While you were out

The bar culture in Bloomington is a mainstay of the student experience. Every weekend, makeup and fine clothing are applied, collars popped and breathmints taken, and the masses converge on Kirkwood and Walnut Avenues for a night of libations and pick-up lines.\nWhen the students go home, however, the scene changes dramatically. There aren't any drunk buses ferrying the intoxicated home from the parties. The cover charges go down or are altogether nonexistent, and the streets feature the deafening sound of silence.\nThere is less, and at the same time, there is more. There are less police runs, less fake IDs, less skin showing. There are less bartenders and less waiting times for drinks. At the same time, there is more space -- a lot more space. At Upstairs Pub, a wildly popular destination when school is in session, one could actually walk through the entire bar and not brush up against anyone else.\nDepending on who you talk to, some people like it that way.\nAt Upstairs, IU alums Eric Vollmer and Kelli Howard commented on the crowd after Saturday night's IU basketball game.\n"During school this place is so packed you can't even move, so this is nice," Vollmer said.\nHoward, from Chicago, said the bar scene in a major city is vastly different than in a college town.\n"In Chicago, you have the newly graduated, the urban college students and the older crowd," she said. "There's a bar for every age group. When you get into the workforce, you don't drink as much."\nSince the workforce were the only people left in town over Thanksgiving break, many bars operated half-staffed, if at all. 2nd Story was completely closed. Across the patio from Upstairs Pub, Uncle Fester's lower level was closed and the upper Jungle Room only had one bartender working the taps. IU junior Kyle Davis said his day consisted of two things -- finding things to clean and sitting around.\n"A lot of times we'll have a late crowd or a dinner rush," he said. \nThen he clarified what he meant by a rush.\n"We call it a rush because it's when the most people come in, but compared to our busy nights, this is nothing."\nOn this particular night, the bar was so roomy one could walk out without smelling of cigarette smoke. In fact, it smelled like bleach, possibly from all the boredom-inspired cleaning.\nAcross the street at Nick's English Hut, business was booming, but according to doormen Les James and Tyler Cabanaw, it's because Nick's is a Bloomington institution. And it's a lot like Cheers, where if you're a regular, everybody knows your name.\n"All the young professionals and all the college kids who are from here but go to school somewhere else come back here," James said. "It's like a high school reunion."\nNick's doormen are notorious for being able to spot fake IDs, and the holiday breaks make it even easier for them, because they can spend more time scrutinizing them. Despite that, Cabanaw said he likes the crowds.\n"I think they're fun," he said. "It's more entertaining when it's full."\nThe bars on Walnut seemed to fare a little better on the student-less Saturday night. Axis' '80s retro night drew a big nostalgia crowd, the kind of crowd that doesn't come out until the students leave anyway. Sports still drew enough people to charge a cover, though it was only one dollar. The Taco Bell next door, however, closed early. The Video Saloon appeared to have as much business as usual, and the Bluebird has had a holiday break contingency plan in place for two years. With it, Bluebird owner Dave Kubiak kills multible birds with one stone.\n"We did a Johhny Cash tribute this year and last. It's been pretty good," he said.\nThe tribute, a benefit show for charity group Options for Better Living, brings a large local crowd to Bluebird on what would otherwise be a slow night.\n"Johnny Cash died last year, and we needed something to do around break, so this made sense," he said.\nEven with the sizable traffic Bluebird gets from the Cash benefit, Kubiak said he still only needs to have half of his staff around.\n"There's not as many people, so there's not as many problems," he said.\nCrossing the street over to the Video Saloon, one would never guess that school was out of session. People young and old filled up every available table, barstool and dartboard. IU alum Ben Garceau said he came back to visit his old stomping grounds as he and his friends passed the time at a dartboard.\n"When I was in town this was my favorite bar," he said. "It's got a different feel than all the other bars. This is the only bar I've been to where you don't feel compelled to dance."\nOn why the Video Saloon was so packed with people so soon after Thanksgiving, he offered a comment that might explain the bar's appeal to certain crowds.\n"If I had to put my mind to it, I would say the kind of people who go to the Vid wouldn't go home for Thanksgiving," he said. "Either that, or they would come back early."\nTen-year Vid veteran bouncer Michael Shiflet said two things contribue to the Vid's success -- familiarity and safety.\n"This place is always busy," he said. "When the students go home, the townies come out. This is the safest place in the city. We don't have the problems that other bars have."\nEven after considering the rowdiness question, especially concerning his much bigger bar, Bluebird owner Kubiak said students are what help drive Bloomington and his business.\n"Even though I enjoy nights like tonight, it's better when the students are here," he said. "When summer starts in May, people say 'Oh, it's so nice and quiet,' but halfway through you realize the life is gone. Students are one of the dynamics that make Bloomington what it is."\nThe dearth of students also affects Matt Barry, the hot dog vendor often stationed outside Kilroy's on Kirkwood. Still tending his post when the temperature dropped past chilly, Barry said he would like business to be as brisk as the weather, but enjoys the slower moments too.\n"It's nice and quiet," he said with a laugh.