Urspo goes to Panera

Urs Truly has some time on his hands. Work in MESA ended at five and the the ballet starts at eight.* It is too long a drive to go home only to turn around and go right out to drive to the show. I have a few hours to kill here. I thought of going to the DBG early and strolling about the place but I’m dressed for work and it would be rawther hot. Someone suggested I stop at Panera and sit a spell. For thems unfamiliar with the place, it is a soup and sandwich shop somewhat geared to portion control and more healthy menu items. They give you free cups for water and once served there is no pressure to scram. It should be good for ninety minutes.

When eating alone I often feel like Margaret Mead among the Bantus observing primal rituals and behaviors. No one pays any attention when you eat by yourself and it’s funny how people think you cannot hear them. I am overhearing two conversations on either side of my booth: a set of men and a set of woman. Both pairs sound to be students in their 20s. The men are boring; they are talking about a business project and when they aren’t it is sports. The women sound to be discussing a recent break up and whether or not it was her fault and the other is during her darnedest to convince the jilted one it wasn’t her fault because he was a ‘narcissist’. The jilted one doesn’t sound consoled nor convinced; she hints despite he took off she ought to text him. I want to turn around and tell the ninny not to but that would be tactless.

As I gaze across the restaurant nearly all the patrons look to be students well over four week and foreign They are speaking Japanese. They all have laptops and speak over or around them as if they are all playing ‘Battleship”. There is a table of a mixed couple and another one of a single man; all three are silent and engrossed in their cellphones. When I got up to fetch a fork I noticed the two young men sitting in the next booth discussing business are wearing headphones while they are talking to each other. Could it be their conversation is being done while listening to music? I didn’t get a glance at the jilted one and her advisor but I hope they aren’t on phones during this heart to heart.

At least it’s a quiet place. The Japanese speaking group isn’t a distraction as I don’t know Japanese. Only Girlfriend is nuisance as a) I can hear here and b) she keeps repeating the problem.

I have another hour to kill so not to be a hypocrite (I am on my laptop too) I will soon turn this off and pull out a book and read som. I may order something else not that I am hungry but to justify my being here. I could do some French lessons. Today I am learning body parts, the process is making me giggles for it resembles the language lesson scene from Shakespeare’s ‘Henry V’ but the other way around viz. what is the French word for hand, the fingers, the arm, the chin etc.

Panera has a decent tuna salad sandwich. Just don’t eat and type at the same time.

*The dears are performing out of doors at The Desert Botanical Gardens. This is normally quite pleasant provided it is not too hot. It is 33C which isn’t too bad by Arizona standards. All the same the patrons sit with chilled drinks and imperial tid-bits while the dancers run around in the heat. Hopefully the costumes are not too heavy. Bare chests and tights are recommended.