The Coffee Shop Chronicles No.8 - A Writing Companion

A whole lot of new today. A new place and a writing companion. College daughter is home this week on Spring Break, not that it is at all Spring like here, but it is slightly warmer than the Upper Peninsula.

We arrived at the coffee shop at quarter past ten.

This coffee shop is where the seed was planted for The Coffee Shop Chronicles. Last Spring, I visited here for the very first time with a friend for a round of lattes after a very fulfilling and orange pulpy breakfast at a nearby restaurant. If you are interested, you can read that post here. Intrigued with this place, I mean a coffee shop in an old house, in the middle of a very touristy summer town, it doesn't get any better than that. I returned the week after our latte meeting, after one of my personal training sessions. 

I was still in the early days of personal training. At that point I was still very much in the "working on self-confidence" phase. Not just self-confidence in my body, but self-confidence in my talent, my future, my journey. Trying new things and exploring was in its infancy stage. 

I had come here to experience the place, the people, and the atmosphere. I liked what I had seen the week before and wanted more. That time I had come with only my purse, my iPhone and a magazine to read. No notebook, no pencil.

While I was here last Spring there was a large round table filled with, older than me, ladies. From what I gathered listening to them, they met here on a weekly basis. I sat enthralled, listening to what they talked about and was highly entertained by their conversations.

Imagine my delight today as Mallory and I sat down at our little two seater table in the corner, that the large round table to my right was filled with these very same ladies.

The main talker of the group was just warming up to a new topic as Mallory and I sat down. 

She stated to the group that she had received an email from her daughter the week before stating that her grandson would love to get a text from Grandma. Grandma seemed to know how to send a text but was lamenting to the group how she kept getting a message after she sent the text that said "attempt failed". Grandma was then confused as to whether she actually had texting on her phone. One of the other ladies at the table piped up and said "You have to pay for texting you know, you can call for free, but you have to pay for texting". Another lady at the table offered to help Grandma walk through the process. So Grandma whips out her Samsung Galaxy s5 and starts tapping away on the screen with her stylus. The friend pulls out her iPhone 4s, which I feel like is comparing apples to oranges. They walk through the process together and Grandma gets the text to go, but you could tell she was still holding her breath waiting for that "attempt failed" message to appear. I seriously wonder who is going to the cellular store with these ladies when they go to pick out new phones...probably the grandchildren. 

Even though this coffee shop has Wifi and outlets, and a fair amount of people are here on the computers. There are just as many face to face conversations going on. This place is much smaller than my usual coffee shop and forget coming here in the summer, when all the tourists are in town. Still this place has a wonderful, unique coffee shop atmosphere. 

By eleven o'clock the place was starting to clear out. The table of ladies bundled up and left, the two book readers  in the front window left as well.

All that remained were those on their computers and two girls at a corner table reading and writing, drinking Chai Lattes and sharing a Chocolate Chip Scone.

Next week I will be away cruising in the western Caribbean, dragging Glen from historic point of interest to historic point of interest. College daughter has graciously agreed to fill in for her momma and do a Coffee Shop Chronicle from her adorable coffee shop in Marquette. 

Until next week...