Movement as theme.
Perhaps I've ignored long enough all the LJ "nudges" that've been flopping into my inbox over the last few months. Perhaps I haven't ignored them and just haven't had time to update. Perhaps I've had time, but not time enough for the whole story. Perhaps... Perhaps... Perhaps...
I'll try to be succinct. Something I've never been known to be. Silent or loquacious, with little in between. See, I'm wandering already.
Item 1: Family
The children grow and change. Xander recently celebrated her fourth birthday. Cadence is five months old now and changes daily. I adore being a father and try to cherish and memorize each moment with my baby as it goes by so fast and the time when she needs me so, relies on me to carry her about and feed her and settle all her complaints big and small will be gone faster than one would think. Someday she'll get used to it all and her face won't light up each time I walk into the room. Being a parent is difficult and rewarding. This is a sensible statement that is never fully understood until you are. It's a complete change in perspective, attitude, and priorities.
We are moving tomorrow and are extremely excited by it all. Our new house is much larger and should bring improvements in several areas of our daily life. After deciding on the move it suddenly became quite clear how we've outgrown our current space, how we are rarely more than a few feet from each other and could probably use a bit more space. Soon we will have this. 3 Bedrooms, 2 Bathrooms, Garage, Laundry, Storage, Office, Kitchen, Dining, large living room. The bedrooms are small, but the living spaces are big big big. I myself am extremely excited about having a separate room for my office that is also large enough for not just my desk and computer equipment, but to double as a studio. Finally my music equipment, art supplies, and miscellaneous creative paraphernalia comes out of storage and will be readily accessible. Not to have to dig out from some closet for a project, but there for instantaneous inspirations. Now all I'll need is time.
Which brings me to...
Item 2: Work
We are now entering the last days of The Depot House Espresso Cafe. Coming up close on 4 years since its conception and birth, three years and nine months since the doors open. Soon it will be little more than a memory...
But really, it's not nearly so dramatic as all that. Or perhaps more so. We're not going out of business, not selling the business, not leaving town. None of that. We're "simply" moving the business to a new location, making some changes, etc etc. We're only moving about two blocks, but the move will probably make quite a bit of difference for the business. While our current location is one block off each of the two main streets that come into town, that one block seems to hinder people in noticing our existence. After nearly 4 years, there are still people who are just finding us. Our new location will be smack dab on the main street, and the traffic that passes by each day will be about 100 times what passes in front of our current location. We will also be relocating to where the main cluster of retail shops are in town. When we opened up our current location, we were surrounded by retail spaces. Over the last couple years however, nearly all have become office spaces, so we've lost a lot of the foot traffic of people shopping. Despite being only 2 blocks from most of the retail shops, people treat those 2 blocks as if they were miles. The new shop will be slightly larger, though most of the space will go to increasing kitchen space, so seating area will be similar, the layout is totally different, the construction of the building is totally different, and thus, the look and feel will be totally different.
I've spent the last month or so, aside from keeping the current shop running, and aside from all the paperwork and red tape involved in moving the business, I've designed and redesigned floor plans, counter layouts, workstation arrangements, retail display locations and on and on. I've been buried in floor plans, paint samples, and little chips of countertop material. But, things are moving along, renovations have begun on the new location. Walls have moved, doorways have opened up higher and wider, new wood floors are in, plumbing, wiring, etc are in the works. Soon enough things will kick into high gear and we'll have to figure out how to move existing fixtures from this location to that one and to try and continue to serve coffee the whole time. Ha! That should be something.
Why I say this is the last days of the Depot House Espresso Cafe, when in essence the business is just moving is that the name of this shop has been attached to the building. Simply, this building is the Depot House. Historical building it is, that's what they call it. So, we won't be taking the name with us. Personally, I've been bored with it anyhow, and found that people have certain odd assumptions and misunderstandings of the name. So I'm happy to have an excuse to change it.
Now, the building we are moving into is also a historical building. It is called "The Payne House". Now, while that could be amusing to work with, I've decided not to bother and to go off in an entirely different direction.
And so. In the near future, the Wind-Up Bird Coffee & Tea House shall be born. It is quite exciting. Quite a lot of work, but there's the potential there to create something great and use all the experience I've gained to kick business into high gear. We shall see.
