Royalty Burger

September 07, 2014

It is early afternoon and quite cloudy even after numerous similar days lately. The tables are properly bussed, there is very little trash on the ground from customers, and the workers seem to be comfortably lax. I believe I can reliably deduce that customer traffic has been slow today, probably partly due to the weather and perhaps due to the fact that it is Sunday.

Music, which I believe to be country, is playing softly on the overhead radio. A few portraits are displayed on the walls, however a couple of them have been taken down due to what appears to be because of wear on the strapping that would have held it up. The rest of these portraits depict food in a way which is not modest in comparison to what is actually being served.

An elderly man in slacks and a dress shirt enters. His hair combed and appears to be gelled into place. He makes a call to whom I believe to be his wife before ordering. It appears he is ordering something for his wife on the way home from what I would assume to be work. He quickly receives a strawberry shake and rushes out as if he has something urgent to attend to.

A Hispanic family enters pretty loudly. The man is wearing traditional cowboy-like gear. A straw hat, worn jeans with a belt, boots, and sunglasses. The woman is wearing a blue shirt with white pants and sneakers. Their two boys, Speedy and Climber are playing around the poles that form the line to the counter. Speedy is darting around and under the poles while his brother Climber is sitting atop it near his parents. They try to order in Spanish, but the worker does not appear to know very much, so he says “uno momento por favor”, which means “one moment please”. The worker, Mr. Nohabla, gets the manager, Slick, and they are able to order. Their order takes a short while to complete and they sit down in the lobby to eat their meal.

It has started sprinkling and the Hispanic family along with their children have left, making myself the sole person in the lobby.

After about 15 minutes a man holding a motorcycle helmet and wearing one the rug burn resistant jackets enters. Jack seems to be trying to make up his mind on what to get for a long time. After ordering he sits to eat in the lobby while chatting to someone, presumably a friend, on his cell phone.

It appears that Royalty Burger’s drive thru has picked up considerably since the employee Mr. Nohabla has started bagging take-out in more of a rushed manner.

Jack gets a refill and sits back down. Although he has finished eating Jack seems content to just relax in the lobby while talking on his phone. After about another 15 minutes since his refill Jack leaves.

Mr. Nohabla appears to cleared out the cars ordering at the drive thru and starts cleaning the lobby while Slick counts his cash drawer.

In The Evening

It is almost dinner time, and as I enter the establishment I notice that it is rather empty. On the far corner sits a girl, very concentrated on finishing her dinner presumably to get back to the book next to her plate. Next to the counter is a man waiting for the cashier to pack his order so he can leave.

As I approach to order I realize that the amount of people has increased. Behind me I see a mother and her two daughters, two couples, and three girls.  The mother orders the same for her daughters and a separate plate for herself. The two couples, although total strangers to each other, order the same thing. Finally the three girls approach the counter and discuss that they should order different things to share everything at their table.

Taking a seat near a window, I begin to try and make myself look busy while my order is ready. The couples have each taken a corner and have began discussing what I presume to be their day and maybe some gossip the acquired throughout the day. Precisely diagonally to me sit the three girls. I immediately observe that one of the girls is sitting on one side, while the other two on the other side. I can infer that the girl sitting alone is the leader because of the way she conducts herself. She begins to plan their weekend and start to give the girls options on what their evening would consist of.

Wondering if I will ever get my food I look up to see one of the workers hand me my food and head out to couple number one to deliver their food as well. As I follow her with my gaze, I see that couple number one has taken books and notebooks out of their bags and sprawled over the table. Probably trying to make the most of their time they continue to study and eat simultaneously. They would both only stop to ask and explain questions on one of the books in the center.

Couple number two has taken another approach to dinner, both still waiting for their order, but not minding one bit, because they seem very engrossed on something on the girl's phone. They get closer, trying to each get a fair view of whatever is on her phone. A few minutes later the guy receives a  phone call and proceeds to answer it. After a few words and a quick laugh, he signals his girlfriend to use her phone, presumably to look something up. As he ends his call they both get up, and take their order to go.

