Coffee Shop

Coffee shop!

There is nothing altruist or philanthropic about this post, just a little something expletive to make blogging a habit.

Sitting in a coffee shop with great company sipping cold coffee! (Cold, ever since a freak accident with hot coffee) That is what most people do these days. In addition, it is catching on a consumer base spread across age groups.

Spending around four hours like such can be very invigorating to the mind. It primarily has to deal with the plethora of people you observe! This post is dedicated to them. (Completely expletory, don’t you think?)

When we entered in the afternoon, we had just a few people sitting around. Mostly Couples – dating can be so much fun, for the observers. People tend to be very nice and sweet to each other with no benevolent intention. At least that is as much as observation was today. Then a few others were hanging out with their peers. Male herds were mostly jealous of the lucky odd male who braved all odds to bring a female along for a date. Then there were the hetero group of friends, such as us, who prove to be eye candy (despite all variations of colour n size n make) for the opposite sexes. The location or scene of crime was a nice coffee shop. As we entered, we rush to seats with the best view - of the road, of the coffee shop and of the neighbourhood. Our usual seats are not taken, and we settle in. The corridor - that’s where we generally sit. It has the best view considering the above-mentioned criteria. Open to elements also. What started as a very humid Sunday afternoon, random drizzles came as respite spells. Hence the four hours.

The one thing that we need to understand about the coffee shop is that they charge you for the time you stay. Can u imagine why else would they serve you coffee at the price of a full meal and add tax upon it and still let you hang around? Therefore, the theory of time is money is proved. (In case you are wondering where this going to, I warned you forehand, this is an expletory practice.) (In case you are wondering what is expletive, here is the definition, in this context it is anything but the first usage.

Expletive
1.A profane, vulgar or obscene oath
2.(linguistics) A word without meaning added to fill a syntactic position
Example: - It in It is snowing
3.(linguistics) A word that adds to the strength of a phrase without affecting its meaning
Example: - bloody in I'll give you a bloody good hiding. …)

So then, it is some random gossip about people you know and people you do not, interspersed with observing the periphery and the people around. Our first candidates were a couple. The normal guy/girl next-door kind of people. The guy was trying his level’s best to take a picture of his beloved (!?!) on his mobile phone while the lass was brushing off all of his attempts. You can imagine what fun we had watching the replay of Newton’s law of action and reaction. (Physics ma’am – I still remember, you can be proud now!) Then came around a bunch that would not have passed beyond the sophomore age. And they take up a seat similar to ours for the obvious reasons. What a bunch! College Romeos and wannabes. One sometimes spots a wannabe stud with hair straightened and colored. With the coolest mobile phones and then finally the icebreaker... terrible sandals. No, the kind of rubber slip-ons that make u wonder where this person has emerged. Or else it will definitely be sound. Light travels faster than sound; and when they begin to talk; you want to go back in time n undo things. (Desperately hope my physics teacher notices the physics in this post!) As we fill each other on the happenings of the society and go on observing the other coffee sipping Homo sapiens, we notice an uncle standing in his balcony, in the neighboring apartment complex, having a great view at the coffee shop. He must have been sexagenarian or beyond, and was very keenly observing the happenings in the shop. It may have been a ‘God, kids today!’ or a ‘why weren’t coffee shops available during our glorious days’ kind of a thought process happening. In addition, there are the occasionally cruising through the streets, Mercs and BMW’s that leave us wanting and wishing.

Then two of our friends joined us for coffee. After which we continued our watch even more passionately. People came and went. Big cars, small cars and all that in between – the aura (or faux) of opulence is directly proportional to the size of the vehicle and so is the kind of company. Then there were the bikes. Mostly friends just wanting hang around, or the lone souls who come single and go with a pillion rider. And the ones who take the walk. This category is the simple person – employed/student; just wanting to have a cup of coffee and have a nice time observing what the other person is doing. After all man is a social being! From being a couple friendly place in the early afternoon the coffee shop become family friendly as the evening grew upon us. There is one thing that the coffee shop always proves to be - a place for friends to hang around, irrespective of the time. After having pinched and nipped our wallets and paying for all the time well spent, we finally left when a busboy prompted at our occupying the seats free!