PRINTWaking up with Columbia
Get your day on in the pre-dawn
David Kennedy
About 8 a.m., Kurt Brockman drinks his coffee as the early morning light streams through the windows of Rendezvous Coffeehouse.
November 5, 2009 | 12:00 a.m. CST
Morning is often considered a god-forsaken time of the day in the fall — it’s cold, dark and damp. But it is also the best time to grab a newspaper, find a parking spot and see the sun rise over Broadway. Many Columbians wake in the pre-dawn to catch their proverbial worms. Coffee, morning workouts and radio programs are all up for grabs — if you can stop hitting the snooze button and get out of bed before McDonald’s starts serving burgers. Here’s an hour-by-hour look at what you’ve missed while you were sleeping.
The last thing you want to hear in the morning is the alarm clock sounding the beginning of another work or school day. It’s time to replace that buzz with some beats.
Good Morning
Kanye West
Wake Me Up Before You Go Go
Wham!
I Say A Little Prayer
Aretha Franklin
Walking On Sunshine
Katrina and the Waves
Lovely Day
Bill Withers
Start Me Up
The Rolling Stones
Mr. Blue Sky
Electric Light Orchestra
Welcome to the Jungle
Guns N’ Roses
--Geoff George and Katy Steinmetz
5:15 a.m.
Most of Columbia is sleeping. As Bruce Gordon arrives at the offices of KOPN/89/5 FM, few cars roam the streets. But inside homes from Paris Road to Nifong Boulevard many people are beginning their day. Some abandon the bad jokes and loud ads of commercial radio for the dancing notes of wind and string instruments that Gordon broadcasts on the classical music program Morning Ayre every Tuesday. The show has run on and off since 1973 and is hosted by different volunteers every weekday. “People will say, ‘Oh God, I listen to the news, and I just can take so much of it, and then I have to turn it off, and it’s so nice that I can find some quality music at that time of day,’’’ Gordon says. “This is a story I hear all the time.”
5:30 a.m.
About 60 people meet Tuesdays and Thursdays to run, including members of the Columbia Track and Multisport clubs. The sun is rising as runners emerge like ghosts from the darklit Forum trailhead of the MKT Trail, some wearing headlamps. The group splits into three courses for their 5-to-9 mile workouts. Columbia Track Club member Andy Emerson says running in the morning means plenty of parking spaces, light trail traffic and getting exercise done early. He says he wasn’t a morning person when he started but now finds himself sometimes waking early on days he doesn’t run.
6 a.m.
Down an alley lined by the brick walls of Addison’s and Bleu Restaurant is AlleyCat Yoga. For a small number of committed students, AlleyCat offers a source of natural energy with the Sunrise Kripalu yoga class taught Monday, Wednesday and Friday. The group, usually fewer than 10 people, uses postures, stretching and breathing to center themselves before the workday. Expect to feel energized but also calm and focused after the hour-and-fifteen-minute class. “The benefit of doing yoga in the morning is that it sets the tone for the day,” says Jan Wheeler, who teaches the Friday class. Payment is available via a studio pass or on an individual class basis.
7:30 a.m.
Enjoy the smell of cinnamon rolls, and get that first dose of caffeine while catching the sun rising over Hy-Vee through the front windows of east-facing Rendezvous Coffeehouse. Rendezvous is warmly lit with plenty of wooden furniture and a couch to lounge on. Even by 8 a.m., no laptops and only one cell phone are in use. Owners Stacey Slaughter and Lori Sander greet customers by name. The two serve lattes, espressos and tall Americanos with a smile even though they arrive at 5:15 a.m. to prepare the java and bake pastries before the 6 a.m. opening. Customers trickle in until the morning rush begins around 7 a.m. Sander says morning clients are pleasant, but she tries not to get between them and their double-shot cappuccinos.
8 a.m.
As the wind carries colored leaves off trees, many local birders welcome the return of migrating birds. Currently, wood ducks, American woodpeckers and the occasional bald eagle can all be found roosting in barren tree limbs and on the banks of chilled lakes and rivers. On the first and third Saturdays of every month, the Wild Bird Center hosts bird walks at locations such as Eagle Bluffs and Grindstone Nature Area. Owner Bruce Bynum says birdwatchers of all skill levels are welcome to come watch the temporary residents flap, chirp and hop around. Bring binoculars and a field guide to identify the 30 to 50 species normally spotted in the morning. “We find plenty of birds, just people aren’t out,” Bynum says.
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