Long since done eating, I begin to observe the tables around me and notice the place has grown rather empty and dark outside. I look up just in time to see the three musketeers are just as ready to leave as me. As I start packing up I turn to the corner and see couple number one still studying oblivious to the time that has already passed.

McCallan's Ambiance

With such a nice evening during the day, the smell of warm tea, and a fresh sent of sandwiches bring quite a bit of students to the restaurant, much more than the number of non-college students. As I wait in line for my cup of tea an older couple, Dan and Mary, walk in as to observe the dining area. “There is a lot of college kids out here today, did you notice that honey?”  Dan assures his wife that it isn't unusual, but more as an excitement to notice more students attending the local university. As Dan and Mary await in line I've come to presume they are visiting their daughter as she slowly approaches them.

As the line moves slowly, more and more students walk in, to order their free cup of tea. McCallan's offers free tea to any student with their school I.D. I notice that the majority of the people who dine in are non-college students. As the line gets smaller and smaller the ambiance starts to calm down and the workers seem at ease.

Art work of an older time during the early cultivation of the city Las Cruces fill only one wall that is made of brick and decorations of dried fruit throughout the entire restaurant. The radio plays in the background ever so calmly and relaxing. A group of girl basketball players leave the dining area as to be in a rush for practice or an activity which they all might partake in.

Thirty minutes into my observation the dining room starts to fill up again with more people and the lines lead all the way to the door as it did when I first ordered my tea. There are two people to my far corner texting the night away. Conversation between the two doesn't seem to arise until three more of their friends arrive to the table. Cell phones are placed on the table and they engage in conversation.

A couple Eric and Lisa and baby daughter Annie are dressed as super heroes for the comic con event. An older couple with their granddaughter seem to be enjoying the evening with good food and a peaceful ambiance. The older man rises here and there and makes a walk to the parking lot for a cigarette as to enjoy the weather of the day as the clouds move west and the sun beaming gently. Two big gallons of hand sanitizer have been placed on the front two counters for the employees and is in use every other order taken, which I've noticed that the employees are on top of their cleanliness during a busy day. As the day progresses more customers are coming in for pick up I presume by the way the come in alone that they have made other plans to enjoy their meal on the go with family or friends. 

CCSU

There is a good variety of places to eat on campus, which can make picking a lunch a little difficult. Luckily I know what I want, I’m in the mood for a grilled sandwich. A great and convenient place for that would be inside CCSU. As I walk in I quickly notice the lunch rush. There are long lines of people waiting to order or pay. You can also see the different groups sitting and chatting away at their tables, which would explain the loud noise.

I find it amusing that there are still plenty freshmen looking like a lost puppies. I would think that by now they would have accustomed to the fast pace of college.

Anyways, as I’m eating my lunch my friends are chatting away about their weekend plans. I notice the staff. They move extremely fast, they remind me of busy bees. They are wiping down tables and picking up trash just as students leave. I have never seen people move with such determination.

I finish my lunch and say my goodbyes just like all the other students in the area. However as I’m saying goodbye I realize all the groups around me have a different way of saying goodbye. It’s interesting to see the variations of how they say goodbye. I saw people hugging each other, a peck on the cheek, or just a simple wave. I don’t have time to keep observing, since I have to speed to class. My observations are to be continued…

Friday Night Flavors

It’s approximately 7:45pm and the sun set is five minutes gone. The traffic can be seen bustling. There’s a big window in front of the building provides for easy awareness of the environment outside. The television located in the south east corner of the building is broadcasting the local news program.

At my arrival I walked past two females sitting at the first table and up to the counter. The cashier bid me good night and inquired about my order. He quickly noticed, probably due to my indecisiveness that I was probably a first time customer and said he was going to give me a minute.

The number seven on the menu seemed to have stood out. So that is what I ordered. Since I’m new to the place I guess lucky old number seven will work for tonight.

The two females mentioned earlier, whom we will call Queen and Princess; could be seen devouring their enchilada plate. They seem to be very close with each other as I could over hear them speaking about their weekend plans of a family trip to Albuquerque. Both Queen and Princess are of Hispanic descent. Queen is a lady in her forty’s and Princess seems very familiar now; I believe she was in my Chemistry 112 class last semester.

