Cafe Moments
If I close my eyes and think about moments of simple pleasure, I always see the same scene; me sitting alone in a quiet cafe, watching the world go by. This photograph was made almost seven years ago in a small cafe in Perkins Cove, Maine. I had walked along the ocean on a rainy morning watching the waves crash onto the rocks before finding myself in the cozy warmth of the cafe. I’ve repeated this ritual hundreds of times and it retains its glimmer.
Simple pleasures.
Watching
I like to watch. It’s likely why photography became such a big part of my life. The looking, the gaze, being a voyeur. Sitting alone in a cafe with a cup of tea, my thoughts and watching is a simple pleasure that is endlessly fascinating as I watch the interactions between people, imagining the stories they’re playing out, all from the safety of a quiet perch masked by a tea cup and journal.
There are other pleasures — dogs and family to name a few. But what clouded my thoughts today were the momentary escapes I find anywhere I can sit alone and watch.
Proper steeped tea, some edibles, the moving seas and your thoughts. A recipe for contemplation Steve, clean pure and simple musings on life itself.
That was then, you shall continue the practice at Saints Cafe; and moreso after retirement
I’m not sure where or how I’ll practice on a daily basis after I retire. My notebook is full of dreams and ideas but no conclusions drawn yet. All involve watching and solitude. But not necessarily tea and edibles. Sort of fun thinking about such simple things.
Beautiful pictures, as if the viewer could just step into the scene and have a cup of that delicious looking tea…
A 35 mile an hour scooter ride has similar appeal…
Your subconscious is engaged with scooter operation while another portion of your mind is…watching…without the tea…
maybe the scooter is a tea substitute.
50 degrees tomorrow…spring fever officially begins.
Indeed — the slow ride is a simple pleasure.
Still cold in the morning when I usually ride. But Sunday morning will be nice.
Oh, I think you will enjoy these blissful quiet moments as much if not more once you have left your current structured pattern. They unto themselves will provide a degree of routine you will continue to relish. At least that is how things have worked out for me.
I hope the case you outline comes to pass for me. I’m looking forward to it.
Hmmmm, I wonder if I can remember to bring along a thermos of tea to enjoy the sunsets with…..
I’ve taken a thermos of tea or cocoa along. It’s just not the same.
When my wife wants me to drive her to the grocery store I rest in my car and watch people coming and going in the parking lot. Lot of free intertainment!
Watching people can definitely be entertaining.
I always enjoyed those moments in a noisier setting. Bike Nights in particular always afford an opportunity to observe different people along with their rides. Your Pistons and Pints nights always pique my interest. A more varied collection of people and bikes would be hard to find.
Events like Piston and Pints definitely have a varied collection of machines and people. But for me, it’s neither relaxing or akin to the escape I find in a cafe. Just different experiences.
I have similar mental picture of simple pleasure.
Doesn’t get much simpler.
Perkins Cove is the one place in the world where Susan and I return every few years to decompress and reconnect with a consistent travel thread that has run through our marriage going on thirty years.
I actually rode through Ogunquit in 2013 in my Vespa after meeting up with you and Paul that steaming July.
Fond, fond memories indeed.
We were last there in 2015.
It’s a lovely place. Kim and I always stay in Ogunquit at the Beachmere Inn.
Time flies. Hard to believe it’s been almost four years since you were here.
Took a while to catch this entry – bouncing around between “devices” will do that sometimes.
Quiet observations: in my photographic pursuits, this has been the greatest thing, and one reason why, as the years have rolled on, the cameras have gotten smaller.
In Asbury, I can’t say I’ve found “my” cafe, even though we’re not exactly lacking for them. I’ll know it when I find it, though.
And, moving here from the Big City has revealed how almost literally starved I was for quiet and solace. To turn Joni Mitchell’s famous lyric on its head, sometimes you don’t know what you’ve lost till you’ve stumbled across it. The human nervous system can endure a surprising amount of deprivation and abuse, but that doesn’t mean one should make a habit of it. 😉
I too have a strong desire for quiet and solace. It led me to this place and kept me away from the more chaotic places in the world. I definitely didn’t want to make a habit of deprivation…