Shamelessly human
At some point, a collection of people wrote a book. Others read this book, or at least heard stories about it. Not long after that, people began to cover up their bodies and feel an inordinate amount of shame about their bodies. Because of a book. Sure, there are people who say I’ve got the wrong idea, that it’s symbolic, but I say nay. Apparently these people are living a divided life. They’ll say one thing, but their unconscious minds literally speak another. Until they get their stories straight, they’ll need credit repair with me.
“Sexuality is a part of me. Yet charismatic older men say I should be ashamed of this (at least in public). Lawmakers have followed suit without asking why. Or if they have, they’ve looked awfully foolish. That book ain’t talking back.”
- “It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.” Aristotle
I wonder what would happen if I cracked open the pages of “Helter Skelter?” Some people consider the subject of that book to be prophetic. But would it change me without my consent? Would I suddenly begin to write bad music at Brian Wilson’s house and commit heinous crimes? I don’t think so. I also don’t think the Grand View Coffee Shop of Vassalboro, Maine is wrong, or that it deserved to burn. Now the owner may need debt relief.
Spin it, DJ. People wanna dance
Glenn Adams reports for the Associated Press that the Grand View Coffee Shop in Vassalboro, Maine used to be more than just an ordinary coffee shop. It was a wildly popular topless coffee shop. Not the patrons, but the employees, men and women. Proper safeguards were in place, including a security guard who checked identification and did not allow anyone in under the age of 18. The inside was not visible from the outside, so looky-loo gawkers weren’t loitering about the parking lot. Aside from topless servers, it was just a good, old-fashioned coffee shop. All that was being sold was coffee and doughnuts.
But in the early morning hours of Wednesday, June 3, 2009, Grand View Coffee Shop burned to the ground. In an interesting coincidence, owner Donald Crabtree had met just hours before with Vassalboro officials about making his business “more like a strip club.” What does “more like a strip club” mean? According to Adams’ story, Crabtree had asked to add a DJ, expanding his parking lot and extend operating hours. That doesn’t sound like it includes dancing or alcohol to me.
I’m sure Crabtree was feeling the pinch of this recession and wanted to find another way to make money for his business. I’m also sure that there were people in Vassalboro who were concerned that something “like a strip club” would attract an element to their town that they considered “unsavory.” But I can think of a number of simple solutions to such a problem, including additional security if necessary. We all know he’d make enough money to hire the staff. Remember, people can entertain notions contrary, particularly when these notions are natural to the human animal.
$277,000 and no insurance
The cause of the blaze has not been officially determined. The fire at the Grand View Coffee Shop was reported by a passing ambulance at around 1 a.m. Adams writes that it took “about 50 firefighters from eight communities” to extinguish the blaze. When asked if the fire seemed suspicious, Crabtree exclaimed, “I don’t even dare to say at this time.”
All told, Crabtree spent $277,000 buying and renovating a former motel into the Grand View Coffee Shop. Considering that it wasn’t insured, the fire must be devastating to his finances. You can see where debt relief and credit repair could come into play for the man.
Without nudity? There’d be no “family” in “family values”
The Grand View Coffee Shop opened in February. Predictably, there was controversy from Vassalboro folk who felt that having a topless coffee shop in town was somehow a violation of “family values,” whatever those are. Sure, certain values are a genetic imperative for human survival, but the random assignment and enforcement of values is wrong. That society and its institutions do it all the time doesn’t make it right.
According to Paul Crabtree, the owner’s brother, there are people who have come out to support the Grand View Coffee Shop family in their time of need. However, there are also plenty of people who drive by and thumb their noses.
“It’s sad to see people driving by and acting happy about it,” he said.
Let me stand next to your fire
According to Adams, Vassalboro resident Steve Cooper is one of those who didn’t see the harm, save for a fire that destroyed property and cost people their jobs. It could have also cost lives, as apparently the owner and some employees were in the building when the fire started. Cooper says he had never been in Grand View Coffee Shop, he didn’t see why people were so upset about people without shirts behind closed doors.
Krista MacIntyre, one of the waitresses, said it was the “best job” she’d ever had. “We should keep on going, get back up and make it an even bigger place,” she said. Without having had fire insurance, though? I don’t know if Donald Crabtree’s pockets are that deep. I say let the debt relief begin. And for those who delighted that Grand View Coffee Shop burned down, I say stay away. Your repressed psyches masquerading as “a book told me so” would only ruin a good, safe time.
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YES!! “Without nudity there can be no family” – absolutely right on. It’s like when the “family values” folks protested ad nauseum about the Janet Jackson wardrobe malfunction – it’s bare breasts. So what? There are REAL problems in this country, and in the world at large, and THIS is what people are getting up in arms about? Seriously, some people really need a hobby. That’s what I love about the so-called family values lobby – none of them can summon an argument for their positions that is remotely intelligent. “Oh my gosh, a naked woman! Hide the children!” Well, there was a naked woman directly involved in creating those children. And also, breastfeeding – many women breastfeed. (I was when I was an infant!) Unless step two is banning all breastfeeding in lieu of powdered milk products (which Nestle did in Africa, which led to infant starvation, a rise in infant mortality, and a continent already plagued by poverty having to buy European consumer products driving them further into – poverty), time to lighten up! You’d think that in the 21st century, people would perhaps get the hint that the Victorian Age is over, but then again…public schools.
I don’t see any problem with someone trying to make money with a topless coffee place. It is better than a topless bar where a bunch of drunks hang out. I feel sorry for the guy who lost all that money and am sure that there is someone with their “morals” out of whack who burned it down.