Two women of Asian descent chat over coffee in one corner. An older man, Jewish, walks in carrying a terrier in a tote bag. At one table, three white college students play mah jongg, a Chinese tile game. Had Alex Trebek suddenly shown up to quiz them on American contemporary culture in the year 2001, everyone in the coffeehouse would likely score reasonably well. The blended culture brings them together.
Goods change hands.
Ideas and trends are transferred. They are symbols of our successes and failures, our times and touchstones. They are shared and understood. Now the two men, one from Ukraine, the other from China, meet two mornings a week for coffee and cigarettes at Chang's son's garage. We have some things in common.