And so that there is the basic summary of the current chaos of my little world. It only took me a week to write this entry, not bad. And now, I've got to get back to work.
the naming of things:: andrew bird:: andrew bird and the mysterious production of eggs
I'll try to be succinct. Something I've never been known to be. Silent or loquacious, with little in between. See, I'm wandering already.
Item 1: Family
The children grow and change. Xander recently celebrated her fourth birthday. Cadence is five months old now and changes daily. I adore being a father and try to cherish and memorize each moment with my baby as it goes by so fast and the time when she needs me so, relies on me to carry her about and feed her and settle all her complaints big and small will be gone faster than one would think. Someday she'll get used to it all and her face won't light up each time I walk into the room. Being a parent is difficult and rewarding. This is a sensible statement that is never fully understood until you are. It's a complete change in perspective, attitude, and priorities.
We are moving tomorrow and are extremely excited by it all. Our new house is much larger and should bring improvements in several areas of our daily life. After deciding on the move it suddenly became quite clear how we've outgrown our current space, how we are rarely more than a few feet from each other and could probably use a bit more space. Soon we will have this. 3 Bedrooms, 2 Bathrooms, Garage, Laundry, Storage, Office, Kitchen, Dining, large living room. The bedrooms are small, but the living spaces are big big big. I myself am extremely excited about having a separate room for my office that is also large enough for not just my desk and computer equipment, but to double as a studio. Finally my music equipment, art supplies, and miscellaneous creative paraphernalia comes out of storage and will be readily accessible. Not to have to dig out from some closet for a project, but there for instantaneous inspirations. Now all I'll need is time.
Which brings me to...
Item 2: Work
We are now entering the last days of The Depot House Espresso Cafe. Coming up close on 4 years since its conception and birth, three years and nine months since the doors open. Soon it will be little more than a memory...
But really, it's not nearly so dramatic as all that. Or perhaps more so. We're not going out of business, not selling the business, not leaving town. None of that. We're "simply" moving the business to a new location, making some changes, etc etc. We're only moving about two blocks, but the move will probably make quite a bit of difference for the business. While our current location is one block off each of the two main streets that come into town, that one block seems to hinder people in noticing our existence. After nearly 4 years, there are still people who are just finding us. Our new location will be smack dab on the main street, and the traffic that passes by each day will be about 100 times what passes in front of our current location. We will also be relocating to where the main cluster of retail shops are in town. When we opened up our current location, we were surrounded by retail spaces. Over the last couple years however, nearly all have become office spaces, so we've lost a lot of the foot traffic of people shopping. Despite being only 2 blocks from most of the retail shops, people treat those 2 blocks as if they were miles. The new shop will be slightly larger, though most of the space will go to increasing kitchen space, so seating area will be similar, the layout is totally different, the construction of the building is totally different, and thus, the look and feel will be totally different.
I've spent the last month or so, aside from keeping the current shop running, and aside from all the paperwork and red tape involved in moving the business, I've designed and redesigned floor plans, counter layouts, workstation arrangements, retail display locations and on and on. I've been buried in floor plans, paint samples, and little chips of countertop material. But, things are moving along, renovations have begun on the new location. Walls have moved, doorways have opened up higher and wider, new wood floors are in, plumbing, wiring, etc are in the works. Soon enough things will kick into high gear and we'll have to figure out how to move existing fixtures from this location to that one and to try and continue to serve coffee the whole time. Ha! That should be something.
Why I say this is the last days of the Depot House Espresso Cafe, when in essence the business is just moving is that the name of this shop has been attached to the building. Simply, this building is the Depot House. Historical building it is, that's what they call it. So, we won't be taking the name with us. Personally, I've been bored with it anyhow, and found that people have certain odd assumptions and misunderstandings of the name. So I'm happy to have an excuse to change it.
Now, the building we are moving into is also a historical building. It is called "The Payne House". Now, while that could be amusing to work with, I've decided not to bother and to go off in an entirely different direction.
And so. In the near future, the Wind-Up Bird Coffee & Tea House shall be born. It is quite exciting. Quite a lot of work, but there's the potential there to create something great and use all the experience I've gained to kick business into high gear. We shall see.
And so that there is the basic summary of the current chaos of my little world. It only took me a week to write this entry, not bad. And now, I've got to get back to work.
the naming of things:: andrew bird:: andrew bird and the mysterious production of eggs