Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Coffee Shop Heaven

At our coffee shop, the weather is perfect, the coffee is fresh and hot, there's a fabulous choice of teas, and laptop batteries run forever. (Family Man's recliner is off to the left, just out of the photo.) Plus, we always reserve a couple of chairs for any lurkers who might decide to sit down and say howdy. It's okay to drop crumbs, because I have to vacuum today anyway. Just don't forget to give the waitress a tip--like how to multiply by nine on your fingers, how to run a chicken house, or how to bargain for a taxi ride in India.

36 comments:

AndiF said...

Well, here's my tip. This is a great xkcd cartoon.

Oh and another tip -- it's raining ... still and again.

Family Man said...

Morning Nancy and Andi.

Nancy thanks for remembering my recliner. While everyone has their coffee and they're talking, I'll raise myself from dozing every now and then and say something profound like, "Yes I agree." Then I'll drift off again. :)

Andi I love that cartoon, and your forest picture reminds me of my back yard. I have just about that many leaves on the ground.

Larry Kollar said...

Hey everyone. I'll be in and out of the coffee shop today… this is nearly perfect riding weather and I don't know if we'll get another day like this before spring. I've got the heavy bike out, the one that doesn't mind a passenger. If anyone else wants to go for a ride, the spare helmet is in my usual chair and I'll be around to pick up passengers.

Ah… good coffee this morning. See y'all in a while.

katiebird said...

Good Morning Nancy!

hmmm. It smells good in here. And I love Andi's photo.

I might just fight FamilyMan for his recliner and stay here for the day. Instead of going to work.

I WISH I could go for a bike ride with FAR, but mister would NEVER let me do it with all this ice on the ground.

Nancy P said...

Far, I'll be right over! I love motorcycle rides.

Andi, what a gloomily beautiful photo. I love how you captured the string of pearls. And the cartoon--I hope ManE sees it.

Family Man, lol. Do you agree?

Everything's frozen solid here. The birds were on the deck before me, all saying, "Where's breakfast?"

Larry Kollar said...

Ice? Nah, Christmas ornaments.

BTW, Andi, that was a GREAT cartoon!

Grab the helmet, Nancy. I think it's warmed up to the point where we won't be fighting fog on the face shields now.

Rick Bylina said...

The auto-vacuum thought, today is the day. Freedom. Writers sipped tea in comfortable chairs dropping crumbs like Hansel and Gretal in the forest. The auto-vac kept coming back for more, silently being more unobtrusive than usual. The little auto-vac was by the door when it opened, and in stepped TFA (http://www.jackgetze.com/). Like the viking he is, he left the door ajar, enjoying the arctic blast he let into the room. The woman swooned, and no one noticed the little auto-vac leave the room, closing the door behind him with the suction cup. Freedom, he thought and headed for the TFA'S little red corvette.

Hours later, in a room ankle deep in bread crumbs, crumpet crunches, turkey legs, and muffin droppings, the little auto-vac was missed, the TFA fast asleep, dreaming of the red-headed girl in the Charlie Brown comic strip, and the writers exhausted from a day of writing.

"I wonder where he is," one writer asked idly.

"Sweeping up loose adverbs in Tacoma," came the reply just before a wall of water swept the room clean of writers.

Nancy P said...

That is a very, very, very, very, very cute story, Rick. (While auto-vacs away the adverbs will play.)

Maria Lima said...

@andif - Love XKCD and that particular comic is priceless. Also love your photo. :)

I'm sipping a cup of Mighty Leaf Teas African Nectar and it's unseasonably warm here--61 degrees. Maybe the weather is trying to prepare me for Miami (I go tomorrow).

Still trying to decide whether to lug Nameless (the laptop) and try to get some work done while I'm there.

In any case, wish I could spend more time sipping tea with you all, but duty barks and I must obey.

Have a great day, all!

GhostFolk.com said...

Andif, I sent the cartoon to about a hundred of Lou Dobbs' closest frends, and a couple of mine. Thanks!

Alert: Boring Music Stuff. Skip at will.

Aw, Hank, the organ. Hank Phillippi Ryan, are you in Nancy's coffee shop today?

Joe King (Joking -- tra la!) Carrasco covered 96 Tears and the organ is terrific. Kris Cummings was playing organ for him at this time and she is just fantastic. And the organ itself was one of those Vox 64s monster machines that was the featured live music of all skating rinks in the 1960s. It's fun to hear it converted to, uh, rock.

