Port Caffeine: Coffee, coffee, lonely people
Never really liked coffee.
I can say with some certainty, that prior to my 24th year on this rock, I drank about 1 cup of coffee a year; and then it was heavily sugared and creamed.
I suppose I had an aversion to it because I associated it with my father and cigarettes- the latter which I abhor and well, when you combined coffee and cigarettes....let's just say Godzilla probably had better breath than my Dad.
Even during finals week at college I usually didn't drink coffee.
But NOW I drink coffee; black, with cream, with a little sugar, or any assortment of liquors....cafe, java, joe, courage, go-juice, whatever you wish to call it- I like it now.
The reason? It beats the hell out of green tea, and there are nice little coffee shops tucked away in every town and neighborhood in Japan.
These little shops are like a quiet port in a storm of noise, heat and frenetic activity (aka: JAPAN).
I pop into a coffee shop ("kissaten" in Japanese) and let the opressive heat and stress just melt away like the whipped cream topping my drip-brewed-Kilamanjaro-blend-cup-of-happiness.
Starbucks has really made the experience all the more enjoyable by having the shops completely non-smoking and also having very comfy sofas and chairs to sink into.
I popped into a Starbucks downtown this evening to meet with another sax playing friend of mine. Sitting around me were maybe 8 or 9 girls in their 20's, all reasonably attractive in their skirts, black leather knee boots and sweaters (in case you have never been to Japan, this is the official winter uniform of all 20-ish single Japanese women)...and all very much alone.
They all pull out their cell phones and lay them on their table, as if awaiting a call; calls that never seemed to come.
Their eyes wander to me, they smile as if they want me to approach. One girl even changes her seat to sit nearer to me after making eye contact several times.
Of course I don't respond to her gestures, (married and happily so) but it struck me that with Christmas coming up, a lot of these girls are eager....no, desperate to have a "romantic" Christmas.
Any port in a storm, I guess....
Lookin' for the Love Boat in all the wrong places.
I guess with less than 5 full days to go, they better get crackin'!
I can say with some certainty, that prior to my 24th year on this rock, I drank about 1 cup of coffee a year; and then it was heavily sugared and creamed.
I suppose I had an aversion to it because I associated it with my father and cigarettes- the latter which I abhor and well, when you combined coffee and cigarettes....let's just say Godzilla probably had better breath than my Dad.
Even during finals week at college I usually didn't drink coffee.
But NOW I drink coffee; black, with cream, with a little sugar, or any assortment of liquors....cafe, java, joe, courage, go-juice, whatever you wish to call it- I like it now.
The reason? It beats the hell out of green tea, and there are nice little coffee shops tucked away in every town and neighborhood in Japan.
These little shops are like a quiet port in a storm of noise, heat and frenetic activity (aka: JAPAN).
I pop into a coffee shop ("kissaten" in Japanese) and let the opressive heat and stress just melt away like the whipped cream topping my drip-brewed-Kilamanjaro-blend-cup-of-happiness.
Starbucks has really made the experience all the more enjoyable by having the shops completely non-smoking and also having very comfy sofas and chairs to sink into.
I popped into a Starbucks downtown this evening to meet with another sax playing friend of mine. Sitting around me were maybe 8 or 9 girls in their 20's, all reasonably attractive in their skirts, black leather knee boots and sweaters (in case you have never been to Japan, this is the official winter uniform of all 20-ish single Japanese women)...and all very much alone.
They all pull out their cell phones and lay them on their table, as if awaiting a call; calls that never seemed to come.
Their eyes wander to me, they smile as if they want me to approach. One girl even changes her seat to sit nearer to me after making eye contact several times.
Of course I don't respond to her gestures, (married and happily so) but it struck me that with Christmas coming up, a lot of these girls are eager....no, desperate to have a "romantic" Christmas.
Any port in a storm, I guess....
Lookin' for the Love Boat in all the wrong places.
I guess with less than 5 full days to go, they better get crackin'!
posted by Khan at 10:46 PM
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