can someone please tell me what constitutes a 'martini'?

let me tell you a story: my plans to nurse a fresh cup of coffee and the new martha stewart magazine are crushed when i receive a text that i need to be somewhere in half an hour. i was expecting to leave the house no sooner than an hour from then so i knew i had to move my ass off the comfortable chair and get moving. luckily, i had already showered and picked out what i was going to wear for the evening. the unlucky part was that my friends had unexpectedly decided to catch a bite to eat on the way to the restaurant where we were going to have cocktails and listen to a band play. oh no, you're probably wondering to yourself...god forbid having to catch a bite to eat at a cool, hip restaurant! you must have forgotten that for an unemployed boomeranger like myself, this was precisely the unlucky part. considering my economic situation, i make it a point to plan when i eat out; thus, any "surprise" dining experience automatically triggers a negative emotional reaction, accompanied by a vision of my future-self surrendering my debit card. let's get back to the story. i had a decision to make: either suck it up and go out to dinner or make something quick at home and save a little money in the process. well you shouldn't be surprised to find out that i chose the latter. within five minutes i had whipped up (and scarfed down) a simple salad with fresh tomatoes and turkey, all the while gnawing on a block of cheddar cheese which i thought would save me the time of having to (gasp) slice it. not my proudest moment. anyways, i leave the house feeling good about sticking to my plan of just buying drinks that night. after sipping on some beer while watching my friends eat their burgers (i don't recommend watching your friends eat, but sometimes you just gotta do it) we left the restaurant and headed to a ritzy bar for half-price martinis and good music. the drink menu listed several 9-dollar martinis and then a couple other drink options below that, one of which caught my eye: the arnold palmer. sign me up. this baby would only cost me $3.50 after the discount and did i mention that i love sweet tea vodka? the drink was so tasty that i ordered a second round. then the bill comes. here's the funny part: my drink wasn't technically a martini, so i end up having to pay fifteen bucks with tax. F. where was my head!? i was under the impression that i would only be parting with a hamilton and now i am the one with the biggest check. i wasn't even able to leave a 20% tip since my account had about eighteen dollars left (thank god i checked the balance before i left). so there you have it. i wanted to have a leisurely dinner but ended up shoving food down my face and later watching my friends eat. i wanted to enjoy some half-priced martinis but ended up with a larger bill than i intended. what's the lesson here? is it that life is ironic and uncontrollable, and no amount of planning can change that? or is it that i need to abandon my thrifty ways for the sake of my social life? in the grand scheme of things, will that fifteen bucks on martinis and ten bucks on beer make a difference? certainly not. i know that once i generate some income i will be less focused on inconsequential purchases; however, right now, it's hard for me not to foresee where each dollar is being spent. it is quite exhausting to tell you the truth, but life is relative, and i am aware of how well off i am compared to so many. right now it's just tricky finding the balance between frivolity and necessity from a zero cash flow standpoint, which is why i'm positive another story like this one will be told later on...