Mr. Regular hangs up his phone and starts a conversation across the room with the cashier. Both seem full of humor and frequently spoke in short dialogue about project happening around locally and funny encounters they had during the week.

The cashier then signals me that my food is ready and I quickly rush over to the counter and back to my table. About four minutes into my beef taco plate Mr. Regular gets up and asks the waiter for a to go plate. The waiter goes out back to the kitchen and grabs him a plate. Mr. Regular then packs his left over and tells the waiter to have a great weekend.

It got really quiet after Mr. Regular left. Only the mechanical juicers could be heard mixing away. The local news seemed to be over and proceeding was a program paying tribute to the late comedian Joan Rivers.

It seems like the drive thru is pretty much busier than inside the restaurant itself. I observed approximately one vehicle driving through to order at least every seven minutes. While the cashier was handling a drive through order Queen and Princess got up, passed me and emptied their treys. Queen had probably been watching me scribbling away in my notebook the entire time and upon her return from emptying her trey, I took a quick glance at her and I could see her smiling at me. She was probably wondering what was so interesting about scribbling in my book since I had barely touched my taco plate. They then approached the counter, got their receipts and left.

After they left I entered the second half of my man vs. food war. As I was pretty close to finishing my plate an elderly couple Mr. and Mrs. Johnny come lately came in. They seem to be very energetic and entertaining type of senior citizens. The waiter quickly greeted them, the husband was rapid to inform him that they had heard that the restaurant was one of the best in town. Mr. and Mrs. Johnny come lately also pointed out that they just moved to Las Cruces today and that it’s their first night here in their retirement home. The waiter then congratulated them. Similar to myself they were undecided and it took a little for them to order. They then walked over to the table where Queen and Princess had sat earlier.

I was never able to finish my plate due to the fact that the food here is served in very large portions. I got up and emptied my plate, then paid for my food. I then stepped out into the dark night and returned home.

Meal Time Activities

One question I will attempt to answer by making some observations is: What do people do while they are sitting down to a meal?  The obvious answer would be "eating", but I want to observe what they are doing in addition to the actual eating of food, such as studying or using a cell phone or socializing with others.  As I got to the place I chose to observe I noticed a few things right away.  One, it was not as busy as I had hoped, even with it being lunchtime (12:30 pm), primarily due to it being the weekend and two, most of the people were just passing through so it was difficult to get enough details written down in the time they were in the immediate vicinity.  Of the people that stayed around in the time I was there, there were two groups of three people and two groups of two people: in the first group of three were two males and one female, the second group had three males, the first group of two were one male and one female, and the other group was two females.  There were also five people that were just passing through the area.

In the first group of three, one of the males and the female, who looked like a couple, were engaged in conversation while the other male, I will call him the third wheel, was using his cell phone.  I wasn't close enough to the couple to hear the subject matter of the conversation, but it seemed light because the third wheel would occasionally insert his own comments.  The other group of three were engaged in apparently a hilarious story because of the animated nature of the speaker. They looked like they worked together because they all had the same uniforms on and were possibly on a lunch break.  The first group of two had the look of a couple on a lunch date and were engaged in quiet conversation with each other.  The last group that I observed were two ladies who only spoke to each other occasionally and were mostly on their cell phones when not eating.

I was not able to get much information about the people passing by other than how they were dressed and whether they were on their phones at the time.  There were three females: one had yoga pants and a tank top on, the others had shorts and t-shirts on and all three were using their cell phones.  Of the two males, one was wearing jeans and one was wearing khaki shorts and both were wearing t-shirts and the one wearing shorts was using his phone.  They all had bags of food or drinks in their hands and were heading in the direction of the parking lot.

During the time I was there, the group of three males left, presumably to go back to work, and were soon followed by the group of two females, possibly for the same reason.  About 20 or 25 minutes later the couple left, but the group with the third wheel was still there when I left.