(The tex-mex organ seems to have grown from the traditionial Mariachi bands' ubiquitous accordion or squeeze box).

Anyway, Kris quit and is now a ceramics artist. "Once you touch clay," she said, "There is no turning back."

Which is why I never touch clay.

I hesitate to send along the easy link to their 96 Tears version because the video is doofus (the set-up for the song is particularly stupid). But it really brings the organ forward and I thought it might be fun for you to hear. (Uh, it's a little up tempo, btw).


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-_dZg2aWPQ


Meanwhile, I got lost in a youtube search on the word "Shingdig" and haven't looked up for a couple days.

The internet has stolen my life. I'd turn them in for doing it, but it's probably no more than a misdemeanor to begin with.

Hay te guacho cucaracho...

GhostFolk.com said...

P.S. "Once you touch clay," she said, "There is no turning back."

Which is why I never touch clay.. I mean, just look at the trouble God got into when he did that.

Nancy P said...

just look at the trouble God got into when he did that.

Lol, Ghost. Just think, we coulda been water jugs or ceramic plates. He'd have touched us and it would all have turned into a Disney cartoon.

Happy Miami, Marie!

Nancy P said...

Beth's traveling. Kimberly is working shifts. Who else is among the missing?

Kimberly Frost said...

Good morning, friends!

Love the smell of coffee in the morning, but am breaking routine by having cranberry blood orange (sounds like the kind of tea preferred by vampires).

It's from The Republic of Tea so I thought that, like so many things, it came from China.

Imagine my surprise when I stood waiting for the water to boil and read the back and discovered that The Republic is in Novato, California.

In any event, it's quite tasty, and it's fair trade certified and creates a social balance by giving an extra part of the proceeds to the farmers according to its back label. This, no doubt, accounts for its rather outrageous cost. If anyone on the list lives in the Northwest, please drop into Novato and report back whether The Republic's execs are driving BMWs. If so, I shall write an internet expose on them, or perhaps stop buying their tea. Except for the decaf Ginger Peach, to which I am sadly addicted.

Tip for the waitress, don't read labels before noon. It'll cause too much thought, something that Paris Hilton has many times proven is overrated.

Kelly McCullough said...

Here, but low profile. I'm in the process of holding someone's hand through their very first submission to a magazine. Man, I'd forgotten how nerve-wracking that first one can be. So, sitting in corner with:

Strong Assam: Definitely meant to wake you up! It has a pronounced deep malty flavor that stands up well to milk and sugar. (Per Tea Source)

and a couple of short stories, plus an essay on mellowing out.

Jen said...

I've stolen FAR's motorcycle and am speeding quite recklessly around curvy country roads. (Don't worry, FAR, I have good insurance.) Back later.

GhostFolk.com said...

It'll cause too much thought, something that Paris Hilton has many times proven is overrated.

LOL, Kelly! And, you too, Nancita: Just think we could have all been Chia Pets. :-)

Uh, maybe we are. :-(

P.S. Saludos en general a toda la que oiga finas composiciones musicales... y mi muchacha, Ryan.

AndiF said...

Beth is traveling? Damn, I just stopped by to let her know that it turns out I'm not a vampire. The sun -- miraculously -- just came out and I didn't burst into flame.

Larry Kollar said...

Beth is traveling?

Yeah, who'd have ever guessed that could happen? :-D

Chicken soup, anyone? Don't be put off by the ramen; it's made from "scratch" (i.e. canned chicken, corn, peas, dehydrated tomatoes & mushrooms) and is fairly low-salt. I think the shaker's around here if anyone wants to add some salt, though.

See ya in a little while. I'm going to grab my other bike and find Jen. Or not. She probably looks good on a Virago.

Nancy P said...

Conda's got her tag list up!

http://condascreativecenter.blogspot.com/

Kimberly! I didn't expect to see you around today. ::Waving:: And Kelly, lotsa luck with that. :)

Far, you'll have to go faster than that to catch Jen. :)

Nancy P said...

Katiebird, I don't think I ever returned your cheery goodmorning. Oops. GOOD AFTERNOON!

Jen said...

I don't know anything about Viragos. I've only ridden Triumphs and Harleys. And really, I'm just in it for the boots, the leather and the speed. ;p

Family Man said...

I used to own a little Honda 50 as a kid, does that count?

Other than that, the closest thing I owned to a motorcycle was a Ford Pinto. Although I think they were more dangerous than a motorcycle.

