The Mothership?

Email number 1 from prospect number 14:

“Not sure if you’ve ever been, but there’s this amazing cereal bar in Westwood. I know it sounds strange at first (paying $6 for cereal), but they have all different kinds of cereal and a crazy amount of toppings. Last time I went, I had eggo waffle cereal with peanut butter. At that moment I knew life was good.”

What?! A cereal bar right here in L.A.? I’m familiar with the cereal bar concept (a selection of cereals, a treasure trove of toppings, a medley of milks - mix and match to your heart's content) and have long desired to patronize one, but they’ve always been in magical, faraway places like Miami and State College, Pennsylvania. During the burgeoning stages of my Cereal Dating, I even conducted an unsuccessful Google search because such a place seemed the ideal location for my rendezvous, but was saddened to find that L.A. hadn’t gotten on board with the idea.

But then in swoops number 14, with his top ten list and his peanut butter in his cereal and the milk-spilling news that Los Angeles, in fact, has boarded this train in the form of JuJu Cereal Bar in nearby Westwood. Interestingly enough, as soon as I made this exciting discovery, my burning, urgent interest seemed to dissipate.

Email number 2:

“Truth be told, it’s been a while since I’ve been to the cereal bar. Though I seldom feel a pressing need to go, I do take comfort knowing that the guy who works there takes a lot of pride in his job. As he was making my second bowl (yeah, it’s that good), he was telling me about all of his cereal experiments. Mostly the experiments had to do with toppings and he had loads to say about the wonders of cake frosting and cereal. I got the sense that he could very well have been working on a more pressing issue like global warming, but that he had simply heard the siren cereal call and just gone for it. A little odd? Yes. But also kind of cool…I know you said the urgency is gone, but if you’re interested, perhaps you’d like to join me for a bowl of cereal one evening. Or, maybe we could just meet for coffee.”

Whoa…coffee? No no. I think it would be foolhardy to turn my back on an opportunity to visit an establishment so clearly suited for my dating goals. Cereal, definitely cereal. And, ya know, it is rather satisfying to know that the cereal bar entrepreneur takes such pride in what he does. And though I admittedly have a tough time swallowing the cake frosting idea, he is the expert (and my perspective on the world is slightly brightened just knowing that such a field of expertise exists).

Email number 3:

“It got mixed reviews on Yelp because some people think the cereal bar concept is a little out there. I would agree that it’s out there, but there are plenty of crazy ideas like $4 coffee and $6 popcorn that most people just go along with. Anyway, it’s also kind of a cute date place.”

Yeah, it's not so "out there"! Why is cereal such a perpetual outcast? Everyone eats it. It’s a way better investment than coffee. Or popcorn. And think of all the choices - the room for creativity. I love creativity! Ohhh, this is very exciting indeed. I'm glad I found someone who seems to delight in all of this as much as I do. I just hope I don’t crumble under the pressure of all the creative decision-making. And that he doesn't turn out to be some sort of schizophrenic, chainsaw-wielding, cereal-loving rapist.