My friend Brian forwarded me this photo from the Four Roses Distillery this morning, where hundreds of customers queued up early for the latest limited edition: a 16 year old single barrel release (most of which will likely be sold online for 10x the price throughout the week) with proceeds going to help the flooding in Eastern Kentucky (albeit not the proceeds from the secondary market gains).

In response, I sent him this photo from DTLA’s Smorgasburg yesterday, where hundreds of people waited hours to try Oakland’s Horn BBQ samplings. Luckily, I wasn’t in the mood for brisket or pulled pork, having had my fill in Louisville a few weeks ago, so all the foods I wanted were readily available with little to no wait (Sad Girl Creamery’s Choco Taco, taquitos from Los Dorados, smashburger from Love Hour, burritos from La Palma, etc). Yet, I couldn’t help but wonder about all those folks blistering themselves under the hot sun for a few bites of meat. Was it worth it? I’ll probably never know.

What was interesting to me was the complaining I heard while eavesdropping on the people who were taking selfies and making Instagram Live videos about their experience. All I could think about was asking them: What do you think is going to happen when you tell everyone about how awesome a certain restaurant or food truck is? Do you think it’s going to make people not want to try it?

I’ll happily wait in line for something I’m excited about. I’ll also happily tell others who I think might be interested. What I won’t do, however, is complain about it; especially when I’m part of the problem. If you’re someone who posts about whiskey all day long on social media, then laments the fact that it’s hard to find, you need to take a long, hard look in the mirror.

-David Driscoll