Each weekday morning, I stop into the local Peets Coffee & Tea for my daily latte and my fill of chit-chat with my peeps. The same folks that arrive, more or less, at the same time as me. Some are always friendly, others not. They are the most like to drop the door in your face and, in all likelihood, have been spinning 85% of their brainpower on work for greater than an hour’s time.
Then there are the rest. Toddler toting mommas, retirees, and folks such as me who just need a little morning chatter to get the work day off to a good start. They gather in front of the store, greeting the coffee connoisseurs on their way in, wishing them a good day on the way out.
Old man Joe, for some unknown reason, is one of my favorites. He’s just one of those real live people who says it like it is. I like that.
And I also like that he calls me “kiddo.”