The Lunch Rush

It is about 1:15 in the afternoon and for so many restaurants located in one place this lunch area does not smell like food. (There are five restaurants in this food court but one is closed for reasons unknown.) There is an American style restaurant that has burgers and other iconic American foods, a Hispanic style restaurant, a Chinese restaurant and a small coffee shop. The customers are mostly students ranging in age from late teens to middle aged men and women. There are a couple of construction workers and what seem to be professors but I could be mistaken. Most of the students seem to travel in groups of two or three, many of which enter through the eastern doors near the coffee shop. Almost all of which who enter seem to have a specific restaurant in mind and don't give any others a glance. About half of the young men that enter head straight for the American style restaurant and order burgers and fries, although most Hispanic men and woman prefer to go to the Hispanic style restaurant for lunch. A group of young men a few tables away finished their food in an astonishing amount of time and then returned to their conversation.

After about half an hour of observation I have seen the Coffee shop have a total of 5 customers, likely due to the time because they seem to have a more breakfast oriented menu. A young couple in white arrive and sit at the table next to me after ordering drinks and a bag of chips to snack on from the American style restaurant. They make small conversation about classes and homework they have while they eat their chips. While most patrons choose to sit inside there is also an outside sitting area that seems rather empty, this could be due to the humidity of the day. I observe one patron in blue who walks back and forth between an entrance and a trash can while on the phone. He has reached for the handle multiple times at points in which I suspect he believed the conversation would end, only to continue talking and walk back away towards the trash can. After about three minutes the conversations ends and he walks in and orders food from the Chinese restaurant. He is the first person I have seen walk in alone. Most males seem to travel in groups of two to five while the females I have observed travel in groups of two or with a significant other. The male in blue who was on the phone has opted to get his food to go and leaves quickly after getting it. The young couple beside me has also opted to go back and order food. They go back to the same restaurant and order two orders of burgers and fries.

As everyone leaves the group of males which began at three has now grown to five. Their food long gone but conversation not yet finished. While they talk they make very large hand gestures to accompany their conversation. The couple near me also finishes up there food and begin to talk about date plans for the coming weekend. After 45 min the group of men now begin to pack up there stuff and get ready to leave. While three of them go to get refills before leaving, the other two wait outside. As the lunch rush subsides the workers at in the American restaurant begin to clean their workstations. While one worker begins to clean, two other workers in the Hispanic restaurant (which was the most popular restaurant during this rush) are still serving their last customers in line. Customers still trickle in but the lunch rush is now over. 

A Touch of Thai

We enter the restaurant only barely expecting it to be open.

It is nearly nine o' clock and the lights--cylindrical frosted-glass hanging affairs--have been dimmed considerably. The webpage for the restaurant states that the place closes at ten, but everything seems ready to close now. Rows of glossy tables, looking recently polished, have sauces and napkins neatly stacked on their left sides. All of the chairs are pushed in. There are no people in sight. Fauna, however--of both the living and plastic variety--seems to be everywhere, along with colorful  paintings and posters with advertisements for Thai snacks.

Two prominently placed, carefully hedged spiraling plants attend either side of the cash register, which rests on a green marble desk decorated with a large golden vase in the shape of a Buddha. The Buddha has his head thrown back, appearing to swallow the bouquet of pink blossoms he holds in his mouth. Over the register is a large flat-screen TV playing the "Big Bang Theory" with the sound muted.

We seat ourselves, chatting. Our voices sound very loud in the otherwise quiet place.

An olive-skinned man who appears to be in his mid-thirties emerges from the kitchen. His eyes flash with surprise and irritation when he notices us, but he quickly hides it. He comes to our table unsmiling.

He speaks very quietly, his English slightly clipped. A couple of times, he stops and asks us to repeat ourselves, watching the lips of whomever is speaking carefully. The terms for the various Thai dishes we are ordering roll easily off of his tongue, but his English is strained and his expression while speaking it, uncertain.

After taking our order and forwarding our requests to the kitchen, he moves behind the counter and opens the register, counting money with quick movements, glancing up at us surreptitiously from time to time.

As we eat, a white man with a thick brown beard comes from the kitchen carrying a pen and clipboard. He, like the first man we met, is wearing jeans and a new-looking t-shirt. Unlike our host, the front of the bearded man's shirt is greasy. He seems to have come from washing dishes in the kitchen.

One of my friends makes a silly joke and the others laugh uproariously. The bearded man eyes us with thinly veiled exasperation before disappearing into the office next to the cash register.

