The Starbucks Bum

Even before we officially lived in Arlington, we met him - The Starbucks Bum (a.k.a. "SB").  Who is this mysterious  and illusive man, you ask?  Well, feast your eyes on the one friend we don't want to make, but keeps coming back...

SB first came into our lives when we were dining at one of our favorite local restaurants, Pete's New Haven Style Apizza.  While sitting outside enjoying the ridiculously delicious arugula pizza, SB stopped next to our table to chat.  After an awkward few minutes of meaningless conversation, SB looked down at our pizza and said, "So, uh, you gonna finish that?"  Dumbfounded, I looked back at him and in my most authoritative tone replied, "Umm, yeah."  Well, that didn't deter him from asking a 2nd time.  *awkward* And this was just the beginning of what we now know as SB's relentless persistence.

*Ding, ding, ding!*  Round 2.  While grabbing a coffee at the Clarendon Starbucks, SB came into our lives for the 2nd time.  Right away, I recognized and remembered him and thus, tried my best to avert eye contact.  However, Wes was not so quick to the draw.  Like a hawk spotting a turtle, SB went in for the kill.  This time, Wes was lucky enough to hear his pitch for the "latest" speaker system. Seriously, he tried to sell Wes a set of desktop speakers.  

Ladies and Gentlemen, round #3.  The day after capturing this picture (we liken this picture to the rare, yet infamous Yeti photograph), I was walking across that very same crosswalk on my way home from a yoga class.  Lucky for me, SB was crossing in the opposite direction, at the exact same time.  With every ounce of my being, I tried my best to look as busy as one can while crossing a street.  I was proud of myself as I just made it past him without any interaction....but inevitably, he got me.  As I made my first step of freedom beyond him, he turned to me and yelled out, "Hey, nice shirt!  Namaste."

In an effort to learn from our experiences here in our nation's lovely Capital, this is what we're taking away from our encounters with "jack of all trades," SB:

1. Pizza lover
2. A casual salesmen
3. Peaceful warrior