Retired

[Kip Powick]

Passed to me from a good friend who occasionally haunts this forum

Four old retired guys were walking down a street in Punta Gorda, Florida and turned a corner and saw a sign that said, 'Old Timers Bar - all drinks 10 cents'.

They looked at each other, and then went in, thinking that this was too good to be true. The old bartender said in a voice that carried across the room,

'Come on in and let me pour one for you! What'll it be, Gentlemen?'

There seemed to be a fully-stocked bar, so each of the men ordered a martini. In short order, the bartender served up four iced martinis...shaken, not stirred, and said,

'That'll be 10 cents each, please.'

The four men stared at the bartender for a moment. Then looked at each other...They couldn't believe their good luck. They paid the 40 cents, finished their martinis, and ordered another round.

Again, four excellent martinis were produced and the bartender said once again,

'That's 40 cents, please.'

They paid the 40 cents, but their curiosity was more than they could stand. They each had two martinis and so far they had spent less than a dollar. Finally one of the men said,

'How can you afford to serve martinis as good as these for a dime a piece?'

'I'm a retired tailor from Boston ,' the bartender said, and I always wanted to own a bar. Last year I hit the Lottery for $125 million and decided to open this place... Every drink costs a dime......wine, liquor, beer, it's all the same.'

'Wow!!!! That's quite a story', said one of the men.

The four of them sipped at their martinis and couldn't help but notice seven other people at the end of the bar who didn't have drinks in front of them, and hadn't ordered anything the whole time they were there. One man gestured at the seven at the end of the bar without drinks and asked the bartender,

'What's with them?'

The bartender grinned and replied,

'Oh, they're all old retired airline employees from Canada, They're waiting for happy hour when drinks are half price.'