Coffee talk....

Gosh. That picture makes me look tired. How long has it been since we have had a coffee talk...like months and I apologize. My doppio espresso with steamed breve and I are here. 

I can't believe that it is June. This month ranks #3 of my all time least favorites under July and August aka summer.

Okay. Let's see who is in the coffee shop. 

1. A lovely older black woman with the most beautiful toes I have ever seen. I think she must have just gotten them done. They are like a perfect shade of mauve. She is sitting directly in front of me and she is on her DELL. why do I instantly feel sorry for PC users? She has sunglasses on her head, which have the Crown Royal emblem on the sides, reading glasses on her face and pretty gold hoop earrings. She is wearing a lavender tank top and long white shorts. She has gorgeous hair and the more I study her, I realize it is a weave. When she sat down, she immediately got on facebook. She is on her pink iPhone now and she has the most GORGEOUS sapphire ring on her right ring finger. A silver charm bracelet loosely drapes her left wrist. Her nails are done in french tips and she is wearing brown strappy sandals.

2&3. There is a man and a woman behind me. They are arguing about a house and money and payments and some other woman. I don't think they are a couple but they talk like they are closely connected in some way. Their tone is not a good one. They are frustrated and angry. I have no idea what the man looks like but they are getting up now so I can see them.... They just walked out. He is wearing stupid shorts cargo khakis, a white polo and a red hat. The woman is in a red tank and some funny long black shorts. They went out to a Toyota and they are smoking. 

4. This Japanese chick just walked in and got a Venti iced beverage. She was wearing the tallest pink heels and a super cool blazer and jeans and big shades. The Japanese are so cool. She was the skinniest person I have seen all week and I think she was probably about 5ft tall, but with those heels and her confidence, she looked about 6ft. 

There are a few more people behind me that I can't see and if I keep turning around, I think I might get kicked out for being creepy. Life is going really well. I am deeply committed to the pages of my story. I will head to California in a few weeks and I am thrilled about that. I will learn some Chinese, eat really great food and see a great city with a wonderful friend. 

Happy June. 

I HATE SUMMER!!!!!!!

Coffee talk...Nashville Airport

This might be the best coffee talk ever. 

I flew into Nashville Airport this morning and have pretty much all day free. As I was wondering what I was going to do in this lovely city, I took a stop at the Starbucks near terminal C. To my viewing pleasure, I saw what appeared to be a man with headphones setting up his drum kit. In the AIRPORT! So I got excited. 

Then comes another man with a little black case which was holding the most perfect of trumpets. 

Then this super tall fellow wearing a white Kangol comes on the stage. 

The quartet is completed with a crazy haired Samoan lookin guy carrying an upright bass.

And all is well with the world. 

I just love airports. This might be my favorite airport experience. My favorite is walking past each gate and seeing where the folks are headed. 

Destination: Orange County

-60yr old white woman wearing Hermes with a 30 thousand dollar face.

 I mean...this lady. Is she serious? Does she think she really looks younger???

Destination: Dallas Fort Worth

-1 pink cowboy hat, 1white one, 3 brown.

-8 pair of cowboy boots; one pink

-Camo

-Carharts

-The most lovely of cowboys

Destination: Albuquerque 

-Turquoise earrings; four pair

-2 dreamcatchers

Destination: Any place in Florida

-Tommy Bahama polos

-worn out flip flops

Destination: Any midwestern town

-sweatpants and children

This is a great day. Listening to this amazing music makes for a great start to the weekend. I love watching the people tap their toes to the beat some are even tapping off beat. how does that happen? I love that a little boy grabbed a chair and pulled it up right next to the piano and sat so confidently. My ears are thankful for this time here in the airport. Thank you Nashville! 

Coffee Talk with a Special Guest

I have a special guest here with me today at our Coffee talk. I am going to interview her and see what insight she has on life:

1. What is your favorite thing about the coffee shop? Umm. Chock-lick milk. This is not the coffee shop. The coffee shop is the one we went to with baby Aiden (Northside Social. hahha. She knows a real coffee shop when she sees one)

2. What is the hardest thing about life? To clean up my stuff

3. What are your life goals? What is life goals. (I explain) Oh to play and to go to Massanutten. 

4. What is your biggest fear? What is fear mean. (I explain) Oh- monsters and snakes. I feared to do swings. (She is really afraid of swings)

5. What are you most excited for this year? For spring. No. For winter. I so excited to do spring but it's not spring yet. What is it now? 




Oh if life were that simple. Happy Fat Tuesday!

Coffee talk

Backlit. The sun is quite bright. 

I am here at the old coffee shop in Arlington. I don't think I have been here on a Sunday morning. It is quite different. There is a perfect combination of heathens and church goers. The lady standing in line next to my table just picked her wedgie..over her coat. It was all a bit awkward. She is wearing a knee-length black coat, blue sweat pants (they have a sticker on them. The symbol looks like the Ferragamo symbol..or, if you are in college, it is kinda like the symbol for Omega). She is also wearing brown loafers, no socks and her hair is slightly unbelievably out of place A MESS. I am guessing she had a semi-late night and will not be at the first service of church.  I have seen 2 bellies already. Did I mention that it is 26 degrees... 

