Monday Morning: Meet Me at the Corner!

I have mentioned that one of my favorite things to do on a cold winter's morning - or heck, any morning - is to have breakfast at the Corner Room, so named because it is located at the corner of College and Allen in State College, PA. On this particular morning, I got to do just that.

I've been riding the bus quite a bit this winter. It's been a real winter of a winter, with lots of snow and ice and cold. But it was pretty out on this day - sunny and warmer, with the snow melting, and blue skies. My husband had planned to take my Mazda to get it inspected, so I left it at home and took the bus.

It turned out that the inspection didn't happen, alas. My husband's friend who runs a garage back in his hometown, where we take it, was out of inspection stickers. So it'll  have to go later this week, if possible. (Another bus ride, another breakfast out for me? Hmm . . . )

So it was that I landed in the middle of downtown on the Monday morning of the first day of classes after spring break. And it was absolutely PACKED. Downtown was as busy as I have ever seen it. Cars, trucks, buses, everywhere. Plus students. LOTS of them.

On my bus ride, I'd been enjoying some fine tunes. Or rather, ONE particularly fine tune. It came up on my iPod shuffle, and I played it three times in a row, each time successively louder, to psych myself up for my work week.

What was that song? Springsteen, of course, with one of my favorite tunes, featuring possibly the best Nils Lofgren guitar solo ever made by human hands: Youngstown. And I've been fortunate to see it played live one time, hallelujah!

(Weird things to know about me, item elebenty: I carry in my fanny pack a list of all of the songs I've seen Springsteen perform live, during the three performances I've seen him do. February 28, 2000. November 1, 2012. And April 18, 2016. Wait, has it been THAT LONG since I've seen him?)

And then I got off the bus and went and had my breakfast. The breakfast was everything I wanted it to be. It was eggs and toast and hashbrowns, hot and good and fast and cheap, and I ate it all while sitting at a window looking out over downtown, from the vantage point of one of my favorite booths. I stood up and took the picture above, before the waitress came and took my order.

Now, I have not said anything about this, because talking about health issues is not something I prefer to do much. I mean, honestly, who really NEEDS to know about all of my troubles? But I've had some pretty serious dental pain in my left teeth and jaw since about February 27. For a few days, I could hardly eat. I put cold packs on my face; spent some miserable sleepless nights.

But it was back during that time that it snowed or sleeted or was horribly cold every single day, and I wasn't driving my car, so I waited it out. Took half a pain pill the one evening when I couldn't stand it. Took a baby aspirin every day at lunchtime for the inflammation. Carried a cold pack to work, and put it on my face between meetings when nobody was looking. (Yes, yes, of course, I'll chat with my dentist about all of this at our next regular appointment.)

The mouth issues have calmed down quite a bit, and this was really the first morning that I was able to eat normally, chewing on both sides of my mouth without pain. And so it was a fine breakfast indeed, well worth celebrating. (Here's a thing: do you sometimes wake in the night stewing over generalized worries? For better or worse, dental pain will take your mind right off them and give you something specific to focus on!)

Let's let the soundtrack to this image be the celebration song I listened to three times on the bus, and then several times more at work, to kick off my work week: Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band, with Youngstown. No, it is not a feel-good song, but it is a serious rock and roll anthem with passion. And I love Bruce when he is madder than heck; he is so good. Watch also for some fancy and astounding guitar work from NIls, starting at about 4:09 on the video. Enjoy! (And for once, read the comments on the video.)

P.S. I guess this is a sort of a self-portrait too, as you may see me reflected  in this photo as well. (See that dark smudge in the middle? That smudge is me!)