Slice of Life Story Day 3 Cafe Culture and Writing

Tomorrow work beckons. Today is a writing day. I am sitting in my favourite coffee haunt, Via Boffe. I have  access to my favourite window seat, a cappuccino and my notebook. The stars are aligned. I am set up to compose. Initially I listen to the voices of customers and staff. I gaze out the window at the passing parade where sidewalk tables are occupied, shoppers float past; cars, trucks and bicycles slowly cruise by.

I will stay here for up to an hour seeking words and ideas embedded as I am in the buzz and hum of this small café. The numbers ebb and flow, the noise rises and falls in perfect synchronicity. In a broader working life these moments are precious. This is the world beyond my work locations.

My senses are heightened in this place. I attend to the competing sounds trying to consciously isolate them in my mind. Andrea Bocelli’s voice reaches for the high note as coffee beans spill loudly into the grinder. Coins jangle in the register as another customer pays for the morning coffee fix. I hear the sharp clanking of china cups and the clatter of saucers being arranged behind the counter. The coffee machine emits a loud hiss like a sigh of relief. Such are the orchestral manoeuvres of the coffee shop.  There is energy in this place and it feeds my writing. Soon I will address more mundane issues like visiting the supermarket, and returning home to prepare for work tomorrow, but just for now, let me linger in the café’s soothing embrace.


Comments

  1. Anonymous3 March 2011 at 21:03

    I like the vivid descriptions you give about the cafe! I can totally imagine it. I love doing work at cozy and comfortable cafes. --jee young

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous3 March 2011 at 23:42

    Your description of this wondrous place is so spot on. I felt like I was there with you.

    Katie

    ReplyDelete
  3. Deb Day3 March 2011 at 23:55

    What a beautiful slice. You wove an incredible description that I felt the "cafe's soothing embrace".

    Happy Writing

    ReplyDelete
  4. Tam4 March 2011 at 01:56

    Wow. You took me away to another place--you certainly have a gift. I will try to relish my surroundings more today. Thanks for writing this slice.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Linda B4 March 2011 at 03:26

    You made me want to run right out to my favorite place. Each line shows such special care. I like that final line very much.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Tara4 March 2011 at 04:25

    A writer's place - Virginia Woolf spoke of a room of one's own (albeit in a different context), but I believe that all writers need a spot that somehow beckons and inspires. You seem to have found yours!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Magical Ms. M4 March 2011 at 07:08

    Alan,
    This piece is all about sounds for me: hiss, jangle, sigh, clanking.

    I am transported to my own favorite cafes, filled with the energy of a caffeinated and transient population.

    A nice slice into a familiar moment,
    Erin

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anonymous4 March 2011 at 11:17

    Great slice! I always think that I would love to write in a cafe, but then it just never happens...I also feel like if you are going to write in a cafe, you should use a notebook and pen, not a laptop. Somehow that's more fitting, no? Thanks for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
  9. elsie4 March 2011 at 12:07

    What can I say that hasn't been said? Love your words! This made me think of the book THE LISTENING WALK by Paul Showers only it is the adult version in a coffee shop. I need to stop and listen, not just hear the sounds around.

    ReplyDelete

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