One of my companions remarks quietly that it is only 9:30, and the restaurant closes at ten. He doesn't understand the overwhelming sense of unwelcome radiating from our host and the bearded man. I continue writing as my friends talk loudly to one another and laugh.

Our host begins to give us more pointed signs that it is time to go--the lights in the next room turn off, the Coca-Cola machines filled with beer next to the kitchen click off one by one. A third employee, an Asian man in a worn, oil-stained baseball cap, comes out of the kitchen with a plastic bag containing a take-out box. He doesn't bother to look at us, instead plopping down wearily in a seat and taking out his smartphone.

The host takes our cards for the split check and hurriedly rings up our food, returning within moments. It is now 9:45. We begin shoveling food into take-out boxes, tacitly arranging a handsome tip as an apology for showing up at what is apparently an inconveniently late time.

From behind his cash register our host stares at us without shame, waiting for us to go. When we leave, he does not return our "Good night" or "Thank you."

"Why would they be upset about earning an extra $40 tonight?" one of my friends muses once we are outside.

Thinking about the quietness of our waiter's voice, I begin to wonder if it was our boisterousness, rather than our arrival time, which irritated our hosts.

Tales Of Lunch.

All the different voices and conversations I hear as soon as I walk in astonishes me. It shouldn't though I mean since it's lunch time and Taos is always busy especially at this time 1 p.m. My friend and I scatter around all the people as we lurk for what we want for lunch today. The lines are do long though. "Do I even really want to eat here today?" I ask as I wander for a line that isn't long sand for food that sounds appetizing right now. Ahh yes, the pasta line is completely free at the moment. It superises me because, that line is normally always packed. I hurry over to the line, get my food and sit and enjoy. The table next to me there are foreigners, the language they speak is beautiful. Everyone always seems to sit with the same crowd. A young lady almost runs into a mam with soda and a salad plate in his hands. That was s close one! A professor begins to sit at the tsablr across from me, he already has a full entire plate of soup, crackers, tea and pie for dessert. As I leave, the same lunch lady says farewell to us all.

Taos Times

Each table adheres to a different group of friends or an single individual. I’ve noticed that different ethnicities or at least people with similar features sit together here; a group of African American girls giggling in a booth, a table of Brazilian guys speaking loudly in Portuguese ahead of me, and a couple of gossiping blonde girls sitting at the table next to me. Furthermore, the individuals sitting alone look similar enough to where they could sit at a table together and it would appear as though they sought one another out. 

Directly in front of me, a boy in a Grey wife beater and a laptop bag sits alone and eats a burrito and rice. He’s the only person who is sitting alone and not using a cellphone, something that is surprisingly rare to see.

The Brazilian table just bursted into laughter. They speak louder than the other tables, probably because they know nobody can understand them and don't have to censor themselves. They have finished their meals, which appeared to also be burritos, and are preparing to leave. 

Three male students just sat down with their food. They only have coffee and deserts, no actual meal. Two of them are wearing almost identical striped shirts.

Another female student is also sitting alone. She has glasses and her hair isn’t combed, her backpack is laid flat beside her. She’s shoveling heaping bites of pasta into her mouth and scrolling on her phone, probably either on Twitter or Instagram.

The table with the African American girls just burst into laughter. One of the girls, with a pink shirt, stood up on her chair and danced. Almost all of the other students sitting in the area turned around to look, but only briefly as to not stare. None of the girls seem to notice nor care.

Grey finished his the remainder of his meal and sat for a few more minutes watching his surroundings. He seems just as amused as I am with the girl dancing. He just grabbed his laptop bag and left, possibly off to class.

Earlier, one of the workers here found a bag on the floor and asked around to see if it belonged to someone. Nobody claimed it then, but a man with a green shirt just came in looking for it. He asked me if I had seen it and I told him that a worker took it earlier and described what she looked like. He said he recognized her and thanked me, and then stormed off to find her and his bag.

The girl with the glasses who was on her phone earlier just stood up to leave. Her backpack is stuffed full and she had to waddle to carry it out due to its weight.

