Diana Hirsch

Author's posts

Coffee Shop Chronicles: Thoughts from overheard conversations

Boonton Coffee Boonton, NJ September 2017 People speak loudly in coffee shops, so it’s their fault I think what I’m thinking. “She’s tall.  Very nice.  Comfortable.” — Guy on high school desk chair. I sip my coffee and wonder if he’s referring to an actual woman or if he’s assigning a gender on an inanimate …

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Coffee Shop Chronicles: Don’t stare

Smartworld Coffee Denville NJ’ August 2017 I dash in, just missing the rain, and see there’s a problem with my regular table. A woman with a toddler is there.  Her stroller takes up the entire comfy chair area and space next to my usual table.  Drat.  I really need that wall outlet today.  I walk …

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Coffee Shop Chronicles: Making friends in coffee shops, Part 2

The Fine Grind, a coffee bar Little Falls, NJ March 2017 Now that I have a seat, I’m restless. It’s March, and far from feeling like winter. I settle into my cushion bench seat and look around the room.  This is still the only place to sit.  I reach for my writing bag when my …

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Coffee Shop Chronicles: Making friends in coffee shops, Part 1

The Fine Grind, a coffee bar Little Falls, NJ March 2017 It’s my second week in New Jersey, and I see a woman in a yellow University of Michigan sweatshirt. Really? I live in some vortex that I can’t escape my former home state.  Are there more of them?  I scan the room.  The big …

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Coffee shop Chronicles: An awkward coffee conversation

January 2017 Starbucks Livonia, MI My fingertips touch the grande cup of coffee when I think to ask, “This isn’t yours, is it?” “Oh no,” the guy next to me says. “I watched her make mine because I got hazelnut in it. I’m trying something new.” I didn’t really think it was mine; I was …

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