ch-ch-ch-changes

at the beginning of the semester i got all geared up to visit my favorite coffee shop, mocha joe's, only to find out that it had been sold and was "closed for renovations." it was tragic. this was the coffee house i had written about several times before, with the tangerine walls and the mismatched chairs, mirrors like wallpaper all over the walls.

last week we decided to stop by to see if there was any information about when it was going to be open or what it was going to open as, but it was already open. we walked in to the same room, now designated "Pasha's." (which is a Turkish authority apparently) it is very nice. the walls are a light brownish-grey. the local art adorns the walls with a certain ambiguous charm. the furniture is no longer mismatched, but still is kind of rustic mixed with class.

however, the music choices are better, the coffee is better, the employees are better…so i really can’t complain. i like it here. i anticipate spending many hours here in the future.

last thursday i came down to escape the mountain, needing some alone time to study. i sat here for several hours, and accomplished some, but not much. there was a man here who was just far too interesting to ignore, and i found myself caught up in his reunions more than once, as he had just moved back into town after a good 5 years away. he spoke of old times, times when he knew the people and they knew him. he spoke of the reason he moved away, his brother’s attempted suicide, and discussed the methods that he used, the struggle of committing a family member to a mental health institution, and the internal turmoil of his parents because of this drama.

it was sad, but the way he spoke about it made me more sad. it didn’t affect him. he knew how much it affected his parents, but he said in his tone and his words that this was just a situation to him…not really his situation. it was a very interesting day.

i just like this place.