On a rare coffee date, we share a croissant, stuffed with frangipani and crumbling almonds on the table, and our usual order - a large flat white and a small oat latte, although we rarely buy coffee out. We both have a spare lesson, so we've snuck away for a mock date. It feels indulgent. I take my knitting, and he leaves his phone in the car. For half an hour, we are connected to the life around us, to us, even, as we make plans for next year that we've been shy of and reluctant to engage with. We try to figure out how old we are - again. We both feel old.
Now, if there's any object to carry into a cafe that will engage people in conversation (that's not a puppy) it's knitting. I'm carrying a burnt orange ball of wool and the beginnings of a cowl, which I have to explain to people is like a scarf that's joined in the middle, a neck warmer for cycling.
The old women next to us, out for a mid morning coffee date with friends, leans over to chat about my tangled craft. She wants to tell me I look gorgeous, with my colourful green skirt, black leather converse and orange cardigan. She wishes she hadn't spent a lifetime looking so conventional. She's neatly turned out, with a blazer and a fake flower pinned at the lapel, sensible shoes and grey trousers. She's 82, she tells us. She looks like she's had a life, as many people in that area do, having led working class lives, hard lives.
She asks where we are from, and we tell her, and she says it figures - that people that live out of the city suburbs are less conventional, fresher, less encumbered. I don't quite agree, but I get her point. She says in another life she'd love a small house, just by the water, with a nautical theme, and not worry so much about what people think. Young people today, she says, want it all so quickly. Get married, get a mortage, car, house, kids. She argues one should live debt free and not need all of those things. We tell her we agree, utterly. We are charmed by each other. She repeats that I look beautiful, and I take the compliment, utterly. It's not one I recieve often.
On the other side, Valerie, as she's greeted by the service staff (she must be a regular) is saving 50 cent pieces for her grandson, the new ones with King Charles head. It's a small gesture because she can't gift him much, due to pension laws and taxes. She has a bright red coat and a white beanie with a pom pom. She's 96. I love how old people have to tell you their age, like kids will. She tells us we are not old at all - her ears are clearly young enough to overhear our conversation, even above the rattle of cutlery and the hiss of the coffee machine.
I think we'll come back here, I say to Jamie, eyeing off the cinnamon buns and fresh pretzels. Sit with the old ladies again, have a laugh, be inspired. He says I just want to come for the compliments. Maybe I do, I say. Maybe I do.
Turns out it's my day for it - when I get back to the staffroom, one of the young teachers stop to tell me that yesterday she wanted to tell me how lovely I looked in green.
With Love,
View or trade
LOHtokens.@riverflows, You have received 1.0000 LOH for posting to Ladies of Hive.
We believe that you should be rewarded for the time and effort spent in creating articles. The goal is to encourage token holders to accumulate and hodl LOH tokens over a long period of time.
This was such a lovely read, I can tell you enjoyed reading (and experiencing) this. But first,
How can that be? I've only had the pleasure of seeing you across the digitalsphere, but I dare say you're gorgeous. All iterations of you you've published on the 'chain down the years. You are. And should know.
Back to the story,
Gotta say I resonate so much with this (go figure). IS it really just today? Wasn't it this always, and fringe people maybe feeling something else? I honestly don't know.
I love this because it reads like a genuine, thought through emotion. Not 'she's nice' or something bland and generic. I like reading you, particularly things like this from you because it's such real and good writing and anchors me down. I hope you go again.
Right. Off to make some cinnamon rolls (which was actually the plan for today, and I shall take this as an omen). :)
Oh yum. They say fresh baked ones at that cafe and I'm keen to try next time.
Definitely the last twenty odd years I reckon. There's a panic to have things so you don't go under. Get a house. A job. Because you might end up homeless, etc etc etc. And dark consumerism is at its worse. Everyone trying to sell you a dream.
Of course I don't post ugly pictures of me online haha. I don't think I photograph well. But Jamie thinks I'm beautiful so that's all that matters. It's a symptom of his deteriorating eyesight.
I'm so glad you enjoyed my writing.
Sounds like such a wonderful time out. I agree that you should make it a regular thing.
Reaching the 90s! It is an achievement one should be proud of.
I love hanging around and conversing with older people that are not grumpy.
Oh yes grumpy people suck haha. But maybe that's because people don't talk to them... Because they're grumpy 😞😭
May you have some lovely interactions this week x
You could be right about why they are grumpy. I will most likely be a grumpy old man too. Yelling at kids to get off my lawn and such. One day. Tomorrow. LOL
Lol don't you dare !!!
I see myself more of a cross between Clint Eastwood in Gran Torino and Robert Duvall in Second Hand Lions.
What a lovely adventure! I truly loved reading about it. I do hope you and Jamie have more time off together and can go again often.
Me too. Haha I left the cafe and said to Jamie, well, there's a Hive story in that! 😂🤣
The compliments are more than enough reasons to go back :)
I know, right??!!!
I remember a while back someone said knitting wasn't for them....😉
Sometimes this is how life should be, just simple conversation with random strangers which feels like it's the most normal thing in the world to do. We lack personal engagement in life now, one because we're stuck to the screen all the time, and two, random conversation might lead to scams etc
That's so sad..I always found the UK terrible for this. As an Aussie I'd break into chatter with strangers and they'd look at me as if I was mental. It's a bit better here.
I have been practicing not having my phone in waiting rooms. Either a book or he bored. I hate everyone on their phone like they can't possibly acknowledge people around them.
I never think about scams unless I'm online!!!
The scams seems to be getting worse. Have you heard about the glasses (spectacles) with a built in camera that guys wear when they chat up girls or speak to girls in a friendly manner but secretly record them, then post some not nice videos online of the convo? It really makes me hesitant to speak to strangers sometimes
Omfg no. I'm glad I'm not on the dating scene anymore. We went clubbing tech free.
This post has been manually curated by @bhattg from Indiaunited community. Join us on our Discord Server.
Do you know that you can earn a passive income by delegating to @indiaunited. We share more than 100 % of the curation rewards with the delegators in the form of IUC tokens.
Here are some handy links for delegations: 100HP, 250HP, 500HP, 1000HP.
100% of the rewards from this comment goes to the curator for their manual curation efforts. Please encourage the curator @bhattg by upvoting this comment and support the community by voting the posts made by @indiaunited.
The image belongs to millycf1976.