One truly learns something new everyday.
I got back to New York City last Saturday night from my one-week visit to Manila. Since I was at an airport that I don't normally use on business trips because it was located more than 60 miles (about 96 kilometers) from my place, I took a car service home. As I often did on such rides, especially long ones, I struck up a conversation with the driver.
I found out that the driver had been a bar owner prior to working for the car service company. He was in his mid-forties, 44 years old to be exact. He was a Portuguese-American whose family migrated to the States when he was about four years old. He told me that he had owned and operated a bar in the town of Harrison in New Jersey for 20 years before closing it down a month or so ago.
I was a bit surprised by what he said. What? Closed a bar down? Why? Bars, especially one that lasted as long as this person's bar did, must have done pretty well. So I asked him, "What happened to your bar? Aren't bars pretty much recession-proof? Don't people drink in both good times and bad times?"
"Yes, they are recession-proof," he replied. "But a lifestyle change occurred in the last 10 years that has adversely affected the bar business."
"And what was that?" I asked.
"The internet and the gaming consoles," he said.
"What?" I asked again for I wasn't so sure if I heard him right the first time.
"The bar business got impacted by the internet and the gaming consoles," he repeated. He then went further to explain that up until the mid to late 1990s, a lot of people, especially college students and young professionals who were in their late teens through their early 30s, used to hang out in bars for hours after work or school to socialize or to watch ball games.
However, he said that that's no longer the case with young people today. He said that young people these days often stay home or hang out at another friend's house to either go online and chat with their buddies or play games on their PS3s, XBOX 360s, and Nintendos. He cited Shaquille O'Neal and a few other NBA athletes as examples because those guys had said in tv interviews that their favorite past time was to stay home and play on their gaming consoles.
The conversation was an eye-opener for me because I myself used to hang out in bars with co-workers and friends after work to relax and unwind. There was even a point when the stress at work was a bit much that we hung out in bars on a nightly basis just to de-stress. Our favorite bars in Makati City at the time were Larry's Bar (Greenbelt), Jazz Rhythms (Jupiter Street), and Rhythm and Booze on Makati Avenue.
Although I kind of felt bad for the driver because he lost his old business, I don't see the young people's switch from bars to the internet and gaming consoles as necessarily a bad thing. In fact, in my opinion, the internet and the gaming consoles could help drive home the message that one does not need to be drunk to have a lot of fun. I don't even think a lot of parents would mind seeing their child at home having fun with his/her friends rather than he/she be out in some bar somewhere getting drunk. I just think it's also much better from a safety standpoint whenever one thinks of the thousands of people that lose their lives in the United States to drunk drivers and drunk driving every year.
According to the latest statistics compiled by the organization called Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), 17,602 people died in the US on alcohol-related traffic crashes in 2006. This figure translates to one death every 30 minutes. One life lost is too many. Thousands is an outrage.
Some parents and members of the older generation have expressed concern that spending too much time on the internet and on the XBOX or Playstation could negatively impact a child's social and emotional development. Their concerns are valid. However, there are other alternative activities that young people could participate in and enjoy such as team sports, theater, music, civic groups, and other activities that would help kids develop their social skills.
Man is a resilient being and gifted with strong survival instincts. He's been on the planet for millions of years and has survived a host of wars, diseases, pestilence, and disasters both natural and man-made. He has learned to tame his environment and make it work for his benefit. Given all that Man had accomplished in the past, he should still end up fine with this latest lifestyle shift. By moving his social activities away from the neighborhood bar to cyberspace while in the comfort of his (or his parents') home, he is simply replacing one form of socializing with another.
Thursday, June 5, 2008
A Lifestyle Change
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33 responses:
They say that those online forums and chat sites are the new singles bar, and I believe it. Maybe he should've included blogging, hehe. :-D
i agree with you, mas okey na siguro na mas marami ang maglaro ng mga consoles sa bahay kaysa tumambay sa mga bar at magdrunk driving. sobrang ang daming nasasayang na buhay sa mga biktima, buti sana kung yung lasing lang ang mamamatay.
i have a 16 year old son who has never had a drink whether inside or outside the house (not that I know of anyway), and is always eager to come home to his computer. I'm fine with that. He's got an online community on his forums and fanfic sites. I'm fine with that too. He still talks to me and his stepdad and his baby sister and as long as he keeps it up, all is well with our world.
Many clubs are also losing patrons because of smoking bans be it a city ordinance or voluntary on the part of the owner,cigarette and spirits are inseparable vices without the other bars becomes boring and dull.
well this is really an enlightening post mr baker. i would not have made the connection. of course i don't go to bars, but still. anyway, i too don't see that it's a bad thing that kids/young adults prefer to bond with the box instead of the booze.
another educational post. happy weekend.
Rudy,
Yeah, you're right that he should have included blogging to his list. I totally agree. He obviously wasn't a blogger. Hehehe
RJ,
Oo nga eh. Nakakaawa talaga iyong mga nagiging biktima nito. Walang kamalay-malay eh biglang masasawi dahil lang sa mga taong hindi responsable sa pag-inom.
Bambit,
You're right. That was my father's view too years ago. He didn't mind if my friends and I got drunk and slept over at our place. He would much rather prefer that than spend the night worrying that we're all out in a bar somewhere, getting drunk and then having to drive home afterwards.
