Tuesday, June 21, 2005
One Tall Mocha Latte, Pronto!
I had a meeting downtown yesterday, arranged through Jack, with a woman who has connections in the publishing industry. Before I go any further, I'm afraid I have to go on a tangent. When I said "woman", are you thinking I met with someone in their 40's? I've been criticized before for referring to females around my age as "girls", but I can't seem to find an alternative short of "woman in her twenties" that would express, well, "woman in her twenties". When I think of a "young woman", I think of a 15 year-old, so that doesn't work. Female readers of the MesteeBlogger, feel free to chime in with any opinion on this matter. For the record, I typically think of the phrase "guys and girls" -- I have no problem with being called a guy, so why not call my female counterpart a girl?
Back to business. This, uh...woman, Jessica, and I had emailed back and forth a few times, agreeing to meet in the Starbucks at the corner of Charles and Beacon Street. A few hours before the meeting, I found the store locator on the Starbucks website, which listed two Starbucks on Charles Street, neither of which was at the Beacon Street intersection. Great, perfect, unbelievable. At this point, I realized how convenient it would have been to have her phone number so I could call to straighten this out. I sent out an email, but it was unanswered by the time I left the office. I was off to the intersection of Charles and Beacon, praying for a Starbucks to be nearby.
On the MapQuest directions I printed out, it looked pretty simple to get to...but those have proven to be famous last words. I was on Summer Street, ready to take a "slight left turn" onto Surface Road, when I was faced with the option of two roads on my left, one at about a 45 degree angle, the other about 30 degrees, neither with visible signs. With only a second to make a decision, I opted for the 45 degree turn, which seemed to be more "slight". Wrong. I managed to follow two steps on the directions without getting lost. Even though I knew that I needed to take a left to get back on track, I was faced with a number of one way roads blocking my way. I finally managed to get left, winding my way through Chinatown and coming out near Park Street. I drove around the Commons and found Charles Street (I realize that this is the kind of story that should be told by someone who has just arrived in Boston, but please just let me have my small, directional victory). I drove up to the intersection of Charles and Beacon, and there was a Starbucks, with an open parking spot 20 yards from the door. I am the smartest man alive.
Not being a regular at Starbucks, I was thrown off by "Tall" meaning "Small". "Grande", which obviously makes you think of the biggest size possible, means "Medium". And, of course, "Venti", which really doesn't conjure up any notion of size, means "Large". I managed to get my coffee and secure a table by 3:50, ten minutes early, when I realized that I had another small problem. I didn't know what Jessica looked like. Granted, it's not a very big coffee shop, but if you're looking for someone who falls under the category of "twenty-something female", let's just say there were no shortage of them in the shop yesterday. I decided to go with the strategy of looking for someone who appeared to be looking for someone. I had a few suspects that I was trying to make eye contact with, but then another girl/gal/woman/female walked in and mouthed "Brian?" beneath the loud whirring of the Starbucks blenders.
The meeting itself was good...she told me about her experience with the Columbia Publishing Course and let me know about some of her friends who worked in and around Boston that may be able to help me find a job. I have another meeting tonight in Clinton, MA. Forty miles of wrong turns waiting to happen.
Tonight, CBS will air the AFI Top 100 Movie Quotes. I'm wondering if "You can stay home and help me shave my armpits!" or "Do the chickens have large talons?" have a shot at cracking the Top 100.
Okay, the idea behind this website is so strange that I have to let you see it.
|
Back to business. This, uh...woman, Jessica, and I had emailed back and forth a few times, agreeing to meet in the Starbucks at the corner of Charles and Beacon Street. A few hours before the meeting, I found the store locator on the Starbucks website, which listed two Starbucks on Charles Street, neither of which was at the Beacon Street intersection. Great, perfect, unbelievable. At this point, I realized how convenient it would have been to have her phone number so I could call to straighten this out. I sent out an email, but it was unanswered by the time I left the office. I was off to the intersection of Charles and Beacon, praying for a Starbucks to be nearby.
On the MapQuest directions I printed out, it looked pretty simple to get to...but those have proven to be famous last words. I was on Summer Street, ready to take a "slight left turn" onto Surface Road, when I was faced with the option of two roads on my left, one at about a 45 degree angle, the other about 30 degrees, neither with visible signs. With only a second to make a decision, I opted for the 45 degree turn, which seemed to be more "slight". Wrong. I managed to follow two steps on the directions without getting lost. Even though I knew that I needed to take a left to get back on track, I was faced with a number of one way roads blocking my way. I finally managed to get left, winding my way through Chinatown and coming out near Park Street. I drove around the Commons and found Charles Street (I realize that this is the kind of story that should be told by someone who has just arrived in Boston, but please just let me have my small, directional victory). I drove up to the intersection of Charles and Beacon, and there was a Starbucks, with an open parking spot 20 yards from the door. I am the smartest man alive.
Not being a regular at Starbucks, I was thrown off by "Tall" meaning "Small". "Grande", which obviously makes you think of the biggest size possible, means "Medium". And, of course, "Venti", which really doesn't conjure up any notion of size, means "Large". I managed to get my coffee and secure a table by 3:50, ten minutes early, when I realized that I had another small problem. I didn't know what Jessica looked like. Granted, it's not a very big coffee shop, but if you're looking for someone who falls under the category of "twenty-something female", let's just say there were no shortage of them in the shop yesterday. I decided to go with the strategy of looking for someone who appeared to be looking for someone. I had a few suspects that I was trying to make eye contact with, but then another girl/gal/woman/female walked in and mouthed "Brian?" beneath the loud whirring of the Starbucks blenders.
The meeting itself was good...she told me about her experience with the Columbia Publishing Course and let me know about some of her friends who worked in and around Boston that may be able to help me find a job. I have another meeting tonight in Clinton, MA. Forty miles of wrong turns waiting to happen.
Tonight, CBS will air the AFI Top 100 Movie Quotes. I'm wondering if "You can stay home and help me shave my armpits!" or "Do the chickens have large talons?" have a shot at cracking the Top 100.
Okay, the idea behind this website is so strange that I have to let you see it.
|
Comments:
Post a Comment
| Post A New Topic |
|
View Message Board |
| Search The Internet |
