Jessie Loftus
I woke up this morning at a friend’s house in Media, PA. Well, actually Rose Valley. Staying in the suburbs of course means a lovely commute back into town via 95 N. I have the day off so I’m taking my time. I take it pretty easy going 60 mph as I let the “strivers” fly by me. (My friend Jim taught me that word which is a much kinder word than I usually use for people driving like maniacs.) Despite the traffic and chaos, I join the ranks of people doing dumb shit behind the wheel and I manage to take a quick photo of the skyline as I’m crossing over the Girard Point Bridge. It’s a crisp, sunny, winter day.
Once I arrive in town I’m faced with the challenge of finding free, all-day parking in South Philadelphia on snowy streets. I don’t have a parking permit. I find a spot on Montrose between 8th and 9th. I think: “if only the guy at the DMV who failed me during my first driver’s license test for hitting the cone could see me now!” It only takes me a couple tries (and a couple South Philly taps) to get into my spot.
I make my way to my sister’s house. I haven’t seen her in over a week as she and her husband both were sick and I was absolutely avoiding getting sick for the third time this winter.
I bring some bags in her house and notice she’s still in bed—so I make my way to our favorite coffee shop/local gossip supplier, Gleaner’s Cafe. I’ve always loved it here. A conversation cafe with a “No Wifi” sign on the wall. Feels like Luke’s Diner in the middle of the city. I come here to feel welcomed, to feel included in the neighborhood. When people remember you and your order and are the kindest humans, you can’t help but make this place part of your daily routine. I sit down and talk with the girls at the counter for a bit. We talk about futures and art, pros and cons of winter clothing, and potential connections and networks for some freelance work. It’s a pretty quiet day in the cafe but all seats are filled. I get a coffee for my sister and decide to head back to her house.
When I arrive she’s awake and I deliver her coffee in bed. The dog and cat are keeping her company. We play with them and give them attention and love. Once the pets have had enough pets my sister gets out of bed and I wait for her by scrolling Instagram and looking for potential job opportunities. Once she’s dressed we start our day by heading into the Italian Market. We stop at Salt & Vinegar shop to get some dinner ingredients and talk about future creative ideas with Kate, who is working today. We spend about 15 minutes coming up with potential future plans with her and how to make them happen. It’s an inspiring chat. We leave and make our way to Fabric Row on S 4th St. My sister and I joke about how it always takes us 3 hours to get out of the market because we are always running into our friends and neighbors and exchanging stories and life updates. And that’s exactly what makes me want to be here.
We make it to Fleishman’s fabric store, one of my sister’s second homes. All of the employees know her here and are always going above and beyond to help us. They’re curious about our future projects we’re working on and ask about our family. My sister has known these folks much longer than me yet they make me feel just as included. It’s busy in there, per usual, and there is SO much to take in. I could spend a lot of time in this shop. We make our purchase and cross the street to a vintage shop that my sister also frequents. We look for gifts for some friends and my sister introduces me to one of the owners. The woman she introduces me to is so calm and sweet. She asks my sister how married life is going. We chat with her about her future dreams for the shop and she shares some fun events they have coming up. She gives us a sneak peek at the Valentine’s merch that’s tucked away and we sample some perfumes. We are in love with the scents!
We leave and continue on our neighborhood shopping spree and decide to stop at Philly Aids Thrift just to poke around and see what we can find. This is (as for so many Philadelphians) a place we love and have been supporting for a very long time. It’s another place to see and connect with friends and neighbors and to share creative ideas!
We stop off at the liquor store and get a bottle of wine. We make our way back home and talk about what we will make for dinner. Some roasted vegetables, rice, and salmon (using the sauce we bought earlier)!
We cook together and I’m reminded why I’m happy to have moved back from Minnesota a few years ago. Getting to cook and spend time with my sister is so important to me. Her husband feeds the pets as we finish up cooking. We plate the food and sit on the couch and watch Jeopardy. Many wrong answers later, my sister brings us dessert, some brownies she made earlier in the week. We decide against sticking around for Wheel of Fortune. Steve is putting the Sixers on anyway. Aubrey and I have sewing to get done.
We retreat up to the third floor to my sister’s sewing studio. She gets started working on some projects for future sales. And I wait patiently for her to help me design and sew a pair of pants I’ve been thinking about making. She spends at least two hours helping me and walking me through the process of designing and sewing. I can’t believe how knowledgeable she is in this craft! Also she’s super patient as I try and follow her instructions. It’s about 11pm now and we complete the pants and I’m so excited to wear them. They’re lightweight so they’re more of a spring/summer pant. I’m so grateful for the opportunity to learn from her and now have a new pair of pants!
It’s at this point I wash my face and start reflecting on the day and think about how it was such a basic day-we didn’t do anything really out of the ordinary—and I thought about how fortunate I am to have this simple but positively creative and community-oriented live here in South Philadelphia. Every stop we made during our day was filled with community, kindness, and creativity. I think a lot about how Philadelphia gets a negative reputation (mostly by those on the outside) and I am so grateful that I have the opportunity to live here (and even on these mundane Mondays) I am able to take part in a city that sparks so much innovation, passion, and community care.
Jessie Loftus is an idea girl and a self-proclaimed experience curator. She and her sister have a vintage tableware & micro event business called @bigcity_littlekitchen Jessie is an environmental educator in her full time job as well as a part time shop-keeper @saltandvinegarphl . As a non-formal educator of 15 years she hopes to use her program development background to lean more into the world of entertaining, and creating experiential, unique dining events! Creating beautiful & memorable experiences for people is one of her favorite things to do. You can follow her journey @enrichment_and_leisure