Meanwhile, workers here have been wiping down tables left and right. They move incredibly quick, cleaning the table within seconds of the students leaving.

A guy in a blue jumpsuit standing in front of my table just got two girls phone numbers and said, “Tomorrow night, it’s going down.” Since tomorrow is Saturday, I assume they are planning to go to a party. Each person walked their separate ways after the exchange. Blue Jumpsuit just came back with a plate full of dessert, he sat in a booth with other guys also wearing the same blue jumpsuit. It looks like their badges say “Coast Guard”. 

Traffic has slowed down significantly and all of the initial groups have left. I suppose my time here is over for now as well. Until next time.

The Happy Hour Chronicles: Hour One, Attack of the......something ominous

Dr. Alan Coholic here, but please just call me Al.  For the next twelve weeks I will be reporting from a bar/restaurant that always seems to have quite the mix of patrons.  So let's get started.

First off I was interested in how the weather may have an effect on the other patrons at this establishment since the the patio, where I was sitting, is a popular place for the patrons to enjoy.  I was interested to see if the rain we had in the morning and the afternoon overcast would discourage any of the patrons.  But that never seemed the case. They time of my visit was roughly 1 pm.

When I first arrived there were there tables occupied with two people each.  Table one sat two women. The first woman was probably in her mid thirties in business attire,Jessica we will call her, and the second woman was in her mid twenties and dressed casual, let's call her Jackie.  They both had already finished their meals it appeared and were having a quiet conversation.  Jessica was drinking iced tea and Sara was having water.  Though their conversation was subdue they were both very relaxed and had smiles on their faces. I am going to assume they were just friends or maybe coworkers whether than relatives because the split the check when it came time to pay.

The next table that was already sitting when I arrived appeared to be a middle aged couple. Husband and wife I presume.  The husband, Jim, was dressed more casually than his wife, Jennifer.  They both were having lunch and drinking iced tea. Since their proximity was close to me I overheard Jim mention that he preferred lime to lemon in his tea.  I don't feel like that is indicative of anything, but I felt like it was something to take note of.  After they finish their meal they continue their quiet conversation while finishing their tea.  But after a few minutes of conversation Jennifer starts browsing her phone, Jim then pulls out his own phone and starts to brows as well.  Jim paid their tab and they left together.

The third table sat two middle aged men, both in their late forties I presume and both dressed casually.  Both men were drinking glasses of beer. There seemed to be very little conversation at their table, but they seemed very relaxed none the less. For the sake of my notes I will call them Jack, James. I will get back to these two a little bit later in my notes.

While is was enjoying my own beer and taking notes a couple in about their thirties sat down. The man Jimmy, was in casual attire. The woman, Julia, was in more of a business casual outfit.  Both ordered a round of beer while they looked over the menu.  They were quiet but were very relaxed and smiled often.

Two women, a mother and daughter I ascertained, and a man, the younger woman's boyfriend, got a table not far from me. They were all dressed casual.  The mother, Joy, ordered a glass of white wine, the daughter, Jordan, and the boyfriend, Jose, ordered a half blue moon half cider drink.  I took a personal note of my own to try that later, for science of course.  All three of them were very animated and their conversation was easily heard by everyone on the patio.  Anytime the conversation did slow down they would turn to their phones.  Finding something on a social media site would give them another topic to converse about.

Going back to the table with the two middle aged men,Jack and James, a young woman in her mid twenties, Jasmine, dressed business casual seemed to know James from somewhere.  She came up to their table and had an animated conversation while she appeared to be waiting for someone else.  And as I had suspected, after five minutes or so a man in his mid twenties, Jorge, came into the conversation and then he and Jasmine found their own table and ordered a round of beer.

My time was drawing to an end so as I was waiting for my own tab I jotted down a few consistences I had noted from my visit.

• Beer was the predominate drink.  Everyone that showed up after about 1:15 or so that sat down ordered a beer with the exception of Joy who ordered a white wine.  I am not sure if this was due more to happy hour, or because it was a Friday afternoon.
• Everyone seemed very relaxed and in a general good mood.  Again this can probably be contributed to it being Friday and happy hour.
• Phones weren't as predominate as I had suspected that they might be.  While each table pulled out a phone at least once, they were not the main focus of any of the patrons.

