that’s the name of this nifty little coffee shop i’m enjoying lately.
you ever find a place that, no matter how many times you visit it, there’s always something different going on? well this place is like that.
i remember cafe diem in atlanta was like that. a few other places, too, back in the days before starbucks and barnes and noble came in and ran all the unique places out of business.
i often miss the ‘mom and pop’ places. sure, they didn’t always have the widest selection, but most times, they had the best in a small range. or they made it themselves and really put their entire being into it… and it showed.
home roasted coffee. you have no idea. heh. storm trooper blend is what i’m enjoying this week. and they tell me if i want a special blend or roast, to just call them and request it. they roast once a week and are happy to roast to order.
try getting that from starbucks.
add to this… well… so many things… the atmosphere. one night, some college clean cut person is taking your order and the next, a cross between a french existentialist, a mime, and a goth. hah. never, ever boring. and that’s just the staff.
the people. well. suffice to say i am enthralled.
last night, a girl living free a la rainbow style. guitarist. dreds. unshaven and unrepentant and for all she was hyper, hurricane, and filled with hubris, she was beautiful to me.
i took her picture, but lack the damn cord to upload it. sigh.
kerchiefed and bespectacled, she played and sang and showed me her artwork. she sells prints for cash to get around and stay fed.
amazing stuff. urban. not my thing, but i can appreciate anything. and did. charcoal or color pencil, primaries like lightening across ivory stock. made me feel bad for not carrying cash anymore.
heh. me. getting off track on the details. but you know, there’s delight in them.
the fellow that dances salsa with his girlfriend at the speakeasy. they play and display for one another in shameless exultation. i watched and smiled and felt all was right with the world just because it was possible, just because they were there, young and loving and giddy dancing in the moment.
i remembered giggling because the fellow was too filled with maschismo to put his cigarette down and i at first feared the girl would be burned, so close they twisted and moved by one another. never happened of course and eventually, i too, forgot the silly thing and just enjoyed.
there’s always something. i could write a long bit more of it all… but it’s pointless. memories anyway. and more to come. i do like this area. artists and musicians and sidewalk philosophers and street folk and everyone just… being.
absolutely amazing. but mostly just soothing. hard to explain. but perhaps i don’t need to.