At 7 a.m. today, there wasn't much action on The Avenue.
A few cars whizzed by empty Hampden sidewalks as the morning sun began to burn off last night's dew. The shops were shuttered, and most of the restaurants deserted -- except for one.
The door to Zissimos hung wide open, an invitation for folks to skip the coffee and go for a stronger morning brew. But no one had taken the dive bar up on its early morning offer.
Zissimos sat empty, its bar stools begging for company. I wasn't about to oblige them. But it was nice to know that if I wanted to, I could trash today's plans and spend the morning with a few Buds.
Have you ever done a dawn bar crawl? Its been more than a year since my last one. Jmgiordano and I hit up Hogan's and the Locust Point Tavern at 6 am one weekday. It was an eye-opener ...
Yes, there are people who start drinking before the sun comes up. Old folks, mostly. They'll nurse a few cold ones until mid afternoon, go home, take a nap, get up and go right back to the bar. They're devoted. Some might think that's sad, but I have another idea.
In my mind, these are guys who worked hard labor their whole lives, dreaming of the day they'd be able to sit on their butts and drink beer from sunup to sundown. So there they are, perched on bar stools, tossing back cold bottles of Bud Light while most people haven't gotten out of bed yet.
Do you get a hangover if you drink all day, every day? Or does your body accept a certain level of drunkenness -- that is, of course, before your liver gives out?
It doesn't take much to get a good buzz going if you start extra early. After only two Buds at 6:30 a.m., I was feeling just fine. Unlike the other early morning drinkers, I was back in bed by 8 a.m. My body wasn't set for swilling so early, it seems.
When I walked past Zissimos at 7:45 a.m., it wasn't empty any longer. A couple patrons leaned over the bar, relaxed and ready to greet the day.
(Photo by me)