diner

James posted an exquisite reply to the photo of the Couple in the 2nd avenue Diner. I think it needs to be linked to on the front page. Click Below:

I was sitting in a restaurant above a square in Reykyavík, thinking about the tasty Icelandic lamb I was about to order, when a beautiful blue-eyed woman and her companion walked in and sat directly in front of me. When sitting at my table I thought for a moment, "This chair, or this one?" And I finally decided to take the chair that faced the window. When they walked in they headed straight to that window. She sat down, then stood up, switched seats; he sat down, and then she stood up again, and switched to the seat on my left. I could see her better there. He turned to me and we smiled with that, "silly girl!" expression on our faces. We weren't thinking in the same language, but our eyes understood each other well enough. She, on the other hand, wouldn't look directly at me...

I feel affection for the man in this photo. He seems content to me, eating alone on a Saturday morning, reading his paper. This does not feel like a photo about loneliness. Although you can see out into the street and feel the presence of the empty chair, all the energy is centered on his face, his gaze down to the paper, the small island of solitude he has created. I did not see him look up once, but he contributed such a positive energy to the room.

That was some frothy cream

They felt private. It was hard to know what there relationship was like. They are distant, if not from each other than certainly from the collective consciousness of the room. Two beautiful people, more alone with each other than the solitary man sitting behind them.