James Collier

I’m kicking off my “buy local” experiment with a lesson in the obvious: New Year’s is a silly time for feel-good pledges. That’s not what my commitment is about (more on what it is about later), but let’s just say I didn’t wake up this morning with my normal level of pep and enthusiasm.

Actually, I woke up with a slight headache and an empty stomach (it’s January 1—you do the math).

So Kim and I headed out in search of breakfast. Since my car was in Tower, we thought we’d find something there:

• Chicken Pie Shop—closed
• Livingstone’s—closed
• Al’s Cafe—closed

We drove down Olive Ave. trying to find something besides pizza that was open; when we hit Blackstone, we headed north. Then we spotted it: Country Waffles. Kim assured me that it was local.

For future reference, Country Waffles is a chain. Oh well.

After breakfast I headed to Revue for some coffee and internet. An hour later, they closed, so I walked across the street to Teazers; they get their internet from Revue’s signal. In need of a workspace with a steady flow of caffeine, I took my seat at the neighborhood Starbucks.

Then there was dinner. I’ll save that post for TasteFresno, but it’s safe to say we will never order delivery from DiCicco’s. In fact, we may never order from DiCicco’s again (period).

I’m going to chalk today’s experiences up to the new year “holiday” and sleep this one off. Tomorrow is a brand new day.