The Third Space

Even if you haven't heard the term the third space used formally, undoubtedtly you already understand it.

Kreuzberg Café, San Luis ObispoWe need something more than a first space (our home) and a second space (our workplace) in order for our communities to really thrive.

Blue Bottle, Mint Plaza, San FranciscoIn The Great Good Place, Ray Oldenburg...

"...identifies third places, or 'great good places,' as the public places on neutral ground where people can gather and interact. In contrast to first places (home) and second places (work), third places allow people to put aside their concerns and simply enjoy the company and conversation around them. Third places 'host the regular, voluntary, informal, and happily anticipated gatherings of individuals beyond the realms of home and work.' Oldenburg suggests that beer gardens, main streets, pubs, cafés, coffeehouses, post offices, and other third places are the heart of a community’s social vitality and the foundation of a functioning democracy. They promote social equality by leveling the status of guests, provide a setting for grassroots politics, create habits of public association, and offer psychological support to individuals and communities."

Sally Loo's, San Luis ObispoKreuzbergOr in a third space, you can maintain your own cool quasi-anonymous distance instead — and observe the people and scene around you...

Sally Loo's...even as you get a little of your own work done at the same time.

Bello Mundo, San Luis ObispoBut keep your cool. Maintain your cool.

And display a little elegance.

Post No BillsOne of my favorite third spaces is Post No Bills in Sand City. I'm typing this journal here right now. Not only does Post No Bills feature a remarkable rotating lineup of beer taps — and artisan bottled beers in a wall-to-wall cooler — but it's consciously composed as a place where friends and "familiar stangers" can meet and interact.

This Thursday, April 5, a remarkable event will be occuring here. Post No Bills is located on the ground floor of The Independent.

No, the Red Hot Chili Peppers won't necessarily be appearing.

Henry Miller Memorial Library, Big SurBut on Thursday, April 5, the Henry Miller Memorial Library will be migrating northwards nonetheless. And they'll be packing alot of magic tricks in their carpetbag — books, food, drink, song, art...and some of the best films from the past six years of the Big Sur International Short Film Festival.

This means that two of the best places on the central coast are somehow converging — just for this one night.