Tea and Muffins

Thank God for Morgan Street Cafe.

No, really. Not that I was walking around shady Chicago or fearing for my safety, but if I had to walk past one more cafe or walk inside and buy a "courtesy drink" only to not find a seat, I was probably gonna call it a lost cause. That, or walk back to Target.

Some backstory: I'm in Chicago this weekend with Alyssa while she goes through the audition process for the character performer role. This morning is the audition, so after dropping her off at the door to the Hubbard Dance Studio, I went on a search to find a coffee shop where I could post up and write a little. I thought I might order a tea, find a cozy spot and write about how much of a hipster I am.

Yeah, right.

I ended up walking a large square down Racine, right on Madison, back down Morgan until I found this cafe. Across one street and to the right down West Jackson and I'll be back where I started, but I'm not all that bitter, I promise. I had to walk through three shops and order two drinks that I didn't take more than 2 sips of (that's about $10 wasted) to find this little cafe on the corner of Morgan and Adams. I'm sitting at the bar by the window while I write, the community corkboard to my left. Flyers for music shows, quality dog walking, and various businesses cover the walls. Behind me is the counter and kitchen with two large boards covered in the menu. I ordered a Twinning's tea and a lemon poppy seed muffin, but I might have to stick around and order lunch too because a quesadilla sounds really good!

I few minutes ago I had a police officer and a contractor sitting next to me, having a conversation with one another about Chicago and how glad they are to be able to serve the city they love. It was pleasant to overhear a conversation between two men of different races agreeing on the state of their city and how proud they were to be here- something that seems to happen rarely these days. I felt honored to sit next to them and overhear an exchange that restored my faith in my fellow man.

I'm in West Loop this afternoon, a place that is fairly wealthy and reminds me of the East Village. Young population, expensive shops, hipster vibe. Yet in the middle of it all, I have found a place to sit and relax and call my afternoon home. So thank you Morgan Street Cafe! You saved me from lugging my computer all over creation, and you supplied me with a healthy dose of humanity. I'm not even from this city and I'm proud of it too.