I miss this place. Half of the barista's are new. I said hi to R. when I got here. Glad he is here. I have seen one of those fuzzy head halo headband things that I am not a fan of can't stand:

*Note: if a supermodel looks bad in it.....then it is probably not the best choice.

I see one home-made grey cropped short sleeve sweater thing with a hood. I don't understand it either. Oh! I just saw furry headband thing #2 in black. 

I am going to order the quiche. Ham & cheese. That is what R. says to get. I miss this place. It no longer feels like home but it feels more like a fun little vacation spot. 

Coffee Talk

The first snow of the season is happening right now. My friend A. who lives in the great Jackson TN, made me take this mug when we went to brunch together in Kansas City. It is from a great place called First Watch. I have every intention on returning it lying. The mug is heavy and little and I love it.  I have been sick for a few days and haven't gone to work and I feel the same crappiness today. I threw away a bunch of things yesterday. I love getting rid of stuff. I like to blame my dad who keeps every newspaper article with anything related to sports and to my mom who still has my Halloween costume from when I was 3. (Now...it did come in handy and Bailey wore it 2 years ago but that is besides the point). I am afraid my children will have no memories unless they are uploaded to a hard drive somewhere. I have taken in more sodium these days of being sick, thanks to the gallons of chicken broth that have been slurped, than I have had all year. I feel like I can now float in water. Time for a few fun facts before I get ready for work...as if you cared...

*I think swedish fish are disgusting!
*We are doing a felt Christmas tree this year
*I have received one Christmas card so far. There was no money, no picture, no Christmas letter. I don't understand.
*I love old pieces of luggage
*I am planning a little get-a-way for when I am official single :) I am thinking about the Northwest US.
*I own 3 pairs of black shoes. I do not own a pair of black pants.
*I notice a woman's teeth, eyebrows and nails. I notice a man's teeth, hem of their pants and socks.
*I ate a half dozen oatmeal cookies yesterday. Random things I added to them were: pomegranate infused craisens, cardamom and orange extract
*I hate horseradish

Happy 9 days till Christmas!!

Coffee talk

How long has it been since a coffee talk?! I am at Broadway Cafe in Kansas City right now. Such a lovely place. There are about 12 people here not including myself. Only one person has a computer open. Everyone else is reading or drawing cartoons. No cell phones are out. I see no designer labels. No glasses of wine. Americano's, bike helmets and awesome leather satchels are around me. Billy Holiday is the music choice right now in this place. I am obviously in a foreign place. I love this place. This culture. It is such a different culture. I love the simplicity of life here. I love that the local coffee shops out number the Starbucks. I love the lack of traffic and that I always find the coolest vintage dresses here. I love my family and my friends here. I love that on my way here, I saw a man with a sign that said: "JOKES 25cents". I love that, while on the Plaza today, a man came up to my friend S. and I and starting rapping to us. He was the most terrible of rappers and I think he should look into another profession. I love all the food that I have stuffed into my mouth. I love that I could buy a coffee mug with change. Yes, It was 35 cents. I love that you can buy things with just cents. It's like I went through some time travel machine. I love that you can listen to other peoples conversation and it will almost always be in English. I love that there are BBQ joints within a 5 mile radius. I love that it takes 15 minutes to get anywhere. I love this place. This culture. This people.

coffee talk

I am wearing a shirt fyi.

Its an all new coffee talk. I am not drinking coffee now and really feel like I should get one just so that I can properly call this coffee talk. I hate to say it but I am not sitting at my usual Northside Social in Arlington. I am sitting at Panera in Tyson's corner mall. I already miss the coffee shop and the people. I miss all the employee's and all my little quirky people that I got to write about. I start today at my new job which is Nordstrom. I am really pumped about it. I do, however, need a new wardrobe for the job so feel free to mail in donations for that. The lighting in here is a bit terrible. I just ate a chocolate covered biscuit. Y.U.M.

There are way too many people in here to blog about. I think I might just pick out a few that stand out and let that be the coffee talk. Already, I am bored of the khaki pant and blue button down with the sad, blue tie, brown shoe, brown belt. I am wondering if it is actually a uniform for the government worker. If it is, then I really need to speak to someone higher up.

There is one lady that stood out to me. She sat at one of the 4 tops for those of you that have never worked in the restaurant industry, a top is in reference to how many seats. So if you have an 8 top, that means you have 8 people seated. You could sit a party of 6 at an 8 top. Or you could sit a party of 2 at an 8 top but you wouldn't want to do that. You would just sit them at a 2 top. And I digress  with her son who looked about 4 years old. She was wearing a large salmon colored long sleeve shirt and it sadly swallowed her extra small frame. Her son, sipping his organic chocolate milk and dipping those processed chicken nuggets in a little pool of ketchup, kept looking up at her, pleased with the way he was dipping. The woman, however, was preoccupied with her nine dollar tub of greenery to even notice his excitement. She stabbed some greens, looked blankly at the kill, and shoveled it in the opening of her boney face. This process continued.

