My mom recently returned to Nashville after a week-long visit. She is always lots of fun, and I enjoy the opportunity to show her some of my favorite Bay Area haunts. This trip we had the opportunity to take her to Pican, to Kincaid’s, to Khana Peena, and to the Rrazz Room at the Hotel Nikko (where we saw a great Oleta Adams show ). Always on the lookout for people to feature on my blog, I spotted this man at the Khana Peena lunch buffet. I was quite entertained at what by the contradiction between his trendy style (geeky chic glasses,  cool facial hair and a shaved head) and his schoolkid attire. While his look from the neck up recalled be-bop jazz artists like Dizzy Gillespie, his shirt looked a lot like one that my brother used to wear in grammar school. The unexpected tension between those looks really made me smile, and I couldn’t stop sneaking peeks at this guy while we waited for our bill.

Ajuan Mance