Third place as first priority

Why I’m spending 21 straight days in the same Leeds pub.

There are a lot of angles I could use to introduce my next project.

I could tell you I’m writing in the tradition of the esteemed life experimenters, A.J. Jacobs and Jessica Pan.

I could tell you I’m attempting to find a space where my inner and outer worlds more-naturally connect.

I could tell you I’m searching for a furlong of social fabric.

I could tell you my therapist recommended I go to the pub.

All of that is true. But I’m really just looking for belonging. For a sliver of public life. To interact with literally anyone without acting like I enjoy running or dogs.

This is the idea behind The Half Pint Pilgrimage.

I am picking a pub in Leeds and plan to stop in for 21 straight days. I’ll order a half pint, not tip (respectfully, of course! that’s the norm), and simply exist. Everything beyond that is anthropological: I’ll observe how it feels on night 1, night 8, night 18. Maybe I recognize some people, maybe I don’t! Either outcome will inform how I relate to the place.

Why Leeds? Because I liked it. It’s central to a part of me I try to keep in moderation but occasionally relapse into. I’ve long felt like a ghost in NYC. Working for myself has made that even more apparent, but also made me wonder if something else is possible. Besides having a pleasing mid-sized walkable urbanism, I suspect the social fabric might hold me in a way NYC’s simply doesn’t.

I’m happy to work on my projects and explore my town solo during the day. I often prefer it. But having a low-friction social anchor to return to in the evening? That’s the holy grail. I’ve found glimpses of this in my NYC walk group, but I want to see if this exists in another form, one which is embedded into society.

Enter: the British pub. Their technical and cultural aspects resonate with me. You order at the bar. It’s a public living room with beer. They’ve already charged my contactless before I can say “Can I go ahead and close out?”

[If my grandmother reads this: I’ll be sure to pick a place with an Anglican landlord. I think that would be important to her?]

I’ve been circling this feeling for years: reading alone in Starbucks on Friday nights, craving conversation on solo trips, wondering why breweries in the U.S. never quite scratch the itch. When I took my rhythms to North Carolina recently, the people were friendly, but I was the only one on the sidewalk. I kept trying to tell myself the qUaLiTy Of LiFe was high, but something kept stirring. Urbanism matters to me, a sense of place matters to me.

I’ve been chasing some version of this for over a decade. Now that I have a physical container that carries a fluid ounce of hope, I’m going to see it through. And rather than squeezing into social norms that never really served me, I’m going to do what I do in all my From Scratch projects: trust my instincts, forge my own path.

Some people (in my texts, sent by me) are already referring to this experiment as the Supersize Me of Yorkshire. I remember that dude taking a physical exam at the start and end of his experiment. Do you think the NHS would do that, but for my mental health? Please ask questions that get at the patient's sense of possibility.

The Half Pint Pilgrimage begins later this summer. My updates will be split between full essays here and smaller dispatches on Notes. I’ve promised myself I’ll produce one standalone essay out of this, but that is the floor, not the ceiling.

If you've ever had a friend who wouldn't shut up about the lack of third places or simply enjoyed sitting at the bar by themselves, I hope you'll share this project with them.

If this describes you: amazing! Thanks for being here!

More to come!

Please send any competitive bids explaining why I should pick your local pub.

The deadline was 5 minutes ago.

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