Lisa and Scott Carrino are good friends, it has been a joy to watch them work so hard to put their Round House Cafe together, serve good and fresh food, offer Open Mic Nights and concerts. We went to the Round House today for a Bluegrass Jam, a perfect thing on the eve of the next great storm. But the musicians canceled due to the weather.

Scott and Lisa were there, though serving chicken soup, chili and a dozen other things. As much fun as it has been watching Scott and Lisa hatch this new cafe, it has been hard seeing how hard they work, how harrowing it is to start a small restaurant in a small town in upstate New York, how many difficult and unpredictable things happen almost every day.

Scott has been an especially good friend to me this year, he teaches me Tai Chi, I give writing lessons, most of the time we bullshit. The cafe had a tough winter, the weather was awful and business always declines in the winter, lots of people stay home. But Scott and Lisa have weathered their storms, Spring is just around the corner, even if it doesn’t yet feel like it. These two are transplants, they came upstate from elsewhere, they have spent their lives trying to do good, to teach, focus on the community and yes, make a living. It was nice to see them together – Lisa is often at the bakery, Scott in the kitchen. They radiate connection and community, the Round House has become the soul of our town.