That's all I have this week folks, check back next time and see what I have for ya!

-Al 

Plastic Bottles

Have you ever noticed how there is usually trash floating in the water in public places?

I couldn't tell you why, maybe it's just a natural human reaction to want to throw things into water just how pennies are always at the bottom of a fountain. I never see anyone throw their plastic bottle into the water, yet they are there, floating along with other trash and grime from the bottom.

People like to sit by the water, again, natural human instinct to be attracted to water, probably why I even picked to sit here. I see a few people eating, some with a friend with their bags laid next to them. A girl even has an umbrella due to the fact it is always beaming sun down here, although today there are clouds, and I even woke up to see puddles of water leftover from the rain last night. There is even a cool breeze, very unusual for the hot desert, although it's been raining more often than I expected it to. Maybe it was force of habit to have the umbrella.

The grass is somewhat wet, and there are blank, empty patches just of dirt scattered around this area, especially when you get closer to the water, probably because people stand and play around the edge. I'm not sure if there are turtles or fish happily living in the water. If so, I would be that person to run up and get close to see. I'm sure other people do too.

I feel like there would be more people to watch if I had picked a better time of day, or even better day of the week. People usually leave on Fridays; Heck I'm even leaving to Albuquerque to pick up some art supplies I can't for my class here.  I wonder what would be the best time to come here. I'm not sure if a lot of people do come here. Although that could be a reason to relax here, I'm not big on crowded areas either, such as Corbert right around noon. Have you been to that area with Taco Bell and stuff around that time? It's nuts. I have a heart attack even though I really want my parfait. That would be a great place to watch people but I just can't handle it. Maybe if I'm really brave and this area ends up being a floozy without much traffic.

Anyways, the woman that was eating some sort of weird chick pea spinach mush out of a mason jar with a spoon is starting to get up. I figured shes finished her snack-thing. Or break in better terms.  She dusts any dirt particles off her brown dress, grabs her pink backpack, puts on her hat, and starts marching away. The land is at a bit of an incline, that's why I say marching.

There is now a gentleman with headphones on sitting on one of the red benches under a tree. He just kind of flips through his phone trying to go unnoticed. I do that too, although there's nothing wrong with just chilling by the water; it's nice (just a little grimy but whatever).

The two sitting next to each other with their bags are still here. They were here before I got here as well as the woman with the pink back pack and spinach mush.  I hope she doesn't read this and figure out it's her, I'm sure whatever you were eating was healthy and fantastic, it just had a very odd aesthetic.

The two with their bags next to each other, girl and boy, are just talking to each other. it doesn't appear to be romantic, they just seem to be friends, laughing and sharing stories. It's pretty normal out here. Everyone tries to pick a spot out of the sun either under a tree or where a cloud shields the light out. I'm thinking of buying maybe a beach towel or something to sit on while I'm out here instead of sitting on the grass where you get that weird condensation feeling where you've been sitting. Hopefully there will be some more traffic next time, or those LARPers (I believe) I saw near here practicing sword fighting.

-QM

Insideout With a Book

With the wonderful smell of incense and coffee while soothing music plays over the intercom people keeping pouring in. It is two in the afternoon on a Friday and clouds fill the sky with a nice breeze cooling the air. In side there is women gossiping and drinking various kinds of tea. Outside where I sit is nice and calm with birds also spectating the customers that sit on the patio.

The majority of the customers outside are older men caring on conversations while having some coffee and a good laugh. She stands out being the exception of the little old women sitting alone on the patio.

 As she sits with her book in one hand and a fork in the other she is enjoying the world of her book and the taste of the sandwich. She does not have much to say as she is constantly getting up and going inside, only to come out with something small every time.

She is peaceful as she shares her bread crumbs with the small observant birds. She looks up occasionally, seeming to be after every other page, at the elderly man sitting alone at the table across from her. They strike eye contact once and she puts her glasses down and goes back inside. This time she returns to her book and meal with a refill on her coffee in her green cup.

