Home-ish.

In Walla Walla I was a regular at pretty much every coffee shop. I could walk into Black Cup and have coffee waiting for me without even having to say anything. It was comfortable, it was familiar, it was home.

There is no Black Cup in Phnom Penh.

We, or at least I, need comfort. I need something that is familiar.

I read an e-mail from a friend this week reminding me about freshman year at Walla Walla when we would go to Safeway for groceries before we would go anywhere else, because Safeway reminded us of home. But as we grew more comfortable we went to Andy's, and Shop Co. and those places slowly became our own.

In my search for something homey Fay told me about The Shop. After school one day she showed Olga and I where it was-- closer to the mission than the school is. I rode my bike over the next day and found what I had been missing since I got here.

It's a wonderful little coffee shop. You walk through the gate off the hot crowded street and onto this little oasis. There is ac and big tables for working on lesson plans. The closest thing I could compare it to is The Patisserie in Walla Walla. Except, that instead of $7 for a dessert type thing, it is $2. It is too expensive for most Khmers here so it is mostly foreigners eating here.

I've started coming here after school sometimes and on Sundays to do lesson plans, and read. I feel comfortable here. I sit in the same spot and I order the same thing. I like being predictable about some things at least. Not anything in my life is predictable at this point, except exhaustion, and heat.

When I walked in today a few of the waitstaff gave me a smile that told me they recognized me. That I wasn't a stranger. And being in a country where pretty much everything is still strange, being recognized is a good feeling.

I'm pretty excited to be a regular again.