"We are in a war between dullness and astonishment."-Dangerous Wonder

coffee talk

It seems like forever since the last coffee talk. Did I mention that I love this coffee shop? I have been here everyday this week so far. Today I decided to try the Strawberry Almond scone. That was a good decision.   Another good decision I made today....doing stairs at the high school. My legs will be mad tomorrow for sure. Nothing like hitting the stairs hard going up and doing squats on the way down. :) Sweet torture.

Alright. Coffee talk. Here is my scene:
Well, I just moved seats. I just sat in that seat to take the picture and the girl that you see in the pic behind me kept looking at me like I was taking a picture of her. Narcissist. The scene has changed a bit since I took that pic. We now have 8 folks outside. There is a girl at the table in front of me who has a funky haircut and color. It has orange (bright orange) and blonde and brown. It is short but a bit of it is pulled back in a little bun. She has on cool yellow shoes and is eating a scone. Her left nostril is pierced.   She is ready a book called Twelve Ordinary Men (maybe disciples???) and her sunglasses are on her head. She seems to be waiting for someone.


Who else..
The guy who has the wrap thingy on his head. It is dark green. He is drinking Pelligrino and seems to be writing or drawing. He is drawing. He keeps looking at me. I wonder if he is drawing me. Narcissist. He had good scruff and is wearing a black v-neck. Dark jeans and Adidas shoes. He is thinking a lot. I wonder what he is drawing......
There are 2 girls eating grilled cheese. Well, one is. the other just has a latte. There is an older woman close to me who is just on her phone. I think she is waiting for someone.

Digress...I love when people look around as they are waiting for someone. It is as if they want to make sure that everyone knows that they are not at a coffee shop by themselves. The look to the left. A quick glance to the right. iPhone check.  A quick fumble in the bag and repeat.
 The other people have left. That is it of the coffee talk.

Can I talk about the road this week?
 Ummm. I guess it's a holiday weekend and everyone from all the other states decide to come here. I am desperate to see a Virginia license plate. I wish there were a manual for all those not from Virginia/D.C  so that cars would move a bit more smoothly when times like this occur. Oh the out-of-towners. They just crack me up. They stick out like a...well...they just stick out like crazy.  They slow down our busy little world. They order slow. They drive big huge vans. They have lots of children. They don't know what to do when the toll plaza comes up. They panic when a decision on the road needs to be made. They are the least efficient people. And they should be. Right? They are entering a new world by coming to our crazy metropolitan area. I am not mad at them, I just suggest that they get a manual when they cross states lines so they know what to do in situations like ordering a latte and how to pay at one of the Pay-to-park spots.
So...are you suspecting that someone drove really slow in front of me or someone took way to long fixing their coffee or someone took an eternity to pay at the parking spot? Yes. all of these happened today. Maybe we Nova/D.Cers need to use this time with the "foreigners" as an opportunity to learn some patience....
But maybe we don't.
Maybe we need to welcome the Michigan and Carolina plates with open arms and be gentle and kind.
But maybe we don't.
Every time that I have gone to a foreign country, I am first given lessons in the culture and I get a booklet of the do's and don't. I am told in Cambodia to not show the bottoms of my feet and not to look men in the eyes and I am warned, when going to Mexico, to not drink the water and not travel outside of the home by myself. SO....why not get prepped for travel to our area?
It does seem like a foreign country to those who are from small towns and we have do's and don'ts.
Until legislation passes the bill to have booklets passed out at the "borders", I guess I will just have to use the situations that I am presented with as teaching opportunities. I will extend grace to the man who takes up the entire counter to "doctor up" (that is what my dad says) his coffee and squeeze in, showing him that, the space that 1 "foreigner" takes up is equivalent to 4 spaces for us locals.
It's my birthday month.

coffee talk

This is a scary picture. 

I was sitting inside for a bit but quickly got my iced americano and came outside. The guy I wrote about a few weeks ago who was sitting outside will his Pelligrino and reading The Uncanny was here today. He is on a new book now and was sipping Pelligrino. Also, the man with the perfect facial hair and macbook pro is here too. He is sitting inside and I said hello to him as I walked in. He is wearing a salmon colored shirt, cool jeans, nice brown shoes and looks like he got the new iPhone because he has been on that thing since I got here.  R., the Pastry Chef, is here and looks like the Chef's are in a little meeting outside. R. let me enjoy some almonds that he made which were perfectly enveloped in a sugar coating. Mmmm.

When I came home from work last nite, I was desperate for chick peas. Why? I have no clue. So I made a chick pea curry thing. YUM!!! I can't tell you what spices I put in it because my spices are from my Nepali neighbor and there are, of course, no labels. So, if you like chick peas, here is the "recipe":

*1 can chick peas
*some tomatoes
*some leftover stuff from the pizza I made the day before including: jalepenos, turkey bacon and chicken
*onions
* fresh ground pepper
*cinnamon
*red spices
*dark brown spices
*medium brown spices

DIRECTIONS:
Brown the onions with delicious EVOO (extra virgin olive oil).
Dump in can of chick peas
Dump in other stuff
pour in the liquid from the can of chick peas
Add the spices
Medium high heat
Then reduce to simmer
Eat.
So maybe my future won't involve writing recipes. But let me tell you. It tastes AMAZING.

