Americans; Coffee houses

D_Tim McGnaw

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That's exactly why I didn't respond to the the thread when I saw it a couple hours ago. If someone specifically asks for an American perspective, I shut up, even though I have lived there.

You could call us North Americans. I wasn't going to answer b/c American means the U.S. to me :)

And yes, I like coffee shops & diners. Love weekly diner breakfasts & coffee. I do coffee at least once or twice a week with friends.



See the reason I didn't include Canadians in the OP was mainly because it's always seemed kinda at odds with the lifestyle many Americans lead (the long hours, sometimes multiple jobs) that they could spend a lot of time in the coffee house.

I would have thought considering how differently life is lead in Canada that having free time to just hangout in your local coffee house would be much less difficult to achieve. Which isn't to say Canadians don't work hard or anything. :wink:
 

LaFemme

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See the reason I didn't include Canadians in the OP was mainly because it's always seemed kinda at odds with the lifestyle many Americans lead (the long hours, sometimes multiple jobs) that they could spend a lot of time in the coffee house.

I would have thought considering how differently life is lead in Canada that having free time to just hangout in your local coffee house would be much less difficult to achieve. Which isn't to say Canadians don't work hard or anything. :wink:

Hey! I work my ass off! What with taking care of the dogs and the dog sled; making the igloos, ice fishing and buffalo hunting.....who couldn't use a good coffee at the local diner? :biggrin1:
 

D_Tim McGnaw

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Hey! I work my ass off! What with taking care of the dogs and the dog sled; making the igloos, ice fishing and buffalo hunting.....who couldn't use a good coffee at the local diner? :biggrin1:



IKR? And you have to squeeze in Hockey practice, Beaver trapping, cod fishing and Yankie-baiting, it's a ceaseless round for ya :biggrin1:
 

LaFemme

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IKR? And you have to squeeze in Hockey practice, Beaver trapping, cod fishing and Yankie-baiting, it's a ceaseless round for ya :biggrin1:

It's almost like you live here! I have my own beaver, so that's ok - but protecting my beaver is almost full-time! I swear, if it wasn't for the coffee shops & diners, I wouldn't wait for old age to set myself off on an ice floe! :wink:
 

mephistopheles

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Diners and coffee houses have always been a big part of the sub cultures in Joplin and the surrounding areas.

All coffee houses, especially 24 hour shops, are constantly filled with young people. It 's mostly punks and goths and people you might consider social outcasts(even if they aren't or you don't really think they are)

I used to go to this one shop every night from mightnight to four. I met up with my band, we would eat and talk about music, write lyrics, etc. And you could always hear someone reading poetry. Always a new friend to be made too.

I am not a fan of coffee though. In fact I hate coffee, I am already hyperactive as hell. It makes me crazy.

I used to go so often I made friends with people there, and our friendships were strictly at that coffee joint. And these friendships have lasted years and years. And there used to be coffee bars that would let me play my acoustic set every now and again, it was awesome but like most great things it had to come to an end.
 

nudeyorker

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This thread reminded me of something... Drive In Restaurants... I don't think they exist anymore. Dolores Drive In on Wilshire Blvd. and La Cienega was the after school hangout when I was a teenager The restaurant was a hit with its carhops, Suzie Q’s and JJ Burgers (What memories) My brother and I kept our after school visits a secret because my mother thought that the "Fast" group of kids from Beverly Hills High hung out there....
 

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D_Tim McGnaw

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This thread reminded me of something... Drive In Restaurants... I don't think they exist anymore. Dolores Drive In on Wilshire Blvd. and La Cienega was the after school hangout when I was a teenager The restaurant was a hit with its carhops, Suzie Q’s and JJ Burgers (What memories) My brother and I kept our after school visits a secret because my mother thought that the "Fast" group of kids from Beverly Hills High hung out there....



Oh my Nudey, sneaking out to run with the fast set! You rebel without a cause you :biggrin1:
 

lafever

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Or Diners too I suppose.

They seem to play such a huge part of American culture, and coffee houses and diners play a very big part of the TV and Movie representation of American life.