Oh and KB, as hard as you've been working, I would gladly give up my recliner to you. You really deserve some slack time.

Nancy P said...

And now Jen's tag list is up, too!

http://you-would-think.blogspot.com/

Nancy P said...

And Family Man's tag list. . .

http://mundane-doesnt-describe-it.blogspot.com/

Hank Phillippi Ryan said...

Ghostfolk, yes, of course I'm here! And on my third latte. Working (so diligently and with so few good results) on a synopsis. Argh. Whose idea was this book thing, anyway?

But there's always time to hear another great version of 96 Tears! SO thank you for the much-needed smiles. I had a JKC album (remember?) and I can't remember which one it was. But like the video, I remember the music being so much fun. Love the dog in the youtube.

Shindig, huh? Loved it. Wish I still had my little white boots. ALthough, if I remember correctly, I was more of a Hullabaloo girl.

Hank Phillippi Ryan said...

Clay who, by the way?

Larry Kollar said...

Jen, the Virago started the "performance cruiser" category. Yamaha applied some more modern engine design techniques to the ancient V-twin and came up with a 60° V (vs. 45°) and a dual-crankpin design… which muted vibration and allowed for a higher-revving engine. They offset the cylinders, to allow wind to hit the rear cylinder directly (an unintended consequence is that the *front* cylinder often runs hotter due to the front tire/fender blocking the wind). Like a sportbike, the engine is a stressed member of the frame, and the frame design allowed much greater lean angles than any cruiser designs until the early 2000s. The same engine is still being used in the V-Star line, although the frame is a more traditional downtube design.

Oh crap… Terry Pratchett has a form of Alzheimer's.

Nancy P said...

Hank PR--lol. (Clay)

far, your news about Pratchett. . .shit! What a lousy thing. He was still funny, though, even talking about that. Did you see the linked article about how he took a "swipe" at J.K. Rowling? At first I thought, hrrmmph! Cause I admire her. But then I read the article and had to admit she kind of had it coming.

Jen said...

FAR, sounds hot.

Sympathies to all you Pratchett fans. I've not read him (I will, I will!), but I know he's much beloved and I'm sure fans are feeling blue.

GhostFolk.com said...

¡Esas muchachas blancas locas! Bailarines Go-Go destruidos mi vida.

Of course, we pronounced it Ho-Ho dancers. Which may account for my taste in pre-packaged snack deserts.

Wow, Hullabaloo. I'd forgtten to do a youtube search on 'em. Okay, what's a few hours anyway.

Yes, that's the dancers. Whatever did they call those dresses with horizontal rows of fringe?

White boots required, yep. But don't you dare tell me you had one of those white vinyl Beatles hats too? Now, I'm wondering what I did with my Dylan shoes....

boran2 said...

Late to the party. We're sitting here bracing for the "big storm" that is to arrive tomorrow. I bypassed the usual panic shopping that produces a shortage of bread and milk for miles around. We'll get by on what we have. I'll have to live blog this thing. ;-)

Larry Kollar said...

Boran, I thought panic buying of bread and milk was only done on Planet Georgia!

Anonymous said...

Surprise! I'm swiping a very weak signal from a neighbor.

You all are too funny re me traveling "again"...and here I thought I was hiding my true nature SO well! LOL.

I think I'm going to be like boran and just stop by in the evenings. Not being a part of the chat allows one to read the entire thread at once - it's fascinating how our collective mind pings around! I want to be riding with Jen, walking in andi's wet woods, and drinking lattes with hank. And no one brought out the old "I da ho" joke...

I'll work on my tag list tomorrow, although we have big shopping/eating/chore plans, so I won't be online til late. For 86 year olds, my adopted 'rents are busy!

Great cartoon, andi, and I'm SO glad you didn't burst into flames. Maybe you're a werewolf...? :-)

Good luck with the storm, boran.

Waiting for the 'splodey story with bated breath, kb.

Have a great Thursday, everyone! Miss you right back!

Nancy P said...

b2, we who have just dodged a Howitzer, salute you. Two words: kerosene lamps.

Beth! Your adopted 'rents sound great. Tell them a whole bunch of total strangers wish them well. :)

Anonymous said...

I will, Nancy! Though I'm not sure they're going to understand the blog concept. Mrs. D. has a little machine that lets her send and receive email, but that's her extent of internet experience. She WILL understand that I have a wonderful caring family "out there somewhere."