I have decided to get in the best shape of my life.

 I am cutting carbs (not as many pizzas for me :( ) , taking my vitamins, eating really well and often, and doing crossfit workouts. I feel great! I have a goal in mind and I plan on reaching that.

I mean......yes please.

 I know it will take a lot of hard work and discipline but I'm ready. Did I make vows to August? I don't think I did. I want nothing to do with the month. Thank God it is almost over.

Did I mention that my birthday is in September?? I think it is the greatest month. My last birthday was terrible and the year that followed was, well, the most difficult one yet. I am pumped for 28 and this next year. If you have clicked the "FOLLOW" button on my blog then thank you. If you remain anonymous then that is fine too but you could click the follow button :) That's all folks.

Coffee talk

Listening to Charlie Parker. Enjoying an iced latte. It is warmer than I like but I didn't get the usual txt from God asking me what degree I would prefer him to set the thermostat at today. He must not have unlimited texts.

to my left, 3 white girls, all dressed completely different than the other. One in a bedazzled brown skirt with a brown bedazzled belt, those weird boots that are peep toes and sandals all in one. those just confuse me. it is as if the designer started with a boot concept and WHOOPS. we just ran out of pleather....so...do we just make it a sandal? then some goof said YES!! Brilliant!! I, however, do not think it is brilliant. It is just confusing.  She is also wearing a brown top. She is a white girl but seems to have just got back from a month in the Caribbean due to her skin that is browner than mine.  She looks kinda like a glorified Hershey's bar. . She is drinking champagne. It is 4:00 by the way. The girl to her right seems to have just gone for a run. A bold number 13 hugs the back of her freebie t-shirt. Nike workout short in grey and pink, Asics shoes, leopard print glasses. Red nails. High ponytail with chunky blonde streaks. She is on her phone and telling what seems to be a very important story. The last wolf in the pak is in white shorts, a grey tank and flip flops. She is sipping champagne as well and has on brown glasses that are bigger than her tanned face. She has on a silver watch and a turquoise ring on the opposite hand.

There are white 2 men a few tables up. Both in khakis that make me bored just looking at them. One is in a yellow button down with a brown and orange hat and sun glasses. black shoes. black belt. black socks. black brief case. yawn. The other man is in a blue button down and he is a large man. They just got up and it took the larger blue man 3 strikes before he was out of his chair.

There are 2 more men at another table who look to be hispanic. I won't talk much about them because I would rather talk about the black man who was sitting at the table in front of me. He kept looking at me as if we were playing a game where I was whispering his name and then looking down at my computer as soon as he heard me. I was not, however, whispering his name. I did not know him. I wondered if he knew that he had ink all over his shirt.

A guy just came out and sat down in front of where the wolf pak is sitting. He was here yesterday and we sat by each other and as I was desperate for an internet connection, I asked him if he was having trouble connecting to the internet as well. He said he was and that it had been like that all day. He has a macbook pro and now he is reading a book but I remember his mac from yesterday. He is drinking iced tea now and he has on reading glasses with orange side thingys why can't i think of what the part of the glasses that go behind your ear are called... He looks to be from some foreign land but I can't guess where. He has long hair combed perfectly into a low ponytail and a face that is carefully framed in facial hair. He looks smart and I bet he plays and instrument. Probably guitar. He looks like the type to ride a bicycle places and to hate corporations and probably be vegan. He is in a blue shirt, dark blue jeans and cool brown shoes.

coffee talk

Its another week of coffee talk. I just bought Olive Oil here. I don't think I have been this excited in a bit. Well, maybe since this morning when I realized that I am, for sure, going to see Sufjan Stevens in concert in Kansas City on Oct 17th!!!!!

The olive oil is beautiful. It is made in Italy. All of the wording is in Italian. That makes me happy. The front label says:

Rapitala

Olio

Vergine

DiOliva

I am guessing it just says extra virgin olive oil but. It looks much better in Italian. 

I am sitting at a seat that I usually do not sit at. The piece below is the art piece that I am sitting under. It is much better to look at than the lady with the USA flag that I usually sit under. But, you know what I realized just this second? If I sit under the minimally dressed woman with the flag and heels then I am able to see the piece of art pictured below. But sitting where I am now, I cannot see the art piece below. I can only see the minimally dressed woman with the flag and heels. So folks there you have it. Deep thoughts by myself. Better to sit in front of garbage to see beauty than to sit in front of beauty to see trash. Nope. It sounded better in my head. Anywhoo. Here is what I am sitting under:

