"When I was a busboy I used to work at this place in Times Square, up on 47th street. This was...ten years ago, and that area was dangerous. There were hookers on the street, drug dealers.

And after everyone was gone, it was just me and the porter, cleaning up. And the bar was open, and we could drink anything. So we'd bring the hookers in and drink with them, and have sex with them. Sometimes on the bar."

--Waiter down in the West Village

I hope everyone is liking this interview with Roger. I realize it might seem a tad uninteresting, but I do think he captures the difficulty most waiters have in trying to support two careers: waiting tables, and some sort of art.

I think what also drew me to his interview was the underlying current of despair that so many waiters experience. Constantly on the hustle to make money, yet continually doubting yourself, and wondering if the Manhattan experience is only about arguing over medium and medium-well burgers.

***************************

I have to fight with the kitchen sometimes.

"Please recook this burger."

"Why! You told me medium."

I'm trying to communicate...This is not why I moved to New York. I had dreams of being on Broadway or being in movies. Not to argue about some guy's burger. So serving is not glamorous.

I would love to be supporting myself with my art, of course, or working on a movie set, or something that was remotely in the business that I'm passionate about. But it's hard to ignore waiting tables where you have a job that you can set your hours, work with other artists, the type of people who can be with you when you are suffering.

I can't believe I'm here. There's so much other stuff I should be doing.

And you also work in a place where when the money is good, it's good. And it's fast. On a Friday, Saturday night you can make over $20 an hour. Where else can I make $20 an hour and just show up for a few hours and take a day off whenever I want to?

There are a few professional servers, but I think most people, if they didn't make fast cash, they wouldn't do it. People aren't waiting tables because it's a great job.

But it's hard and I sometimes lose focus when I'm at work a lot, when I'm putting hours to make up for something I just bought, or trying to make up for Christmas money. Whatever. Then I find out that I'm just a waiter. I'm not an actor.

I'm never going to be an actor unless there's a point where I'm overlapping: I'm waiting tables to pay the bills, I'm also working on my craft. And then eventually, I can drop waiting tables, and just focus on craft. That's the goal and I have to force myself to do it. I have to force myself to do two jobs. I have the job I have to go to, and then I have the job of promoting myself and becoming a better actor.

I don't have a boss in the acting world asking me, "Hey, did you send out those head shots? Did you learn that new monologue? Did you go to an audition today?"

I mean, if I wake up and miss an audition, no one cares. Except for me. And sometimes, I don't care. I'm tired, ya' know? But I'll think, "What if that was my role?"

So it's hard and you have to force yourself to think of it like another job. "I'm gonna' get up at 9:00 a.m., and I'm gonna' theoretically clock in, even though I'm sitting in my apartment and submitting things." But that's my day job.

8:48:20 AM     comment []