books and coffee shops

Two of my favorite things in life are books and coffee shops. The more quaint, eccentric or charming a coffee shop is, the more I like it. Especially if it's not crowded and the music isn't blasting. 😉 

This is my current reading stack for August, though doubt I will finish. I usually have one non-fiction and one fiction book going at the same time. But in this case, the only book in this stack that I'm currently reading is The Invitation. The book expounds on Oriah's poem of the same name. Are you familiar with it? Here's how it starts out:

It doesn't interest me what you do for a living. I want to know what you ache for and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart's longing.

 It's a little lengthy to type out or copy and paste here, so if you'd like to read the entire poem, you can do so here.

And then, bookstores ~

I discovered a new (to me) coffee shop the other day while in a neighboring town.

 I was pleasantly surprised when I walked in to discover such a charming shop.There were several rooms, all filled with different wooden tables, mismatched chairs, and bookcases filled with tchotchkes and used books for sale.

When I first saw this room, there was a young woman reading in one of the chairs in back, and two other women sitting at the table, quietly chatting. The room you see at the back is a children's room, complete with high chairs, little tables and chairs, toys and books.

This will be a great spot in the winter to curl up in one of those leather chairs by the fireplace with a nice hot cup of coffee or tea. Not that I'm looking forward to winter, by any means! Just saying.

I didn't have much time to browse the books, nor read one myself while drinking my herbal iced tea, but I can't wait to go back one day when I have more time.

Do you have any independent coffee shops in your area that you especially love? What are you reading this month?

💓