“I don’t need no protection. I got mine,” said Bowling Green resident Bodie Beason, 45, while showing off his tattoo of Jesus at The Bottom, a juke joint on the outskirts of Warren County.

The Bottom is almost a home away from home for Beason, who has frequented the establishment since his teenage years. For many, The Bottom is the one place where the music is always good, the spirits are plentiful and no one is a stranger.

“Ain’t nothing else to do,” Beason said. “You just need somewhere to hang out.”

Dana Rieber is a senior photojournalism major from Sheperdsville. Reach her at dana.rieber@gmail.com.