coffeeneuring 2013 edition # 1: grindhouse coffee

Today, feeling stressed about a situation that will take some time to work itself out, I was at loose ends. Sweetie urged me to go for a long bicycle ride. It was a beautiful day, nearly 70 degrees and sunny. The trees were beginning to turn from green to gold, and there was a bright blue, cloudless sky. So I puttered on my bike of choice for a few minutes and then took off.

Since today was also a day off, I decided to visit the first stop on my Coffeeneuring Challenge:
Grindhouse Coffee on N. Rosa Parks.

 

Grindhouse was built a couple of years ago in what is essentially a large, funky shed with corrugated tin and recycled house parts (windows, doors, etc). I ordered a house coffee, which was fine but not breathtakingly awesome; and rode on to continue a loop around Northeast and North Portland.

I made a decent-sized loop, stopping in at North Portland Bikeworks (where I was pleasantly surprised to find some former bike industry colleagues and other bike buddies working there). Then I moved on, enjoying a loop through Overlook and back around along Killingsworth. I rode up to Killingsworth and Williams Avenue, where I discovered that Cascade Cycles was no more. The store was empty and it looked like it was being remodeled. I'd visited the shop a few months back and saw a half-empty store, a business on the way down.  Sad.


I continued on, looping around and back towards the house. It was a gorgeous day, and I enjoyed the feel of the sun on my back, and a slight breeze that kept me from overheating if I pedaled more briskly.

Finally, I turned onto the long diagonal street that would roll downhill and spit me out near my house. And there was my favorite tree on he block, a tree I think of as the harbinger tree because it turns the brightest, most amazing colors every fall.

 

Total distance: 9.4 miles.