One of my goals when I got my job in the city was to become a regular somewhere. I like the idea of being able to walk into a restaurant, coffee shop, or bar and the people know you and know what you are there for. In high school, my friends and I were frequent customers at the Llanerch Diner. Some of us still go there to this day. But back then, despite our frequency, we were never recognized; no one knew our orders or names.
Having only been at my new job for a little over two weeks, and not establishing the routine I have right away, I have already reached my goal. There is a breakfast cart outside of the building I work in that is run by a man and woman named Alex and Maria. The cart is appropriately named "Alex and Maria's". The place is so busy in the morning. I don't know how they do for lunch but suffice it to say, I am no more than another face in the morning rush. Somehow, despite the number of customers, after just one week, they learned my order. Now, when I walk up I am greeted with a good morning and a reciting of my usual order. It happened so quickly and I love it. Downside: I am afraid to try anything else on the menu just for fear of damaging it.
I sometimes consider myself completely against routine. I hate the idea of a 9-5 career, I hate the idea of doing the same thing for a long period of time. I think there is too much to see and too much excitement to just fall into that. That being said, when I have no structure, I long for something like it. In the school year, when I had multiple days off, classes two days a week, the day care, etc - I struggled to adapt, to set aside time on a regular basis for school or other things. In that moment, I longed for a more structure life, one that would allow me the ability to get used to things. So maybe I don't know what I want, or maybe I just get bored and even change to a routine is change enough to feel fresh. What I do know, is that (for now) I love my morning routine.
Finally - my short notice warning. I am going to Mississippi for a week. When? Saturday. Yes as in 2 days from now. It is for my GO trip. One of the major pillars of GO is simple living. What that means is no technology for the entirety of the trip. So, as of Saturday, until the following Saturday, I will be offline and will be unable to update my blog. I am upset by this because other than one brief trip early on in my Breadcrumb project, I have been able to keep this thing going. Closing in on one year (only 7 weeks to go) and I have to miss 7 straight days. I am bringing my camera and hope to take a bunch of pictures which I will use as my make-up for this lapse. Please forgive me (if you are reading this) for my leave. I promise I will have tons of fun and love every second I am there. Deal?
(my daily funds for Alex and Maria. I am going to aim for exact change to perfect the routine. weird?)