I am sitting in the upstairs. There is one guy on his hp and Jose' who is rolling silverware at the bar. We just talked a bit bout what time I get off work and how late of a nite I am going to have. The guy on his hp is wearing an orange shirt and he has glasses and he is sitting more awkward that I have ever seen a human sit. He is sitting with his legs up in the chair but to the side so he is kinda sitting on them. I am not sure why. He looks so uncomfortable. I can also see downstairs a bit and I see 2 guys on the couch. They clearly don't know each other as they sit as closely to the opposing sides as possible. The man on the left has salt and pepper hair and looks Italian or Hispanic. He has an hp and is wearing argyle socks, ecru button down, grey slacks. he is wearing a gold band on his left pointer finger and drinking an iced latte. I would guess he was gay by the way he just sipped that latte. No straight man drinks like that. He is well groomed but...he has an hp and a book bag with a NIB tag on it. The other guy is young.  I would say 10 years younger. He is cool. He has a macbook pro. 13inch. He has an old leather bag which I might try to steal. He is wearing cool black boots with little buckles on the side, grey jeans, blue flannel and sipping a black coffee in a mug. He is wearing sunglasses inside and it is not that sunny outside. He has thick sideburns and a little beard. He is not as cool as he thinks but he has really good hair with lots of product. He just saw me staring at him. I must learn to be more discreet.
Well, the time is over and I must go make some money. I had an alright week. I stayed up till 4am watching a french film with Audrey Tatou. I am still ready for an adventure. I am still learning about life and people and relationships. Enjoy your day. Peace.

coffee talk

Okay. So have I mentioned how much I love this coffee shop? Last time I was here okay, not the last time. the last time i learned from L. that just because you speak Swedish, it doesn't mean you are from Sweden :) I got lemonade from Jose'. This time......Rob, the pastry chef here at Northside, whom I see but have never met, until today, brings me a piece of chocolate that he made.....ummmm. What kind of chocolate is it you might be asking? CARDAMOM!!!!! I asked him how he knew that I am obsessed with Cardamom. He didn't know. Oh.my. That just made my day. I am eating Cardamom chocolate right now while sipping my iced coffee. wow. Life be good.

I also just saw lightning hit some light pole across the street and catch it on fire. Pretty cool. and scary.

This week went well. I put some effort in my business, hung out with some new characters, spoke with a British accent for 2 days, received 2 letters from penpals, ate the best cheeseburger ever, made some delicious food, cut Bailey's hair, paid bills, and told the Dean of Dental Hygiene that I would not be back in the fall. So..pretty eventful.

My heart, as of this week, is at a place that it has never been before. I feel so content. It doesn't feel like a sitting in a hammock on the beach sort of contentment but rather a carving powder on a snowboard down a black diamond sort of contentment.  All is right and everything is happening according to the Author. I feel so aware of the scenes around me. It's the difference between drinking wine and going to a wine tasting. With tasting, you pick out notes, flavors, hints of berry and spice. There is a song that I have been listening to from a cd mix that my dear friend G. made for me. One of the lines goes,
"We have tasted life, we have taken on, with a big breath out and a big breath in. We say LA LA LA LA LA LA LA".

I just love that. I am tasting life. Enjoying every bit of it. It is full bodied and complex with hints of cardamom.

coffee talk

What a beautiful day for coffee talk. I got here really early today and I think that is what I will do from now on. I am sitting outside. The weather is perfect. A few minutes after sitting down a girl named K. asked to sit at the table with me (the outside is pretty packed). I, of course, said yes knowing she would be blogged about and that we would share stories. She apologized for interrupting but little did she know that she was not interrupting but rather fulfilling her role as a character in my page that sounded like i am way too full of myself and like her sole purpose in life is for me. that is not, however, what i meant. I found out that she is getting into Nutrition. She spoke about the amounts of Calcium in ice cream, the B12 in certain vegetables and how tomatoes and onions release more of their vitamins when cooked. I am pretty sure it was onions. K..if you are reading this feel free to correct me :) I told her that I blogged and she knew that she would be blogged about. She is 23 and from the Northern Virginia area. She sings. She loves food and has a boyfriend. She has 2 tattoos. One is on her left scapula and is from the Opera Carmen. the other is on her left hip and is from Phantom of the Opera. I told her that I have seen Phantom of the Opera and that I would see Carmen. She stayed well past her lunch break but didn't seem too concerned about being late.
I saw the lovely professor whom I pegged as a photographer. He was in business clothes which he is usually not in. He waved and I waved as he walked by and he asked if I was blogging. I told him that I was about to but not about him. sometimes i lie. but not on purpose
There is a man that I told K. that I would blog about. He has lovely grey hair and it is pulled back in a ponytail. An orange ponytail holder. He is on his iPhone that has a white case. He has grey scruff which goes perfectly with his look. He is wearing a white t-shirt and has the sleeves rolled up. He is wearing light khakis which are cuffed. His socks and shoes are off. He has nice shoes. They look like they are Italian leather. He is reading the Uncanny. I asked him what he was reading. I tried to read it from my seat but could only see the cover which is of 2 naked women. I was interested. I asked him what it was about and he said that it is a book set in Europe I think Europe is haunting me...in a good way. a very good way.  He said it was psychoanalysis. I don't think I will ever read it. Some guy just walked out carrying a Lamic. Raspberry. Framboise. My favorite. And I digress....
The man reading "The Uncanny" is drinking a bottle of Pellegrino. So classy. He is a confident man. So sophisticated. He has a slight blonde streak in his hair but you have to stare at him for a while in order to see it. It is a nice touch.
There many more people out here. 21 to be exact not counting me. I do not have time to write about them. There are 4 mac's opened here on this patio. There are 2 business meetings going on. One seems quite boring with a legal pad and some guy with his phone on his belt. There are some artsy guys behind me in a meeting with 2 people talking about visual arts and creating and imaging and mediums and spaces and projects and poets and LA and hipsters and collaborations and perspectives and feelings.
There are 2 people studying. There is one dog and 5 people wearing green shirts.
I love this place. I have been on an Adele kick. Have you heard that voice? She is from London. I love her. She sings in my range. I sing with her way too loudly in my car. She has a song called "Hometown Glory". I love it. Some lines are,

