Breakfast on the Bridge

Q has been doing a Breakfast on the Bridge for a couple of years now. He found the traffic on the Walnut Street Bridge to be interesting and diverse, with people from all walks of like using the bridge for their place of exercise, socialization or as their passage way to getting to the other side of the river.

Q was inspired to draw these people together in a friendly, casual, no criteria breakfast  So every Friday (except for Bike2Work Fridays) Q is out there with coffee and pastries for anyone who stops by. It has been amazing the people who do drop by- kind of a gathering for Chattanooga Characters. I think being a character is a wonderful thing and I always imagine I personally am so bland and unnoticeable next to these wonderful and colorful people. But Q reassures me that I am the biggest character of all (I'm sure he means that as the highest compliment, right? I think?)

   I should make a regular feature in this blog about our visitors. This breakfast has been so popular that is has become a community effort. All casual and disorganized of course.

     This is Lee. He might be recognized by regulars on the bridge as a bridge troubadour. This is his famous bike. I actually liked it better when it was painted up in bright Christmas colors but I think he got tired of people playing "Where's Waldo" with his bike. Bridge regulars were always reporting to one another where his bike was spotted-he would leave it in the oddest places. But after getting it stolen a couple of times, and getting it flattened by a tree at a construction site, he painted his bike these boring monotone colors and doesn't leave it around as much. But I hate to tell him that his bike is just as recognizable as ever.

This is Laura Jane. I knew Laura when she was born. She was baptized in the same ceremony as my youngest daughter. I met up again with her as an adult because she grew up so very quirky and I seem to find myself getting to know the quirky types. I love Laura Jane! She is wry, intelligent, thoughtful and so fresh as she starts out on her adult life. She has gone car free which in this part of the world a very unusual thing (actually you wouldn't think so judging by the number of people who come to this breakfast who are car free.)

Today the view of. Lookout Mountain from the bridge this morning was glorious.(see the picture above.)  I consider myself lucky that riding across the bridge is part of every day for me. I love getting to know the people who are my fellow users. My life is rich and very blessed!