I have a very low alcohol tolerance. I know it. My colleagues know this. I usually order a cocktail and drink a small portion of it. Why in the world would I take a shot of tequila?

I was invited to a cooking show watch party. One of The Stack’s chefs competed in this cooking show. Other Stack servers, cooks, and family members were there as well. We met at a local sports bar.

The chef wanted to buy everyone a celebratory tequila shot before the show started. I agreed. So now, here’s my silly behind in this circle of people with salt on one hand and a lime in the other. I took the shot, licked the salt, and squeezed lime juice into my mouth.

Yeh, that was a mistake.

There was one server taking care of the watch party. We were a nightmare with our separate tickets. Then we had different people paying for different rounds of shots.  The the only bartender was pouring drinks for our party as well as the restaurant.

One member of the watch party had too many shots of tequila. She became verbally abusive when it was time to pay her bill. No one knew this until the incident was over she left.

I wanted to console the server so I gave her a huge hug. Oops!

Y’all gotta understand the significance of my blunder here. Number one, I don’t hug in public. I’m not big on PDA in any form.

Number two, the manager had it all under control. He was helping the bar, running drinks, and running food.

Number three, and this is the most important thing to understand. Never, I repeat, never ever ever ever touch your server! Ever! You know how many people we talk to in a shift? Not just on the floor but also in the kitchen? We don’t know where your hands have been. We have other tables to attend to. We’re hangry. We’re often tired from the sheer physicality of our work.

If I were sober, I would have realized the magnitude of my mistake. I, however, was knee deep in my one little tequila shot I had 2 hours ago. I drank water. I even had bar food. Still hugged the server.

No more tequila for me, thank you!