I'm quoted a couple of times in an article by Christine O'Connor about good coffee and free wi-fi in the May issue of Northern Virginia Magazine. The first time is about why people hang out in coffee shops:

"The coffee house fulfills our need to not be alone," says former Murky Coffee barista and aspiring coffee shop owner Jacob Grier of Arlington. "Even if we never say a word to anyone, we feel connected to our community."

The second is about why guys like me continue to work as baristas:

"To be a barista in a quality local shop is to create countless moments of evanescent beauty," says Grier. "The ideally extracted espresso, the well-poured latte, the repetitive rhythm in making a rush of drinks. All that makes the job wonderfully satisfying."

So I went a little over the top (OK, a lot over the top), but what can I say? I really like my job. No matter how many times I do it, I never get tired of watching those first drops of espresso coalesce at the bottom of a cup or making a nice rosetta magically flow to the surface of a drink. And the word "evanescent" doesn't see print nearly enough.

Other Murky regulars pop into the text and photos; note Ryan's Michael Jordanesque tongue appearance as he concentrates on his latte art.

The article is not available online. Locally the magazine can be found in Barnes & Noble and Borders and has a cover story on forty NoVa places to go for a "frugal feast."

[Cross-posted on Eternal Recurrence.]