   "Round my hometown, memories are fresh

Round my hometown, ooh, the people I've met

Are the wonders of my world, are the wonders of my world

Are the wonders of this world, are the wonders and now"

I nearly cried, yes. i cry. i am a baby. don't let this tough exterior fool you...i am a baby. on my way here today listening to that song. I feel like this place is my home. This is my hometown. I feel so connected here. These are my people, whether or not I know them. I feel connected to them. I am getting to know them. Their stories. These people are the wonders of my world. I am so happy right now. I am so happy right now.  Jose', one of the guys who works here, just brought me lemonade. How nice is that. I am so happy. 

Coffee talk

Look at how silly that picture is beside me. It is just silly. It needs to be touched up too. I wish you could see it up close. It is funny. It is awesome what some retouching can do. Anyways. I feel like there has been too much coffee talk this week. I apologize for that.
OH. did you see my new flowers? I love them. It's kinda my thing. I also lost about 3lbs worth of eyebrows last nite. There are 3 things that I have learned how to do that I will never regret.
#1. how to cut an onion without crying and properly
#2. give myself a perfect manicure with the cuticle cutter thing and all
#3. do my own eyebrows
So. I usually would blog about the people that I am surrounded by but not in this one.
I want to share a bit of what has been going on in my little heart.
I met some people recently who I think might be an intragel part in my story. I am really excited about that. I am starting to picture what I desire my life to look like. It is so different that the one I had pictured a few years ago. How can things change so quickly in a life? It is crazy how one minute you can be walking down a certain path and then, all of a sudden, you are on a completely different road. Other people's choices can drastically effect your story. my story. It is scary and awesome and exciting.  What are some things in your life that someone has said or done that has completely wrecked you? Maybe it was something you read. Maybe it was a look someone gave you. 3 things recently in my life that I read:
#1 we want Don to want something
#2 Until one day.....
#3 get a loft
These 3 things are propelling my story. Thank you LORD.
ok. so I know I said that I wouldn't write about the people in the room but I must describe this man that just walked past. He looks kinda like Pastor Gary at my church. Such a handsome man. I think this guy is about 5-9 years older though. I bet he is European. why? He is wearing those long shorts that Euro men wear. They are navy. He is wearing a striped polo-navy and light blue striped but an overall coral color. his hair is perfectly grey and combed to the side. He is wearing boat shoes ( i think). He is on his macbook pro. iced latte. he has bright blue eyes and is wearing glasses with a small black rim. he is perfectly tanned i bet he just got back from vacation in the dominican.  His ears are larger than I expected and he is reading a magazine. I can't tell which one. He looks highly educated and I bet he has a summer home...in Europe. His legs are crossed. I am sure he drinks expensive red wine and donates a lot of money to charity. He keeps looking at me...well, I am kinda staring at him. haha. I will not tell him that I just gave him a story. I don't want another one of my stories to get hijacked. I love this place. I love to write. I love Chipotle. and my pen pals. I love Kansas City.

Coffee talk follow up

Okay. So......after I shut my computer, I asked Sam if he was a photographer. He said no. I was so wrong. I felt like I wanted to go back and edit my blog post. I did not. I don't know what he does now. My whole story about him is off now. He has to be some sort of artist. He was writing something and I saw some big words. He had a special keyboard for his mac. A weird one that was really close. I don't think I would like it. SO.....
Crazy old Maurice (line from Beauty and the Beast) over here (which is suppose to be me) TOLD HIM THAT I WAS BLOGGING ABOUT HIM!!!!.
who.
does.
that.
I do.
Oh my gosh. Not only do I do that BUT.
I
gave
him
the
LINK
!
Sometimes I wonder about my own judgement. I know you do to. wonder about my judgement that is. I prefer the strikeout over the parenthesis.
I spelled out the web address. I felt a bit weird, hoping that I didn't write anything inappropriate about him. I don't think I did. I mean, saying that you sat so close to someone that you could smell their hair isn't weird......is it? creepy. yes. weird. no.
And I was late for work because of all this and I got written up for it. Work was slow...so....slow.
It was one of those nites that makes  you question what the heck you are doing in life and makes you want to quit. BUT...
EARLIER.....
I got a random text from an 816 area code that is kansas city earlier today. I didn't know who it was from and the 816 person didn't tell me. I just knew it wasn't a man cuz that is what the texter said. We played this game all day of me asking questions and guessing. I finally got the answer tonite. It was so much fun. Thank you A for the fun little "who the heck is this" game. I love you. The texter wrote something that changed the rest of my nite. She said that this part of the story is the part that gets edited but everyone knows happens. I am so dumb and deleted my inbox so I don't have the exact txt.  She said that this is the part of the story where I wait in the stillness. Wait...and then the next part of the story goes,
"Until one day....."
:) It made my day when she typed that. Yeah...that is how it is going to go. I am just walking out these pages and then....One day.......

