However, what I will do is get excited about all the new things coming to ChrisTheBartender.com in 2010!! Now that football season is over I can finally use my bar again on Sundays to film new videos, which is what I have been anxiously waiting for. So for you loyal readers and bartenders, I promise that 2010 will bring at least twice as many flair instructional videos, new focus on exhibition flair and routine building, five times as many cocktail mixing tutorials, and new links to what's happening in the world of flair bartending. I'll also be adding some focus to teaching brand new bartenders the basics of the craft. After all, I love me some flair bartending, but I love me an intelligent, well-trained bartender even better.

If I can manage the back-end programming side of it, I'm also looking to create a forum or discussion board so that beyond just commenting on my posts, you'll now be able to communicate with other readers, pose questions of your own, and interact with the community at large.

Finally, I'll also be adding some sponsorship to the site. I've been very conscious about advertisements on the site, which is why there hasn't been any for the first three years. However, contrary to what one of my very few negative commenters thinks, I don't live the "life of luxury as a bar consultant." I sling drinks in a bar 4-5 nights a week, teach classes, train bar staff, and occasionally guest bartend. My goal with sponsorship is to subsidize my income so that I can work a little less at those endeavors and commit more time to bringing you great, helpful content on this website. My aim is to find products that I use and love, and sponsors that I can whole-heartedly recommend to connect you with. If you like them, I hope you'll support my sponsors. I'll be very cognizant of obnoxious or intrusive ads and I want to hear from you if you think any of the advertisements are too much. 

I'd appreciate any feedback you care to give. Ooh, and I'd like it even more if you tell a friend or co-worker!

I'll be filming and editing videos during the month of February. New stuff to come by March. And, as always, practice, practice!!

And a major "Cheers!" to Bob, Darryl, and the rest of the crew at Gilligan's. They were so friendly, hospitable, and fun. They put in a lot of work to make the night awesome for everyone - and still managed to have a blast themselves. Great people!

Here's the footage from my routine. I was happy with my showcase, overall, though watching it again I think I was a bit repetitive throughout the middle of it. If I were to do it again, the only thing I'd change would be to add a little more variety. That, and the chin stack...

I'll make sure I get the rest of the footage from everyone else up when I can. I first met Paul 5 years ago at my very first bartending competition - and just about cried when I saw what I was up against. He consistently places in the top 3 in just about every major flair bartending competition around the world that he competes in. And Brian Zachau has placed 2nd (out of 10,000) at the TGI Fridays World Championships for the last 5 years in a row. So, yeah, they both kick ass.

As promised, I've also got a few bonus clips which will be up shortly. Check back later today.

So far, I'm liking the Hilton - extra hours, extra money, new people - but I'm anxious to get back to spending more time on this site, as well as a few other projects I'm working on. So, if you're in the Madison, WI area, and you're looking for a full-time position at the absolute nicest hotel in town, stop by the Hilton and ask for Josh Foley. Great place to work, and I'd stay there myself, if I didn't already have a full-time job. That, and I have serious moral objections to working more than 40 hours per week....

Oh, and the absolute only negative thing I can say about the place is, they use jiggers!! What's up with that? After 10 years of free-pouring, I can pour exactly 1/2 oz, 1 oz, 1 1/4 oz, and 2 oz, on the dot everytime. I almost didn't know how to use the damn thing. Anybody else out there still using jiggers? Do you prefer them or is it a managerial thing? It's like having a calculator right in front of you but still using an abacus - drives me nuts. A good bartender with a Spill-Stop 285-50 can pour more acurately, more swiftly, any day of the week over some bottle-jockey with a jigger. Am I wrong?

Check back next week for some sweet new moves. I'll even throw in some extras to make up for lost time:)

Let's get to The Bump. This is officially our first exhibition flair move - meaning this is NOT a move you can pick up a full bottle at work and give it a try. DO NOT do that. You'll spill everywhere. This is a move that should be done with a bottle that is no more than 1/4 full. As always, practice at home with an empty until you're comfortable with it. Then, try adding a couple ounces of water at a time and until you see how much is too much. I'll warn you ahead of time: you will get a bruise from practicing the bump. It just is. So practice for no more than 10-15 minutes at a time. Or until it gets too sore. And don't practice the day before you have a shoot for your job as a forearm model.