Cream and Sugar / Mary in Philadelphia

April 25, 2010

The next day, one of Mary's employees called out, so I offered to stay and work for her. I wandered to La Colombe for a two-hour cup of coffee and croissant. I lounged, watching Saturday city commotion. One sight that really struck me was seeing a young woman, beautifully and very pregnant, standing in line for her coffee. In her arm, she cradled a full and vibrant bundle of flowers that reached high over her head. As she walked out of the shop, she seemed so serene, enveloped in Saturday morning sunshine and sipping her coffee with an armful of blooms and a jolly baby bulge.

Everyone around me sat with a book and a coffee. It has been so long since I did leisure reading in a coffee shop (as opposed to law school reading). I listened to my favorite music, pausing it now and then to listen to the clanking of cups and saucers and to appreciate the colorful roar of the patrons. A girl sitting across from me, nearing the end of her book, shyly wiped away tears that wouldn't stop streaming. It made me smile and think of when I would read in the nail salon to pass the time with Mom (after Dad died); how embarrassed I would be to cry in front of my mom over a silly book, even though we had done so much crying together those months.

Alex came to meet me, which made me very happy. Mostly we talked about school and work. I could have sat at that table all day, nursing my coffee and croissant, taking social appointments with my feet up, and tracing the grooves in between the tiles of the table with my fingertips. But I had to meet Mary at 1pm to set up the Open House, so I dragged myself out of there, onto the street, parted with Alex, and got ready for work.

Seven or eight food vendors donated food to the developer's event. We set the food up, staff got in place to serve, and the three piece band warmed up. On the 16th floor, the Phoenix Suite overlooks the city; French doors of the great room open onto Love Park, and the French doors of the bedroom have the PERFECT view of City Hall. I was stationed in the tiny dessert/coffee room, pouring Starbucks for potential condo purchasers, while the charming and pleasant Jared served Trader Joe's opera cake, lemon bars, cream puffs, and macaroons. I was so hung over, I didn't taste a single delicious thing at the event.

I networked a little with a real estate broker, who promised to give me the 411 on the Divine Lorraine some day (my fantasy pet project, after opening a ramen house). The music was perfect, I was in great company, and the day flew by. Steve came for a plate of food, and took off for Termini's (see entry below re: baby Brooklyn, neighborhood newborn superstar). After a nap and long chitchat with Mary and a coworker, I headed to the baby shower, and bed.

Great weekend. Hope to see Mary and Brooklyn again next weekend.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Baby List!

Baby List Gear Bassinet - Used a hand-me-down bassinet not sure the brand. Only used for 2 months because baby gets too big, moves around too much. Co-sleeper might be nice if breastfeeding, and might be able to be used by baby longer. In retrospect, we should have just used the bassinet on the pack-n-play instead of having a stand-alone bassinet.  Pack-n-play - didn't think we needed one but it's true that you just need places throughout the house to "put baby down" that is not the bed or couch (roll off) or the floor (cold/drafty/dirty). In the kitchen we used a  rock-n-play  (does not take up a ton of space/small footprint), 1st floor living room we used a moses basket on the floor, 2nd floor we used the crib and then the  bjorn bouncer  when she was a little bigger, 3rd floor we used the bassinet and now the pack'n play. We got the  4Moms Playard  with bassinet because it was low-profile, no bells and whistles, and collapses with one-pul...
Read more

Lots of Walking - An American in Tokyo

Image
January 8, 2008 There seems to be a lot of walking in Tokyo, and everyone does it very briskly and silently. Waves of people spill out onto the streets from the subway exits, and know exactly where they are going. Most people are wearing dark colored pants and shoes, and a nice wool coat, and carry a briefcase. The women are wearing heels and skirts, and make the walking look effortless. As I had been warned, I truly stand out in my jeans and sneakers. But, since the cobbler in South Center Mall in Seattle closed early and unannounced before I could pick up my re-heeled and re-soled boots, I'll be in sneakers until I hit some shopping in Roppongi. This morning I got up pretty early and went in search of an American-style breakfast - eggs sounded so good . I gathered all my maps and wandered North from the hotel. I crossed a few small rivers and ended up in an area full of business buildings. I had passed a lot of noodle houses, and was happy to see a Tully's Coffee wit...
Read more

Tiffany Weddings and Camels

April 15, 2008 My brother just got back from our cousin Grass's wedding - "a Tiffany wedding," he called it. My friend Al just called me this morning to announce her and her fiance's wedding date - October 2009. She wants it to be a Tiffany wedding. I had to Google it to find out who Tiffany is . I am disappointed at my ignorance because I've been reading (pretty exclusively) wedding magazines for the last two months. (I try to do this on the DL so that no one will wonder why I'm obsessed with wedding flowers, dresses, locations, and invitations, with no sign of one in sight. The answer is that sometimes I just get into a wedding mood and I'm not above unabashedly planning a non-event). Luckily, Al has chosen me as one of her bridesmaids, and now I have a great excuse to keep obsessing about minutiae leading up to an event that causes thousands, millions of women to become nauseous with worry, excitement, or -- in the case of Heather's cousin-in-l...
Read more