Coffee Shops

I have a love for coffee shops when it comes to getting any kind of work done- budgeting, blogging, homework, and to-do lists. As I've sought out more places in the city to do my productive things, I've found another reason to love coffee shops (and maybe just another reason to love Atlanta).

So far, anytime I go into a coffee shop, I'm pleasantly surprised at the thoughtfulness and willingness that other people have to meet new people. I've had people let me sit with them, just so I can charge my laptop and get my schoolwork submitted online. I've had people ask me questions about my laptop and talk about theirs, just to make small talk. One older gentleman wanted to talk all about how excited he was to see Lorde at Music Midtown. And just yesterday, I happened to look up at one guy who was taking notes that seemed similar to mine. Turns out, he was taking prerequisites for nursing, too. We had a nice chat about our goals and some things we look forward to when school is finally behind us. When he left, I went back to studying, only to look up and be asked about what I was studying (again). The person who asked me, this time, happened to be studying for his MCATs. A past student at Emory, he was just doing some more prerequisites for med school and studying Organic Chemistry. He ended up sharing with me a tool that he uses to study on his iPad. It's just a compilation of tests on any particular subject, so a person can just spend hours and hours practicing tests if he/she so chooses.

Sometimes I wonder how beautifully orchestrated things seem to be, because of situations like these. Meeting genuinely nice people who want to connect, but also finding that the people sitting next to me are on similar paths. I have to admit I probably light up when I notice the similarities, because I'm so desperate to make connections and believe in this city. And I love it when those people prove me right!