Mug Bugs Coffee

9/15/14 Platinum Carbon ink, watercolor, Pitt Artist's Pen, Canson XL 140 lb. paper

The Chevron gas station at the corner of Northeast 85^th and Fifth Northeast has had an independent espresso stand on one side of its property for years. The caffeine biz is a difficult, competitive one. (During the half-hour that I took to make this sketch, the stand had one customer besides me.) If I’m filling my gas tank there, I sometimes get a coffee, and I’ve seen a recurring cycle of mood swings: At first there’s high enthusiasm and optimism, lots of fun marketing ideas and perky, hand-lettered signs. Gradually the hours shorten, the signs and smiles fade, and the next time I drive by, the stand has a new name. These cycles rarely last longer than a year – sometimes as short as a few months.

I’ve occasionally considered sketching the stand whenever it changes hands, but the nondescript, shed-like structure hasn’t interested me much as a sketching subject. Until today.

The latest rendition, Mug Bugs Coffee, has been open for two months, but only yesterday put up an eye-catching display: the front half of an actual VW Bug perched on top of the stand. The barista told me that the owner has another store in Kent, and when I Googled it, I discovered that the Kent store is adorned with the rear half of what looks like the same Bug. I don’t know how long this one will last, but the iced mocha tasted fine, and I give them bonus points for the Bug.