coffee talk

Ahhh. my coffee shop. I am glad that the people here now know my drink. I got my iced coffee in a pint glass today. I think its gonna be my new thing. The cup melts when they put in the hot coffee to melt my sugar. I kinda like the pint glass thing.
I am sitting upstairs but I rather be down stairs. There are a ton of interesting looking people down there that I would love to watch but it is kinda packed. Maybe I will go down anyways and sit on the couch. I would have to sit close to someone though and they would be able to see that I am bloggin. maybe I will ask them their story. going down stairs now.........brb.
So glad I did this. I am in the middle of it all now. I blogged a few coffee talks ago about some photographer looking guy. He is here. Right in front of me. Its great. I can almost smell his hair because he is so close. He has some streaks of grey. It is perfect. Looks like he just came from the gym...or is going. I bet he does yoga. Yeah. I would really want to sit outside but it is blazin out there.
Was my last post a bit confusing? Someone told me they didn't get it. I told them that there was nothing really to get. It is just a new chapter.
In the book I am reading, the book about life as a story, they talk about how the character needs to want something. I thought for a minute about my life and how I need to want something. It is not specific. I don't know what I want. I don't know if it means that there is some sort of job that I need to want or a place that I need to want or what. There is just something that I am going to need to want to keep my story going.
In just walked a guy that was here last week. He was reading a book on Nazi life and it was like sci-fi and the people entering an alternate universe. How do i know that??? I heard him explain it to someone else. He rides a bike and smokes American Spirits. He is balding on top and has a cross tattoo on right tricep. He wears cool shorts and dingy shoes.
DANG IT!! I just looked at the time. I am suppose to be at work in 2 minutes. It makes me want to quit and blog full time. So this guy who I pegged as a photographer really is one. I can see his computer. He is in some sort of photographer program. I am good. He is skinnier than I thought.
As I walked in, some guy on a bike said he liked my flower. I like it too. He is sitting with the photographer. He has a smashed ring finger and a camo back pak. He is wearing jeans that are rolled up to his calves and some hiking sandals. Black shirt. Hole in the right back pocket of his pants. brown wallet. slight beard.
Okay. I don't feel like much got accomplished.
Holy crap. The photographer guy just turned around and asked me about my job. I have been his waitress before. HAHAHAHHA.
He doesn't know that I am blogging about him right now. His name is Sam. isn't that great. Oh well, off to work.

Coffee talk

 

Oh coffee talk blog. I love thee. What I love more than thee is the 3 girls that just walked into this place and sat at the bar right by me. The last coffee shop I was in was Broadway cafe in Kansas City. I am clearly not there anymore. These girls are proof of that. 

Girl #1- drinking a glass of Pinot and has her toes done perfectly. She is sharing a blueberry tart thing with 

Girl #2 -wearing a dress....i am pretty sure it is a shirt but she isn't wearing pants. It is SO short. I mean. Beyond inappropriate short and does not have the body that anyone would want to see all that is being shown. Was that mean? I think what is mean is her friend not questioning her picking that shirt to wear as a dress  She is also drinking a glass of Pinot. 

Girl #3 just left. I don't remember her....dang it.

Sipping Pinot and eating 9$ blueberry tart things. Oh Arlington. How I love thee. I love that I was just sending a text and I looked up and everyone in here is also on their phones. 

I feel so creative right now. I want to go home and create things. I feel like for the past, oh, i don't know, 5 years, my creativity has slowly been diminishing. But....It is back and it feels good. It feels like me. I want to create something everyday. and I want it to be something great. I want it to be beautiful and I want to share it. Whether it is food or art. I want to be around creative people. I want their creativity to make me more creative. I think there should be a limit on how many times one can use a certain word in a day. I would have exceeded that already There is so much I want to do. I was talking to my dear friend G. yesterday about all that we wanted to do in life. The awesome thing is that we CAN do so many of the things we dream of. We have nothing but time. Why not do missions and open a coffee shop and go to hair school and travel Europe and have babies and a garden and buy dresses and learn about cheese and beer and bread and rugby. 

Time for work. Have a good nite. Peace.

Coffee talk

I am sitting in a coffee shop in Raytown, Missouri. The name of it is Benetti's. There are 6 other people in here besides myself. 

1&2. What seems to be a couple each reading their own books, one drinking an orange pop in a bottle and the girl with a small cup of coffee. 

3. A guy next to me who is also reading a book. A HUGE book. He has a mug of coffee. I bet it is drip coffee. He has the old Nokia phone in a holder on his belt. awesome. 

