Where Did You Think They Would Go?

In the search for a new community, we ended up at Starbuck's. I remember when it was fashionable, in fact "way cool" to meet the love of your life in a bar. Squares, today I think they are called "dweebs", paired off at church socials or, God forbid, they were high school sweethearts. Some will argue the grocery store and the coin op laundry are better places to meet perspective mates, but I have the sense that these people are the new breed of multitaskers. There was the health club fad which still has it adherents, but the rest of us gravitated to the coffee house.

Let me assure you, I'm not looking for a new mate, but socializing with friends and having short business meetings still is a part of my life. Like a lot of fads, coffeehouses, when observed in a rear view mirror, were a thing waiting to happen. We need a place to gather and bond as a community. I hate to sound old school, but I don't believe that the Internet will ever replace interpersonal relations. (I do think the net can help get people together, if they have a common interest.)

In my investigation of coffee houses in Milwaukee (www.espressoexpressions.com), I note that there are some group characteristics to some of them. The college hangout, the yuppie spot, the smokers spot and the Seniors roust are pretty apparent after you've stopped a couple of times. My son, Todd, in Seattle, the capital of Espresso, tells me some shops, for the most part, serve just one office building.

The coffee explosion was probably the direct result of the melt down in the two martini lunch and the neighborhood watering hole. Granted there is some of this going on, but let me assure you, it's not like it was back in the day. Health concerns and an new emphasis's on drunk driving enforcement probably did as much as anything to make people drink more responsibly, but than folks will always find someplace to congregate. My families for me figured out. I got three gift cards for coffee houses this Christmas. So I'll see you latte.