The perfect barmaid

An ideal barmaid should of course be friendly and vivacious and disarmingly pretty, but also quietly efficient at her job. That's not a combination one finds very often. It's even rarer to find one who has the intelligence to engage in genuinely stimulating conversation rather than just idle smalltalk. In addition to its many other virtues, Amilal for a little while earlier this year was blessed with the services of the lovely Lixian, a young American Chinese girl taking a year out before grad school. By day she worked for a film production company, but a few nights a week she would earn a little extra pocket money by helping out at our favourite little courtyard bar. And she was the very embodiment of that Platonic ideal of barmaidliness - not only knee-weakeningly beautiful, but very, very smart, and good at the job too. She was also a young lady of rare taste and discernment, fully able to appreciate the boss's eclectic selection of music and his fine top shelf whiskies, and to banter about these and many other topics. Custom was brisk during that period, especially on those nights when she was on duty. I found myself - quite unconsciously! - increasing the frequency of my visits. I wasn't the only one: I think most of the regulars were at least a little bit smitten. Alas, she wasn't around for very long. She only worked at the bar for three months or so, I suppose; and only for three nights a week (not enough!); and even there, the demands of her day job (actually two day jobs, I believe) often required her to cancel or rearrange her scheduled days behind the bar; and she went travelling out of town quite a lot as well, often disappearing for a week or more at a time, and leaving us bereft. The impact she made on us is all the more remarkable considering that her appearances were limited to only two or three dozen. She's back in the States now, applying to law school - we wish her luck with that. She will always be fondly remembered in the bar. We hope she'll come back and visit again one day.