Chooch is on the train on his way home right now so I’m killing time by blogging because I don’t know what else to do with myself! Here are two cafes that Henry and I recently went to, because why not.

Last Sunday, I was being a total shit after we went for a walk. I wanted to get coffee but I wanted Henry to pick a place just so I could shoot down every one of his suggestions to the point where we made it all the back home just for me to throw a fit and then Henry was like WHO DID I WRONG IN A PAST LIFE TO DESERVE THIS. Long story short, we ended up going to Ghost Collab and it was good. (It was also my choice, so.)

I got a strawberry latte and a PB chocolate chip cookie which Henry wrongly assumed we were sharing.

I need to go back for a basic pour-over because I feel like this could be Pgh’s equivalent of Dark Matter in Chicago and I need to know. Also, I want to try their chai because I am super picky with chai and currently there is only one place in this city where I will order a chai latte with my full chest knowing it’s going to be my style, and that is Yinz Coffee.

I follow them on Insta and was nervous that this was going to be not just a coffee snobbery joint but a MALE coffee snobbery joint which is even worse, but the guy barista on duty when we were there was super nice.

I was still mad at Henry while we were there. Meanwhile, there was another couple enjoying each other’s company and playing some stupid card game a few tables down AND I WAS NOT IN THE MOOD FOR THIS LOVE THAT WAS IN THE AIR.

Today, we took a post-lunch walk to the boulevard because I had some books to pick up from the library (got to see my fave security guard Robert too, shout out to Robert, my pandemic friend!) and then we walked right the fuck past 802 Coffee or whatever the fuck that dump is called and crossed the street to Socotra Cafe. This was my second time here and Henry’s first. I truly love this place and feel so grateful that they chose little old Brookline to bring their delicious brand of Yemeni drinks and sweet treats (and now the grill is open, too!).

Yes, it’s pricey but to me, it’s worth it because it’s delicious and has a high-quality taste. Unlike 802 where I am disappointed 9 out of 10 times.

Henry and I got a saffron milk cake to share. (I was in a sharing mood today.)

It was DELECTABLE. I still like the pistachio one better that Chooch and I split the last time, but this was also really good. And the matcha latte slapped. They have a banana biscoff matcha latte on the summer menu but I didn’t want to get that AND the cake. I’d have gone into sugar shock! But maybe I’ll make Chooch walk there with me while he’s home this week and I’ll get one as a midday work antidepressant.

This is very swanky by Brookline standards.

Then on the way back home, we got hustled by some kids outside of the Teen Center who were selling lemonade. Henry was like, “Sorry no cash” and they were so quick with the “we take Venmo, CashApp, and PayPal” comeback. Dang, this kids are so fucking savvy.

Anyway, I was like, oh what the hell. It’s the freaking teen center after all, and Chooch spent so much of his time there when he was a teen. Plus, this was a legit teen center-sanctioned pop-up going on, with adult supervision. Actually, the lady who started the teen center was there and I have actually NEVER MET HER. So, after I Venmo’d my payment and showed the receipt to these little swindlers who upsold me via the addition of frozen fruit, I introduced myself as Chooch’s mom and she immediately started gushing over him which I freaking knew he would because he was a teen center mainstay and OG, honestly. I don’t know why he didn’t volunteer as a mentor while he was home last summer.

Well, it was nice to finally meet her so she knows that I exist and that I’m not “Riley’s shut-in mom” or whatever since I was never one to get involved in his extracurricular activities. Or school in general, really. PTA/PTO mom I am not. I left that shit to the real ones.

Speaking of kids and their lucrative side hustlers, last weekend I got stopped by two young kids on the boulevard slinging candy from a Tupperware container. All I really noticed was a bag of Sour Patch Kids because I only just glanced at it and was too busy trying to recuse myself from getting swindled by saying I didn’t have cash.

“We take CashApp,” they retorted with a quickness and I was like, “JESUS CHRIST” and actually started to redownload it but then it was asking me for my bank info because I guess I never actually fully set this up in past and I lost my patience and said, “Venmo or GTFO” in so many words so they moved on to another sucker who was walking her dog and gave them cash FOR NOTHING, didn’t take a thing out of their dumb Tupperware, instead imparting a “Be good, boys” on them.

Hilariously, I was checking CRIME RADAR later and saw that someone called the police because “two young boys were selling candy and destroying property at the laundromat.” LOL.

Kids these days though honestly. I’m so afraid that I’m going to get beat up by a Brookline gang one of these days. The kids that walk past our house seem super sus and you know what, they scare me but mostly because I’m afraid they’re going to make fun of me, call me a fat bitch or something. That’s a real fear of mine.

(OMG remember the time a hooligan literally kicked a rock at me in an alley downtown when I was on my lunch break walk!?!!?!? KIDS ARE SO MEAN.)

Bonus: here’s a shot of the matcha latte Henry made me the other night – having my own personal matcha barista is such a game changer. Anyway, this was made with Nami Matcha’s genmaicha which is mix of matcha and toasted brown rice, making it less vibrant green but has such a delicious nutty, rice flavor. I really enjoy this variation!

Highly recommend Nami Matcha in general!

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