Central Perk?

No, but if you were a Friends fan back in the day and dreamed of sitting in the famous coffee spot, then Saint Joseph, Mo has something with atmosphere that can meet that longing. Even better, it’s local. It’s real and not imaginary. It is Cafe Pony Espresso.

Elsie and I had an afternoon when we were both free, so it was time for a mini adventure. We were driving around downtown St. Joe to see what was new, and although not new, neither of us had been to Pony Espresso, so we chose the cafe. It was always my dream to have a shop and apartment downtown. (I know, I also had a dream of a horse ranch. Who says I can’t have both?) I remember the glory days when I was a kid and the big deal was to “go to town”. I am really happy that a real effort to restore the wonder of downtown St. Joe is taking place.

 

Of course we ordered coffee. Honestly, I can’t remember what kind of coffee Elsie ordered, but I had a Cherry Mash something or other, in honor of St. Joe of course, and it was very good. Not as sweet as you’d imagine and it had a subtle complexity that was quite pleasing. (All the TV chefs talk about complexity so I had to throw that in).

We settled in the little library area that had a wall of books, comfy chairs and love seat, and displayed local artwork and jewelry.As we enjoyed our coffees we went page by page through a book on home decorating. Interesting color concepts and design. One book of many while soft music played.

There was seating at the tables as well in the front part of the cafe. A nice sofa was also in the front if you so preferred. That afternoon it was a little muggy, but if we had wanted the outdoor experience, tables were available for sidewalk dining. The menu isn’t just coffee and teas, they have soups and sandwiches and comfort foods. They also offer free WiFi for those of us who like to settle in and enjoy the mood of the environment as we work or do the social media thing. And yes, I warned them they were going to be an entry in my adventure blog. At least I got a smile.

I always love a place that supports and displays the work of local artists.  

It was one of those places that had a lot to look at, good coffee, and great atmosphere. So, as far as afternoons go, I’d say we had another great adventure!

Cafe Pony Espresso, 114 South 8th Street, (816) 273-0059, in Historic Downtown St. Joseph, MO

Serving Jim’s Organic Coffee, tea, soups and sandwiches, espresso drinks, comfort foods, coffee and offers free WiFi.

 

 

 

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You don’t have to travel far

Sometimes you find places in your own hometown that are treasures. In St. Joe the park system is amazing. Tree lined parkways with beautiful public parks at either end and in-between. Sometimes when you grow up with these things as part of your life you view them as the norm. It’s not until someone from another area of the U.S. comes in and makes multiple appreciative comments that you begin to see how blessed you are.

I took some time a few years back and went to the North End’s Krug Park. I spent some time taking pictures and watching people and enjoying that little bit of nature in the middle of city. As I’ve renewed my goal to visit local sites, I’ll pick another day to go to the other parks with the same intent. I think my goal this summer is to find those small things that bring big rewards. Simple pleasures in an intentional simple life.

Meanwhile, I’ll share some pictures of my time at Krug. In between the time I took these and I finally got around to this post, the lagoon was drained, cleaned and re-filled.

 

 

The geese own the park.

A view of the lagoon from parking. I couldn’t resist adding the scripture verse.

Someone was enjoying  sailing their boat while the geese totally ignored it.

The Castle. A child’s delight. Okay, an adult’s delight as well.

Beauty. Period.

There’s a couple of these “tunnels” you drive through. Tradition is you honk as you’re going through. Not sure what it is supposed to scare off, but sometimes from the “top of the hill” where most of the picnics take place, you hear a lot of honking. This was a quick shot through the windshield. The sun and a dusty windshield made for an interesting shot.

A little visit to a local park that goes back a very long time in St. Joe history. Come visit some time.

A couple hours in very hot weather

A few weeks ago Elsie had some errands to run and I went along for the ride. The temps were in the 95+ degree area with feel like temperatures anywhere from 105 to 110. A nice “cool” day for a mini road trip.

Elsie has discovered the wonderful world of quilting. I love completed quilts. I do not have the patience to quilt. Which probably isn’t exactly accurate, because I can sit for hours in front of a computer, or an easel with paint brush in hand and totally lose track of time. Reality is, if it’s something you love you are as patient as you need to be.

Philosophizing done.

Because there are some nice quilt shops in the Northwest Missouri area, I just thought I’d share a couple pictures of the shops we visited. Check them out if you get a chance.

Top Stitch Country is out by Helena, MO. Check out the website: https://topstitchquiltshop.com

 

Another place we visited is Glenda’s Sewing Cupboard also a rural shop and worth the little drive to check it out. Checkout the Facebook page. www.facebook.com/GlendasSewingCupboard

 

Of course there wasn’t time to visit every shop in the area. We did a quick visit to one in St. Joseph, Around the Frame, 2301 Frederick Ave #1, St Joseph, MO 64506.

So, not exactly a “trip” but a nice diversion for a hot afternoon.

 

Has it been a year?

Well not quite. It was toward the end of September 2015 that Elsie and I took a long weekend and went to the Lake of Ozarks in Missouri. She had meetings. I had being lazy to focus on. That and writing. Which I did do some writing, but mostly I sat on the deck of our room and watched the world go by in the parking lot below and on the lake.

The first night there was a meet and greet we attended for a little while. She did more meeting and greeting. I stood on the deck and watched the boats.  After we were greeted out, we went down to the pool area. Not too many people were around

so we sat and relaxed and sometimes watched the boats coming in as it got dark. 

We had a nice room at Camden on the Lake.

Two comfy beds. A desk and love seat. A nice kitchenette and equally nice bathroom. We had cable and free WiFi and she did meetings and I wrote and lazed. This view is from a favorite spot – my bed. You can see the corner of Elsie’s bed bottom left.

Saturday evening we drove around, getting sort of lost. It was dark so I didn’t take pictures. I was too busy trying to read road signs and the phone map. Eventually we got back to the hotel to relax on the beds. Did I say we each had comfy beds?

Sunday morning we watched live church services on the laptop before we got around to checking out. We took a different route back through some beautiful country side and I neglected to use the camera. So I fired myself for the rest of the weekend as photographer. Sunday evening we arrived back at  St. Joe.

Sometimes just getting away for a couple days is good therapy.