But my experience of Americans is that they work long hours and have fairly limited free time, so my question is how much time do Americans really spend or how often to they visit the coffee house?
As a yank let me throw my two cents worth, first of all americans are genually upidy Urban Dictionary: Upidy .
If they don't have the nerve to be upidy then the next best thing is to watch others be upidy, it's like watching football, it passes the time and every now and then everyone gets all excited.

Also, you've got americans all wrong, we're experts at fucking off, we can turn getting a cup of coffee into an several hour event.
If an american can work and be at a coffee shop at the same time he'll do it just so others can envy him as other patrons come and go.

There's actually an art to looking like you're important while casually hanging out at the coffee shop, I blame this on old t.v. sitcoms like Friends.

Personally I prefer freeze dried coffe as it's just as fresh as the day it was frozen and it takes about 1 1/2 min. to make in my microwave.
Having a family at home makes it a no brainer for me, I'd just as soon stay at the house and save the money.
 

bigbull29

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Even though we are the "United" States with many things unchanging throughout, foreignors easily forget that are regional/state-to-state differences that extend to laws, food, architecture, and culture. That is one fact that makes my country so amazing (that is in addition to the great diversity in climates, landscapes, etc.)

Americans like coffee shops and diners in every corner of the country.
 
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nudeyorker

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Even though we are the "United" States with many things unchanging throughout, foreignors easily forget that are regional/state differences that extend to food, architecture, laws and culture.

I often point that out to people from Australia and Japan who visit Hawaii and think they have visited the United States and experienced US customs and lifestyle and have never been to the mainland. :rolleyes:
 

bigbull29

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You're right, nudeyorker! I spent a lot of time in Georgia, and when you compare it to the Northeast (Pennsylvania, for example), there are differences you don't even realize until you visit both places enough times (not just accents lol). They eat different foods and have a slightly different attitude (hard to pinpoint it all) with different state vehicle inspection laws...lol

You will also often hear people say how difference New Orleans and surrounding areas "feel" compared to other parts of the country.

The US is a vast place and just cannot be lumped together while ignoring the different "shades" of the country.

(West Virginia doesn't even have the death penalty. Go figure!)
 
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D_Hey Sailor

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I am not trying to be a negative nitpick, but I fail to see how that's different from most any other country :confused:

(maybe not so much with the laws, but just customary things)
 

D_Hey Sailor

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OK, I just thought it odd since it was posed as a defining feature, yet is shared by nearly all "foreign" locales.

Didn't know if there was more to it than that.
 

nudeyorker

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OK, I just thought it odd since it was posed as a defining feature, yet is shared by nearly all "foreign" locales.

Didn't know if there was more to it than that.

I think it's a universal distinction of large countries. I've been around the world a few time and then some and I always learn something new whenever I travel. One of my regrets is I have not spent as much time as I would have liked in Canada (Maybe I can address this soon) but between visiting Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal each was very distinct. I can say the same for almost every city or town in every other large country I have visited and sometimes even the smaller countries... Okinawa is as different from Tokyo as night and day.
 
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D_Kitten_Kaboodle

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I work from home and time is flexible. Coffee houses are great for small meetings. Whether for personal or business purposes. Even when working, I would schedule meetings at coffee houses around town. Something about the feel of a coffee house that relaxes people and helps them to open up a bit. Works great for getting managers together for a brief moment. No you can't do a lot of planning, but you can get a bit of relationship building taken care of ... and you'd be surprised how much business you can get done in a coffee shop (or diner for that matter.)

Diners? Oh so much easier to pop into a diner and let them do the cooking after a long day at the office. But they are also great for casual personal or business meetings. One thing about Americans...we love our food and we like to plan things around food.

Not sure but I would imagine some countries actually work harder than the average American. The average work week is 40 hours, which leaves plenty of time for extracurricular. Granted there are those workaholics or jobs tht require much more input, but generally speaking, we Americans will find time to do what we love to do.
 

helgaleena

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I am not trying to be a negative nitpick, but I fail to see how that's different from most any other country :confused:

(maybe not so much with the laws, but just customary things)

It's like most countries actually. The price of a cup of coffee keeps a person civilized and not a bum. I can't afford to do it that often, but it's something to get dressed for.