No Hurries, No Worries

10 March 2009

I made a quick stop at Puccino’s for a cappuccino and a roll. I woke up not feeling well, but it did not get in the way of my time here. It turned out that Puccino’s was out of the raisin croissants (“croissant au raisin”) that I had the last time, and the server asked me if I could wait while they made one. One? Just for me? Indeed, I tell you the truth! After several minutes, the server brought me the most fresh and out-of-the-oven croissant I have ever feasted my eyes upon. The aroma of the butter was beyond exceptional. I feel like I’m writing for a “Dining for One” magazine because what I am about to write is how I experienced this particular croissant. First of all, a freshly made, and freshly out-of-the-oven croissant melts in your mouth because they make the layers very, very thin. They use real butter and take no short cuts. The outside of the croissant was dark brown, and crunchy and flaky. Parts of it flew apart like ashes when I peeled the roll apart. The raisins were still plump from having been in the hot oven. I wish I could convey the flavor through my writing.

Point number two with respect to my stop at Puccinos for a cappuccino and that scrumptious raisin croissant: I have noticed that people here are in no hurry to be anywhere. They take their time and enjoy their moments of respite. They talk with one another, and aren’t always on their cell phones (though there are still some cell-ites out here). If not that, they’re doing what I am doing – writing, reading, or absolutely nothing. I don’t feel like the establishment is trying to meet a quota by cycling customers out so that new people can come in and make more money for the restaurant. Instead, they leave you alone to your vices and no one interrupts in regular intervals, “Would you like…” or “Is there anything else I can get you…” or “Shall I bring your check…” In the states, I hate going to restaurants because everything is on a clock – even in the better places. The poor servers in American middle-of-the-road restaurants look so uneasy with the picture of people simply talking and enjoying each other’s company and manage to constantly interrupt the flow of the conversations with some not-so-dull hint that our time is up.

This stay is really starting to inform my ideas about transferring next year. I definitely want to be at a “pedestrian school” with that institution being within a pedestrian region where trains, busses, and walking are the primary modes of getting around. I want to be able to be healthy and not stressed out by driving. This brings me to a closer examination of the schools far north of Los Angeles, such as Stanford or Berkley, or completely eastwardly, such as Cornell, Columbia, UPenn, Smith, Boston University, or any number of colleges or universities situated in that area. I’m sure my choice of schools will prove far more tedious and difficult a task than simply listing them here and now; that is for autumn and I will not ruin my stay in Oxford by getting too bent out of shape about those prospects.