Engulfed in her book I believe the birds have received more of the sandwich than she has. She then realizes the food is gone and her cup is still half full.  She puts her glasses back in their case and goes inside once more this time to put her plate away. While I watched her put her things into her bag and sit to enjoy the rest of her coffee I envied her.  To watch her be in her own world with the book taking her there, with nothing more than a cup of coffee and a good meal she was in heaven.

She stayed at her table to finish her beverage and once it was gone she grabbed her bag took the cup inside and walked to her car with her book in her hand and a warming smile on her face.  Her day being as simple as it was had been a success.

A Bite to Eat

It’s a busy day at the food court.  The air is hot and stuffy as people frantically order their food and run off to their next destination.  Everybody is having their own conversations creating loud chatter in the room.  Most people appear to be young, and are most likely students.  Some gather here for hanging out with friends for a quick lunch while others form groups to work on assignments together.  Some keep to themselves and prefer to be left alone while they dine and study.

One young lady, Miss Bored, appears to be waiting for someone.  Her movements seem to imply she is becoming impatient.  She is short in height but fairly thin.  She begins tapping her foot and flipping her hair.  Every two minutes or so, she peeks at her phone then puts it back on the table.  She rests her head on her arms for a while, then looks up and begins to stare at the entrance doors as if each minute that passes is a complete drag.  She continues this behavior for about fifteen minutes until her patience has run out, at which point she got up and quickly walked away.

           
A table near me begins to fill up.  Three boys, John, Tomas and Jared sit down together.  All three boys are wearing similar clothes: dark colored t-shirts and some jeans.  Two of the boys are wearing glasses and seem to be a little on the nerdy side.  They talk quietly for a while until a tall female briefly visits with them.  The girl is leaning over Jared and he talks to her about some assignment then she leaves.  John and Jared talk to one another while Tomas fiddles with his phone for a while.  Eventually the conversation that the two boys are having sparks the interest of Tomas and they begin talking about girls and video games.

            
Ms. Outspoken begins telling a story about her and her boyfriend in a loud manner.  She seems to be very excited about this particular topic, but quiets down at some parts in her story.  Her friends burst into laughter for the whole room to hear.  I’m not sure that this was the most appropriate place for this particular story.  Perhaps somewhere that was not as public would have been more suitable for her story.  She doesn’t notice the occasional glances going her way as her voice becomes louder when she gets excited about her story.  People then turn away and continue on their own accord.

A worker comes in to clean the tables that people have scurried from.  She stops to talk to Ms. Outspoken and her friends.  The girls’ volume level begins to pick up again as Ms. Outspoken repeats a shortened version of her story.  They are talking informally as two very good friends would.  The worker finds more tables to clean so she says a quick goodbye and walks away to her duties.  Her facial expressions make it seem as if she is in an upset mood, but nonetheless, she continues doing her job.  Ms. Outspoken and her friends get up to leave.  They leave with a big smile and walk away hugging one another.

By this time, another boy had joined John’s group of friends.  They continue to talk, and the boys make fun of the fourth boy who had joined for tapping a girl’s head with his bag as he was coming through.  She got a little angry and murmured a “watch where you’re going” and went to join a friend at another table.  The fourth boy finishes his meal fairly quickly and all the boys get up to leave, still teasing the fourth boy.

A large group of girls have formed a study group.  The girls are all matching and are wearing bright colored pink shirts and work out shorts.  They all seem to snack on bread and water.  One of the girls has her laptop out and a boy who is rather short comes to join her and is helping her on her assignment.  He points at items on the screen and she nods her head in understanding.  A few of the girls get up to leave while a few more come to take their places.  They leave in pairs and walk to class together. 

A random student has come to sit across from me at my table.  I try to engage him in some conversation, but he remains quiet and just eats.  He does not talk the whole time.  While I type, he takes out his phone to pass the time by.  He finishes his meal and stays at the table for about ten more minutes before he gets up in a hurry as if he were late.  He was not very social at all.  His hair hid his face, and he was dressed in a black shirt, and some khakis. 

The food court has many options, however, most people preferred the fast food over the healthy choices presented.  They would come and go with the hustle and bustle of their late lunch hour.  Eventually the amount of students began to thin out and the smell of food was left.