Edgar,
You raised a very good point there. That's true in that a lot of patrons have given up on bars because of the ban on smoking in those places. It certainly took the fun out of the bar scene. :)
Thank you very much for sharing your views and for the visit. Much appreciated.
Photo Cache,
Thank you very much for the compliment. Although the closing of one bar does not necessarily represent a national trend, I'm pretty certain that there are a lot of bars that are going through the same process.
I got addicted to the gaming consoles too a few years ago. I must admit that it was indeed a lot more fun than getting drunk in a bar. Hehe :D
wow! that's odd indeed specially for me. it teaches us something. business should as well be in trend. imagine a business that stood 20years and now it's down. and this doesn't happen to bars alone. i can see how technology affected the music world today. less and less people buy audio cds.
The Dong,
True, Pards. There's really a big shift happening right before our eyes. The internet has really led to some profound changes in our lives. The CD has become obsolete too.
... and soon the movies.
True, the internet and game consoles did made the young ones come home more =) Its just the violence in there that I am not so happy about (Talking as a mom).
I have to disagree with your first sentence in the last para =D Man has been aroung for 6000 years (Bible book of Numbers). But true, we will survive.... ;-)
Btw, Gesundheit means 'health.'
After sneezing you'd also hear people telling the person wh sneezed "Gesundheit" as if telling them "good health to you." (Mac in Pixar movie's
Cars said that and other movies that I'd ask my kids about)...
Second sentence..lol dami kong comments...
Rolly,
Sad. For parents, the pain over the loss of a child must be unimagineable and probably stays with them until the day they themselves pass on.
Sayang nga eh. Unfortunately my stay was too short. I certainly hope to stay longer the next time I'm in town. I also want to finally meet you and other bloggers I've been corresponding with these past several months.
Mari,
Yeah, but it may take awhile with movies though because there are some people who still enjoy the whole moviegoing experience.
Mirage2g,
That's true. Parents need to watch out what types of games their kids play. May mga games na hindi appropriate for their age because of the language and violence used.
Tungkol sa existence ng Man, naparami ba ang zeroes ko? Hehehe
Maraming salamat for the info you shared regarding "Gesundheit". Matagal ko nang naririnig sa tv iyan eh and I've always wondered what the word truly meant. Thanks for enlightening me. :)
I read nga that it has been a custom na din as expression jan after ng haching sinasabi nila gesundheit...the kids giggle when they hear german words in english film. My daughter told me there's one scene also in Chicken Little...hehe.
Agree. Right now there's just too many options at home to ever consider going out. I used to hang out at bars before but now with the internet, my gaming console, and my DVDs I very seldom go out. In a way it's not a very good thing. You can't really email a handshake or the backslapping among buddies. Balance is still a good thing I think.
hmmm a cyberbar? i'll have a pina colada please. :D
Mirage2g,
Same with me. I've heard it a lot of times over the years as a response whenever someone sneezed. I've always wondered what the word meant. :)
Fence,
Indeed, moderation is still key here. It is still very important for kids and people to have actual human interaction to develop their social skills and emotional maturity.
RDL,
Pina colada coming up. Hahaha Have a great weekend, buddy. :)
I used to bar-hop in the Philippines but since I came here, smoking is the only vice I have and I consider my computer as one of my best-friends. Mind you, I'm pretty good with first-person total carnage computer and PS2 games.
Geeks rule the cyber space!
Blogusvox,
Welcome to the PS2 Club, Pards! Hahaha I myself have gotten pretty good too on a few PS2 games such the Splinter Cell series and Hitman. :D I remember the hours I've spent playing these games, sometimes through the wee hours of the morning.
Why hang out in a bar when one cah have a lot more fun in the comfort of one's home? Yup, Geeks do rule! :D
agree...
nice site.;0)
A lot of bars in Makati are now close on Sundays. So it’s probably true here that there are a growing number of people who have opted to stay home and go on line than hang out in bars.
But with smokers banned from smoking inside bars, I’m now motivated to go to my favorite watering hole once a week…just to hear some noise! :D Spending too much time in front of the computer is certainly much cheaper than hanging out in bars---it’s also fattening! Haha
Points of View,
Thank you for the compliment and thanks for the visit. :)
Luna Miranda,
Your observation confirms that the bar businesses have indeed taken a big hit.
Yeah, I often have a bag of Chippy with me whenever I surf the web. And of course, a bag of Chippy won't be complete without a can or bottle of Coke or Pepsi next to it as "panulak". Hehe Hay. :)
Location is one important factor in the survival of bars and pubs nowadays. Those in areas that are easily accessible by public transportation, aka close to the downtown area normally thrive and are recession proof.
Pubs are often frequented by patrons who watch games - hockey, baseball, soccer, etc.. I live in the suburbs and there's one pub in my neighborhood that's crammed with people when there's a game. YOu can watch PPV sports events like boxing for free as long as you oprder a drink - why not :)
But you're right in that the internet and cable TV, online movie rentals had caused a dip in the patronage of bars and pubs but the old adage with real estate business still holds - the 3 important things are location, location, location :)
BW,
It is true that Location is still key. Most of the bars located in New York City still do very good business. It is the ones out in the suburbs that are taking the brunt of the slowdown. The driver's bar in my post was one such example.
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