Seeing how Sara (from the previous post) is far more extroverted than I am and has no qualms asking strangers random questions, I decided to lure her back to Sebastopol with promises of all the vanilla lattes she could consume.
The first question I had for her, based on several readers' inquisitive remarks, was if she was able to find vanilla frozen yogurt after our last encounter. She was (and highly recommended Honeymoon where she found it). Latte and chai in hand, we set out to conduct a highly random survey of pedestrians near downtown. We were still curious what people thought of the Sebastopol vortex.
The first small group we encountered had mixed feelings about the vortex. Two agreed that it existed. Of the two, one thought it was a Sebastopol thing and the other thought it was a northbay thing. Maybe even just northern California in general. "And Sedona," she added.
The other two did not think such a vortex existed but one did admit there was a distinct "vibe" to Sebastopol that was different than other parts of Sonoma County.
As they walked away, Sara echoed: "A different 'vibe' in Sebastopol than the other cities around here? Yes, because of the vortex!"
The next small group of people gave similar answers. We decided to hang out in front of a crystal shop to see if the people going inside had distinctly different opinions about our inquiry. I was a sociology major in college, so this made me very happy. Compare and contrast.
I mentioned sociology to Sara, who told me she had majored in comparitive religion. "What do you do now?" I asked.
"Teach zumba."
We both took sips of our drinks. "Do you ever compare Hinduism and Christianity, you know, just for kicks?"
She smiled and shook her head. "No, but that's a good idea. Maybe I could charge for that. I do need to figure out some supplemental income."
A few live ones walked up to the shop. Sara asked the inevitable question. The couple both nodded their heads. "Yes," the man said. That was it. It was rather anti-climatic.
I tried to think of a good follow-up, but Sara beat me to it. "Do you ever get caught in the vortex?" She had an investigative tone to her voice.
Again they both nodded. "Yeah," the woman replied.
Sara looked at me as if to say, "Okay, I'm out."
"What is the vortex like?" I ventured.
The guy looked at us as if he had conversations like this all the time. "You know. Chill. It's just very chill and mellow here."
We smiled at them and they went inside. "Too chill for me," Sara surmised. "I think I need another latte. Venti."
Favorite line of the week:
"I don't dislike fairies. Don't get me wrong. But we have fairy dust coming out our ears right now."
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