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WDYDAD? Joe Dominguez, Teacher + Waitress

Hi, my name is Joe Dominguez and I’m a Noaholic. This is day 2 in the what do different people do all day.

I live in Los Angeles where I am gainfully employed as a grade school teacher by day and a cocktail waitress by night. In regards to educational background: I studied music at UH Manoa and am presently about halfway through a Master’s in Education from National University with an intention of teaching high school English. In regards to nightlife: I’ve been cocktailing for about 5 years (serving not drinking) and currently work a popular sushi joint on Sunset Boulevard.

The following is an average Friday.

7:00 am – alarm goes off. Snooze until about 7:50 at which point I realized I have to shower then jump out of bed in a panic and do so. Make a myself as much of a lunch as is possible in the five minutes I have left before needing to leave the apartment: pb sandwich, cookies, goldfish and water bottle.

8:15 - leave the apartment. halfway to my car realize I left my lunch in the kitchen and turn around.

8:20 – leave the apartment.

8:50 – stop for a grande chai latte. get to school at exactly 9 and power walk to the classroom where the kids are finishing “morning business.” greet the teacher and sit down near Isaac*, my special needs student. Throughout the day work with Isaac individually and assist him in the classroom/playground.

11:15 – I go to the teacher’s lounge for my lunch and sign in. opt against the pb sandwich in favor of brownies put out in the lounge, finishing two and the goldfish i brought. nap in my car for 15 minutes to recharge.

3:00 - school ends, after walking the students out and chatting with a few parents i jump in my car and try to beat traffic for the 13 mile trip back home (405′s a bitch on fridays)

3:30 – get home and fut around for an hour before getting ready for work again.

5:00 – leave for work. curse crappy weekend traffic.

6:00 - park and run to the restaurant. arrive at work slightly sweaty but clock in only 2 minutes late. check shift notes and have my uniform approved by manager on duty. spend the next hour standing around because there are no patrons.

9:00 – get slammed. at about 10 o’clock sneak a shot with another waitress which makes the last two hours go more smoothly.

midnight - listen to the other servers bitch and brag about their night and tell my own stories. recap any b-list celebrities that were in that night and then have another shot. clean up the restaurant and wait for the last straggling diners to stop making out and leave the floor.

1:30 – head for home after a few more drinks/shittalking. call my roommate on the way who is also getting off work and pick up happy meals for the both of us. eat, gossip, shower.

3:30 – fall asleep.

and that’s a basic friday.

* yeah right, like I’m telling you his real name.