I feel like me...

I think it's strange that there are moments when I just feel more like myself. Right now is one of those moments. I'm sitting in a coffee shop. (Let's hear it for free internet.) I have a cup of strong coffee and my head phones are making it easy to slip into my own little world. I won't lie...of course I'm watching the people around me. There are the two girls who don't look much older than me who have their kids here. Their two daughters are dressed all in pink, one even has a tutu. They are dancing around the coffee shop like they are performing on a stage...it reminds me of when I was little and my mom would play the piano and I would dance around the front room of our house...how she kept from laughing at me I'll never know. There are a couple groups who seem to have come together for study groups...I've been there before, but I never got much done in study groups. I usually spent more time chatting with friends and solving the world's problems. There's a group of high schoolers sitting in the corner booth using "studying at the coffee shop" as an excuse to be together and share those all important stolen touches and kisses while their parents aren't around. There is a group of middle aged ladies enjoying a meal with their friends, two friends who appear to have met up after work to have a quick dinner, and the guy sitting by himself, staring at his computer just like I'm staring at mine. Maybe places and moments like this make him feel like himself too.

There's about 20 girls in their 20s...some type of college group maybe. They'll all dressed up with hair done. I remember a time when I got all gussied up to go to the coffee shop...those days are over. Here I sit in my t-shirt and jeans. My hair is slightly dirty (no surprise) and pulled in a ponytail on top of my head...a scarf is tied in my head trying to keep the frizziness at bay. I read part of The Tempest...

It just feels good to be sitting here, not thinking about anything specific, and letting my mind wander wherever it pleases.

I'm reminded of my many trips to the coffee houses of Minnesota. In my opinion, no one does a coffee shop better than Uptown. I miss Pandora's Cup...even the smoky Plan B. I miss hearing Danielle order the chai tea and saying it's like "thanksgiving in a cup." I miss Gruber and the random conversations about boys. I miss fake eyelashes and glitter thanks to laura doing my makeup before heading out. I miss the randomness of coffee houses. But most of all I miss opportunities to just check out if I feel like it. Yeah I like spending time with my friends and the people in my life, but every now and then it is good to just sit down be me.