4. Some guy who is drinking water and wearing a striped polo with gym shorts that are as long as pants.

5. I can't see him. He has an Hp and is wearing tennis shoes. That is all I can see. 

(Everyone is wearing tennis shoes in here)

6. The guy that works here. I think he just got off. He is sipping a mug of something wonderful. He has a nice beard and 3 earrings. I keep looking over in that direction to see what he is doing and each time he looks up. Awkward. I think he has in earphones. I don't know what he is doing. I think he is playing a game on his iphone or something. Probably sudoku. (I love sudoku) No wait.....It was his iPod. He was changing songs. He is wearing brown pants and some old school adidas. He was just taking a break. Back to work. 

These are the people that come to this coffee shop. They do not come to my coffee shop. They all have a story. I want to know their story. 

I have spent a week here now in Kansas City. I have done SO much this week:

-photoshoot with the AMAZING T.F.  www.timfleenorphoto.com

-Skies restaurant with my dear L. and her family

-St.Louis with my brothers

-City Museum

-Budweiser factory

-The most amazing wedding that I have ever been to

-The Peanut and Bait Shop with L. and her man and his friend (SO FUN!)

-The Foundary in Westport with old and new friends and laughing so hard (I really want to visit Oregon now. Not so much Bartlesville...sorry) (OH..and let us not forget the cut-off shirt guy with the terrible half sleeve)

-Taking pictures of strangers in Westport

-Saw an old boyfriend

-New fav. band. http://www.myspace.com/kopeckyfamilyband

-Picked blueberries with my mom, grandma and Bailey

-Green Street Hooligans.....no...it was a bootleg copy...didn't work...The Breakup....no awkwardness....junk?

-Saw an old classmate G. (told you I would blog about you)

-Met some great people at the Welch wedding!!!

-The Redeemer church 

-Broadway cafe (twice)

-Got some great vintage stuff

-Saw baby J. and my cousins

-Got a new old clutch

Okay....so you get that a lot happened in just a short time. I fell in love with this city. I can't wait to come back. I feel like I am suppose to be in DC at this part of my story though. KC may try to lure me in but I am not easily swayed by the constant temptation of great coffee shops, authentic churches, beautifully tatted people, vintage stores, old homes, low cost of living, amazing people and a slower pace of life. 

I do love this place. 

Coffee talk

I love Friday.
I get to enter into a city that I love to see new people that I know nothing about. Here I can be whoever I want to be.
Today, I had to go into Georgetown to say hi the the best hairstylist I know and do some business. I love Georgetown. I love the tourists. I really love how you can spot a tourist from a mile away. They can be seen wearing their oversized shirt with there state plastered boldly on the front or, if they are in a place like G-town or Tysons, they will be so underdressed that it almost makes you uncomfortable and embarrassed.  Also, this place of Nova/DC is overall in pretty good shape I would say. I know that Kansas City, where I was born and raised, is ranked #2 among the fattest cities. You can definitely see a difference. I am not saying all people out here are thin but overall, it is a pretty lean place.
I listened to my all time favorite sermon today in the car. It was the first time I went to my church, Grace Cov., which was New Years. The sermon is titled,'The God of Hope'. I weep every time I heard it. I am pretty sure you can go to www.gracecov.org and listen to it (it is the one that is on the first Sunday after the  New Year). It is a powerful sermon.
I feel the Lord doing a new work in my heart. I feel like things/dreams/desires are being awakened in my heart.
It feel good.
I feel creative and alive and free and so full of joy.
My heart is glad and my soul is thriving.
I have hope in the promises of God.
I am standing on a rock that is not moving.
I have JOY that is unalterable.
I am walking out, daily, a story which is fully mine. A story that I have sowed into for many years tears of sorrow and doubt and fear and hope and faith and am slowly beginning to reap the harvest that my soul has waited and watched grow.

ps. I just saw a guy that was wearing khaki's that were a bit short and some loafers without socks at my coffee shop!!! YES!! Such a great look.

I have a confident hope in the promises that the Lord has given to me. My soul is growing up. My palate is being refined. I love this life.

Coffee shop

I love my coffee shop in Arlington. 

I love it. 

I get an amazing cup of Joe and so much great people watching. I love this crowd. 

I love that everyone has a story.

I would love to know some of the stories that are in here. 

I love the "artist looking" guy in the corner with his macbook pro and frizzy hair and mustache and whole foods bag. 

I love the girl at the bar with her ipod and white heels and bad highlights and designer bag. 

I love the asian lady in to the left sipping her no fat latte in a mug and bright pink skirt and bangs.

I love the black girl in the corner with her hp getting work done.

I love people. 

I love the 2 couples.

Are they dating? Co-workers? Friends?

I love that every time I come here there are new people. I do see some of the same people like that exotic looking woman who wears all black and has questionably big lips. 

And the guy who is definitely in the art world somehow who has his mac and crazy grey hair and little cute blue glasses.

These people make my day. They don't know it. 

They don't know that I am sitting here checking them out, writing about them. 

Oh, I forgot about the guy at the bar in the flip flops and fitted jeans and blue t-shirt working so diligently on his mac. 

I can't see his face and it makes me really want to get up.....wait...he just looked back here :) He is definitely from some place like Greece or Lebanon. 

Someplace cool like that. He is checking his Gmail. Has WAY to much in his inbox.

Thank you NorthSide Social for spending an hour with me before work.