• coffee life,  coffee shops,  Humor,  musings

    It was different

    April 3, 2022

    I went to Mugs at CSU late yesterday morning. This is probably the coffee shop I visit the most but something was different. The ambience was not the same as when I normally go. I’m sure you’re all aware that going camping in the same tent at the same location as last week is not he same if you throw in a mosquito. Don’t get me wrong Mugs is still a favorite coffee shop. So is camping. But something was different.

    They say ambience is a feeling or mood associated with a particular place, person, or thing. So what are the factors that go into the feel of a coffee shop that draw me in or out? Warning: If you don’t like lists then now may be a good time to stop reading and go eat another chocolate eclair. If you’re a glutton for punishment or need to verify my insanity, then read on.

    Here are some factors that are important and some that are insignificant that I came up with for me. The time of day, the day of the week, the weather outside, temperature both inside and outside, the season, the baristas, the customers, the piped music. I also notice the decor, the seating, is it crowded or spacious.

    The food: do they serve pastries, sandwiches, burritos, salads, chocolate eclairs (a winner every time). This morning they were cooking up bacon. Love the smell of cooking bacon! The drink: is my mocha latte hot enough, meet my taste buds preference? Does my mug dribble? Important stuff here!

    The biggest factor is me: what’s my attitude, how rested am I, where’s my emotional and spiritual condition, are my pants too tight (due to pastries)? Did I come to write or read? How well did the barista and I connect when I came in?

    And, I must confess that I’ve left coffee shops because the ambience was just not what I wanted or needed. I will end with this. I know there is no perfect coffee shop. And, if there was then I wouldn’t go or it would not be perfect anymore!! See, I am insane! Happy Sunday!

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  • Black and White,  Candid Portraits,  Documentary/Street,  quotes

    Waiting at the bus stop

    October 18, 2019

    Waiting for the bus at the Transit Center

    “Photography is a medium of formidable contradictions. It is both ridiculously easy and almost impossibly difficult. It is easy because its technical rudiments can readily be mastered by anyone with a few simple instructions. It is difficult because, while the artist working in any other medium begins with a blank surface and gradually brings his conception into being, the photographer is the only imagemaker who begins with the picture completed. His emotions, his knowledge, and his native talent are brought into focus and fixed beyond recall the moment the shutter of his camera has closed.” Edward Steichen

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  • coffee shops,  Humor,  lifestyles,  rants,  writing/reading

    … like, all the time.

    March 28, 2018

    Coffee and Conversation
    Coffee and Conversation

    I visited a coffee shop yesterday, one I don’t frequent often for a couple of reasons: their prices are high and they are on the other side of town. Their seating area is quite small so it’s easy to like hear other peoples conversations. I mean like this couple seemed to be like just getting acquainted like maybe a first encounter. Like they were trying their best to express like who they were, or like who they wanted to be. But, I was like interested in their table and the story it told. So, I asked if I could like take the above photo. Like they said, yes. It was like an interesting conversation to hear. I hear similar conversations like this all the time.

    Like I needed to look up this constantly abuse word. It seems the habitual use of the word “like” has become an epidemic. They even have a name for it: “Like Epidemic.” There are multiple articles on line about how to stop using the word. Hope I don’t start talking this way like all the time now.

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  • Black and White,  Documentary/Street

    1132

    September 6, 2017

    1132
    1132

    Reflecting back over my life I see a pattern where I’ve lived much of my life seeking to fill some void. I’m now aware this void is more of a spiritual hunger. It’s not a religious hunger, although I looked there. Maybe this assumed void has really been some subconscious spiritual part of me calling from within. It’s a new way of thinking and living in my life and sharing a bit of that with you.

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