So I decided to start a blog for the Dog. The "Dog" as it is affectionately called, is formally known as Lost Dog Cafe, a restaurant in the sometimes rainy but very pretty town of Binghamton, NY. We decided to open Lost Dog Cafe because while Binghamton is an "interesting" place to live, we were missing a comfortable, non-assuming place where we could hang out with our friends and eat good food. We didn't want to feel like we had to get dressed up for dinner, we didn't want the stuffiness of a reservation, we just wanted to be able to leave our house and depart to a fun destination. I guess we're just spontaneous people who don't like to plan too much. Luckily other people felt like we did and decided to come to The Dog.
I think for some people Lost Dog has become their "third" place after home and work which is subconsciously what all restaurant owners hunger for . We're searching for that connection, that sense of community where we all come together to talk, to argue, to formulate ideas, to plan our futures. We celebrate, commiserate and procrastinate together because we're all growing and struggling together. Ray Oldenburg argues in his book The Great Good Place that the third place anchors community life & fosters creative interaction and civic engagement. All societies already have informal meeting places; what is new in modern times is the intentionality of seeking them out as vital to current societal needs. Sometimes I wonder if the internet, particularly blogs and chatrooms has become it's own "third" place. Although I marvel at the ability to communicate on such a large scale, it will never replace sitting down to a good cup of coffee with an old friend.
