jog of 2021 OMG. I was slow, but I did okay.

I should take a day off at some point this month. However, I don't see how I can with the new bar/restaurant opening and with my tax office being fairly busy. There are 6 weeks and two days until the filing deadline so at some point after we open the bar I need to sit down in the office and really work on our own taxes. I know we will owe a lot. What a bunch of crap!