For many people, the idea of bartending conjures up thoughts of Tom Cruise in Cocktail. In reality, it’s not quite as glamorous. There is a lot less bottle twirling and a lot more glass washing.

Like many, I’ve done my time behind the bar, albeit nearly a decade ago. As rusty as I may be, that experience came in handy when I spent an evening guest bartending at Nathanael Greene’s Publick House in Downtown Greene.

I’m not going to lie; I was looking forward to the experience. I figured I’d get to do all the fun stuff that goes along with bartending (the socializing, the putting tips in the bucket ...), without any of the real work. I was the “guest” bartender after all. If I was expecting an evening of leisure, I was sadly mistaken.

The second I walked through the door on the night of my little adventure, I was put to work. Bernadette, the bartender I shadowed (you can interpret that as “got in the way of”) all night, said a quick hello, showed me where to stash my things, then pointed to a customer seated at the bar and told me to get him a beer. Good thing I remembered how to pull a pint.

I thought bartending would be like riding a bike, and figured I’d be able to pick it up again quickly. One of the pub’s regulars apparently did not agree. Within minutes, he did a rather convincing Donald Trump impression and told me I was fired.

I thought this was a bit harsh, considering I hadn’t even served him. Not to mention the fact that I didn’t actually work at the establishment.

Fear of immediate dismissal aside, it was pretty smooth sailing from there on out. It didn’t take me long to get the lay of the land, so to speak.

Suitably attired in one of Nathanael Greene’s signature black tees, I was soon serving up mixed drinks, glasses of wine and bottled and draft beers to both patrons at the bar as well as the pub’s dining customers. (All while secretly praying no one would order anything more complicated, like a cosmopolitan or a daiquiri.)