the hof.

Yesterday on her day off, Colie and I found the most amazing coffee shop a couple of blocks from our house. It's a german place-- with a name I cna't pronounce or remember-- something like, Feffenheisenbauershniphen Hof. (Okay, so I made that up, but it's kinda close to that). We are calling it the hof. The barista there, Amil, is probably my new favorite person. Yesterday we had a long conversation about literature. I collect books, Amil passes them on. He said some books belong to the world and should be shared; left somewhere for a stranger to find. I thought that was a cool concept. We both agreed Siddhartha is one of those books.
At the hof, they have bookshelves full of amazing poetry, and Colie and I sat and enjoyed the artwork and the poetry for a good couple of hours while talking to Amil. She was admiring all of the collages. We have been talking for weeks about getting some cool artwork to go over our couch, so we came home that afternoon and made our own collages. I pulled out all of my art supplies and we've been working on them two days so far, in between living life. Mine is almost halfway done. They are cool because each one describes us... and we are so different, you can tell just by looking at them.

Lately, I've been reading Of Human Bondage. I don't have a ton of time, but when I get some here and there, this book has been amazing. It really gets me to think about human relationships. It goes through different situations in relationships that cause people pain. The main character is so honest and raw with his emotions that you can't NOT relate to him. For example, in one part of the book, it follows an awkward teenage friendship from the beginning all the way through to their falling out. He talks about how jealous and upset he is, how he constantly wishes his friend would want him back, but in the heat of their arguments tries to protect himself by acting tough and saying things he ultimately regrets. It's clear to the reader how much the dissolution of their friendship is due to his pride and inability to communicate.
It's the kind of book you take and immediately apply: it makes you think about the way you communicate with others, and how much you allow your pride to get in the way. I relate to the main character's sensitivity a lot, because I tend to try and protect myself by acting tough and letting fly with the insults. I like to hurt other people worse than they've hurt me.
What I am learning by reading this book is that many times, honesty and humility will actually heal a situation or solve a problem, while my harsh words just end friendships. Fast.

All right. That's it for now. I've got school in the morning, and I'm tired. College is busy!