Blinkered
Describe the most positive real-world human interaction you have had in the last week.
I was thinking about it the whole day, but nothing special came to mind. It was not my best week, first week of school, a lot of work, sleep deprivation, a little bit of anxiety regarding having to plan the upcoming opening of the café-type-attachment to the bakery. In the weeks before, I did have those moments, either of unexpected kindness or just a pleasant engagement.
I was basically running on normal. Focused on the necessary, without much fancy. Just like Queens of the Stone Age. "Little Sister" is not fancy. It's solid. And that makes it a great song for me.
If I had to decide, I'd say having coffee with a friend of mine on Friday. We talked for around 1,5 hours, as he went on a trip for a month and had a lot of good stories. There was one moment that was nice, he had to type something on his phone, and I started talking about the plans for the café, and he interrupted me: "Just a second, I have to type this before I forget, and I can't concentrate on two things and absolutely want to hear all about those plans." That felt good. It was a validation, him showing that he wasn't just there for small talk and superficial exchange of words, but that he was really interested in what I had to say, what my plans were. He had a lot of questions, too, and talking to him about it gave me a few ideas. We even talked about Hive, and as he noticed my excitement, he asked more questions about it. Yeah, now that I write it down, that was a really positive interaction.
I did drink too much coffee. We both probably did. There's not much to do when just talking. And the cups where big, decent taste and only $1,50. And though I was super tired, I couldn't sleep until quite later. So, I ended up drinking more coffee, feeling a little like the guy in "Le Café" by Oldelaf - a french song this time.
The second was the jam session yesterday. We had way to many people there, in the end we split into two groups, one playing outside on the patio, the other inside in restaurant. It was the first time that a lot of my friends showed up, and many people from Lily's school. It took us a while to get in the flow, we were kind of overwhelmed by so many people showing up, but it ended up being an amazing time, with many friends showing up.
Thinking of one french song makes me relive my time in France, when I was around 16 years old. This one is my absolute favorite.
After reviewing my pictures from last week, I see that I had a lot more positive moments. How Lily was received in her school on Monday. Seeing a couple eating my cookies at the gym and smiling for a picture. Lots of hugs. My girlfriend being able to take time for me in the morning two times, and her coming to the gym with me.
It all got buried under the chores. I was thinking about it all day, those interactions, seriously. It's like I had blinkers on my eyes the whole week, going straight through in order to get to the other side quicker and without distractions. That's not cool, I gotta do better next week. So, thank you, Tarazkp, if you read this, for inadvertently making me aware of that with your prompt.
Post written for the #saturdayselections by Galenkp inviting us to share music in the Weekend Experiences community on Saturdays.
Your friend stopping to give full attention to your café plans really hit me. That kind of focus is rarer than a quiet café at eight in the morning, and no wonder it sparked ideas. What is one thing you know you want in the café right from day one?
A cozy atmosphere. Make people feel welcome, and welcome to stay. The furniture is what is most important for that. It's going to be a co working kitchen, with me as financial backup, investor and community link, my bakery Administrator as highly experienced chef and provider of the kitchen equipment, working the weekend, three young guys doing some deli stuff to dip their toes into business without getting crushed by money right away, and Lily's school preparing meals one day a week to make funds.
Love this mix. Furniture is the vibe, so try deep sofas, a couple long tables, and warm lamps you can dim at night. How will you split kitchen time between the chef on weekends and the deli crew on weekdays? Would Lily's school day have its own corner and a donation jar or blend into the usual flow? A small soft opening with your jam friends could help you test what actually works.
The kitchen things are already solved, on who uses it when. And it will be a completely shared space. The school stuff will arrived prepared, so it's only to keep it warm, and we have equipment for that, too. Soft opening is already planned, but it's usually a little more than just "soft", as I have many friends who are eager to visit 😅
Awesome that the kitchen dance is sorted and the warming setup is ready. A not so soft opening with your friends buzzing in actually sounds perfect. Maybe run a tiny hero menu on day one so you can soak up the vibe without juggling ten things. Do you have a date in mind?
Hey @amr008 , I checked your profile and the first post seems to be AI created content. I appreciate genuine content and interest, but I loathe artificial content. Please refrain from that on my blog, thank you!
I often too the same too, trying to get hyper focused on one aspect of life given a pending desire at hand to get the work over and done with. It makes every other experience look pale in comparison lol and when you look back on the week, you realized you've missed much of the essence that makes life meaningful.
I missed feeling it. I missed appreciating it. That's just not good, reminds me of my burn out times.