I got my tent, my stove, my backpack, and my optimistically empty journal. The question is: should I stay or should I go now? (Justin)

It's been a while since I've posted, as has been pointed out by our dedicated following (meaning my mom, dad, aunt, and fellow blog contributor, Rosie).  It has been a great week for the coffeehouse and for me.  I'll start with developments at the coffeehouse, specifically with food at the coffeehouse, since that's my primary interest.

We recently worked out an arrangement with Mukilteo Caffe's Chef Jess and will now be carrying their fresh-baked cookies and stews.  Today marked our first day with Spanish rice soup, oatmeal cranberry cookies, chocolate chip cookies, cinnamon coffee cake, and pumpkin muffins, which are made with some sort of black bean flour, interestingly enough.  One of our duties as ICB managers is to be familiar with all of our new products so that we can recommend them to customers.  Needless to say, I enjoyed being in the coffeehouse today.  The soup was so good I forked out the money for a big bowl and seriously considered getting another; but, alas, I am working on the salary of an AmeriCorps volunteer, which is only nominally different from that of, say, an unemployed college student with a modest salary from daddy (sub in government for daddy and probably make the modest salary even more modest) or even a homeless person with a knack for raising funds through forced windshield washing.  The point is the soup is incredible.  Two types of beans that I could make it, chunks of fresh tomatoe and large slices of onion.  Good stuff.  Finish it off with a cranberry oatmeal cookie and that is the proverbial stuff. 

Another reason I've been riding a good mood for some time now is I got to see some fantastic at least semi-local music this weekend.  Lake and Karl Blau played Saturday night at the Children's Theatre and our very own Rosie played a leading role as merchandise saleswoman--a job she performed extraordinarily well, if I may say so.  Molly, Caitlin, and I were all impressed by all of the musicians' abilities to exchange instruments without a change in displayed competence, and the syncopated rhythms and creative lyrics (Karl Blau's song that feature a chorus that went something like, "One: November, Two:December, Three: January, and so on, stuck out in particular, and his mustachioed North Wind's (a member of Lake and Blau's backing band) sound effects heightened the playful energy and amusement.  I know that Eli, a member of Lake, at least spends some time in the coffeehouse, so it was cool to watch them perform.

Also, despite my aforementioned financial strain, I went on an online shopping spree at REI.com and got myself a tent, Jetboil stove and French Press converter (YES!).  I'd been needing those things for a while so I could get out in the wild.  After I ripped open the packaging like a six-year-old on Christmas morning (or myself on Christmas morning at any age), I got on the internet and planned out my trip.  Here is the agenda:  Friday night, ferry over to Port Townsend; Saturday morning, wake up at dawn to ride up Hurricane Ridge to the observatory then ride back down and drive to an undetermined trailhead to hike in and camp out "under the stars" (quotations marks are there for a reason, you'll see), then hike out the next morning and catch the ferry back.  I told everyone about this, even my cat Samson, who only speaks Spanish and Hebrew and didn't understand a word I was saying.  Then, I checked the forecast.  And bkoughk! (explosion sound effect)! Rain, my friend.  Rain, rain, and more rain.  I think I might go for it anyways, though, and if I don't, at least I can chill in the coffeehouse, listening to our new Lake CD and eating Spanish rice soup.  And that, I think, is never a terrible thing.