Friday, June 13, 2008

Beer, Wine and Books

I've stumbled upon a gem tonight. It's hidden in brick along Post Alley, a block down from The Pink Door. If I hadn't been looking hard enough, I wouldn't have seen it. The facade is all windows, but brick columns and planter boxes hide the door from view. Right now I feel like I'm in Ireland. I am writing on top of an old wooden door and sitting on a wine barrel. Book shelves stretch from floor to ceiling, a Western saddle is a wall ornament, and an assortment of low-key people sit at the bar or in red letter chairs, chatting. There are only about 7 people in this entire place, so I have this entire wooden door table to myself. Almost everything in here is red and white, the colors of the British flag.

I'm happy to find quiet spots like this, where I can drink a glass of red wine alone and just think, and write. Sometimes I get lost in the hustle and bustle of crazy Seattle. David is on the Bremerton ferry, and I will be meeting him soon, but I had some time to kill, so I wandered, and found a place that will actually permit me to have thoughts, a rare thing in my frantic life of deadlines and news stories.

For me, its important to have solitude. It's the time when I really get to know myself, and feel comfortable with myself as company and a friend. I don't have to write this blog post for 7pm, or for thousands of ears. I can just let things flow, without worrying about quotes and short sentences. Right now, the thoughts are a little stagnant, but this I know for sure: I want to be a writer. All I need is a topic and a little bit of time.

2 comments:

Dan-Eric Slocum said...

Passion. You've just summed up so passionately the JOY of writing. There's a delightful shift for those of us in the world of journalism when we have "freedom of time" and "space" to make our points, whether it's non-fiction, fiction or poetry-- it's personal-- and it's just for ourselves and it's such therapy! Well said in this post, Kristen.

Contact Travis said...

I love reading your writing whether its your scripts at work or your posts here...I look forward to your writing future!