The Bar That Showed Me Who I Could Have Been

I lied to get the job, but bartending revealed unexpected truths about who I am — and who I’ll never be

Illustration: DenPotisev/Getty Images

When I was 22, I moved home to live with my parents. Needing money, I did what every red-blooded American girl does when she’s short on cash and large on desperation: I got a terrible job at a terrible bar, called…