The ultimate combination of business and pleasure for those of us who love the taste of a good, cold beer? Throwing open a laptop in a pub and downing a pint or two while firing off queries and polishing first drafts.

I won’t make the draft beer joke here, but I will say that freelancing in the Irish pub down the street from me is one of life’s little pleasures. I was reminded of how much I enjoy this when I stumbled across a 2008 blog post at FreelancerMagazine.com called 6 Alternative Work Spaces to the Home Office by John Cottone.

Some find the pub too noisy to work, but for some reason I enjoy the atomosphere–it actually makes me concentrate a bit harder somehow.

The only thing I don’t do in the pub setting is send queries after the first beer. That’s my rule. You’re just not firing on all cylinders if you’re a lightweight like me on your second pint. But you CAN do research, find new markets, taunt your freelancer friends on Twitter, and have a relaxed time of it away from the home office for a bit.

If you’ve never had the pleasure, treat yourself to a night at the local watering hole, laptop in tow. Best advice from a semi-klutz; don’t type away at the bar–get a booth. And keep your pint a good distance from the keyboard unless it’s in your hand…trust me.

–Joe Wallace