It was a congested post-holidays afternoon on Main Street. I had spent a while in Copperfield's but there were so many shoppers I was sitting on a bench in front of the store, hoping the crowd would thin out. Busy thinking about what I needed to get done that day I didn't realize someone had sat down next to me, sipping a vanilla latte. She apparently really liked this drink because she couldn't stop talking about it. Although, she admitted, it was making her crave vanilla frozen yogurt.
We were talking about downtown, and with little segue she turned to me and asked, "Is there a Sebastopol vortex? I feel like I get caught in this vortex when I come over here."
I started to answer but she continued. "Maybe it's Sonoma County in general. I lived in New York for a while and the energy here is just so different. I drive up 101 and when I cross the border for Sonoma County I kind of go into a funk."
"A good funk or bad funk?" I inquired.
"Just a funk. Not a bad one."
"An instructor I had called it the 'Sonoma coma,'" I told her.
She laughed. "Is that what it is? Well, whatever it is.... It's like I come over here and there are soporific essential oils emanating through the air."
We talked for a few minutes, and then because Sara was on a caffeine high ("third latte that day" I was informed) and/or because Main Street was swarming with people and/or because she was quite gregarious, we decided to conduct a survey. Did other people think there was a Sebastopol vortex?
The first couple we asked grinned amusedly. The woman said, "I don't know." The man she was with answered, "Absolutely."
"Do you think it is Sebastopol, or Sonoma County in general?" Sara quizzed him.
The man contemplated this for a moment and said, "If it is Sonoma County in general then Sebastopol is the epicenter."
Well-put, we both decided.
Our next passers-by were two elderly women. When my new polling friend asked them the question, they turned around to look behind them. They did not understand the repeated question, which was not hard to believe. So my out-going benchmate elaborated upon it. "Does the energy feel distinct here? Do you feel different when you come to Sebastopol?"
One woman shook her head. The other woman said, "I live around here. But I remember when I first moved here, I kept feeling like I should do yoga."
Sarah's arms flew up so quickly I thought the latte would fly out of her hand. "That's what I'm talking about! Have you ever felt that anywhere else you've lived?"
The woman conceded she had not.
A younger woman with neon green heart sunglasses sat down on the bench, peering at a small notebook in her hand. Sara asked the question again. Without looking up she responded, "Oh yeah. If you're not grounded you'll get caught in the vortex and it's kind of like being in an unconsecrated temple."
Sara and I glanced at each other. From the looks on our faces it appeared we did not quite know what she meant.
The woman looked at us through her sunglasses. "I carry a big chunk of amethyst in my purse. Because of the energy around here. It can be discombobulating."
Sarah sipped her coffee. She started to say something, but the woman cut her off, talking about something to do with one's third eye and certain types of crystals. I couldn't follow it.
After Sunglasses Gal wandered off Sara leaned toward me and remarked very matter-of-factly, "Some people get trapped in the vortex. And they can't get out."
Favorite line of the week:
Three people were speaking German in front of Whole Foods. While I did not understand anything being said, I heard: "Sebastopol.... New Age.... Sebastopol.... New Age.... New Age.... New Age...." sprinkled throughout the conversation.
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