Today would have been
@om's 60th birthday.
I’ve been thinking about what made him so special, and part of it was that he had almost no patience for the superficial. Or the mediocre. Or, frankly, anything that had once been excellent and had decided to coast.
That applied to ideas, cameras, design, writing, people, and especially coffee.
Over the years, Om and I made the rounds of many of San Francisco’s best coffee shops. The moment the quality slipped, he was done. No nostalgia. No second chances. By the end, I think Linea, Coffee Movement and Golden Goat were about the only places still in the rotation.
He could be wonderfully curmudgeonly, but it came from caring deeply about things. He noticed quality. He noticed effort. He noticed when someone had taken the time to do something properly.
And he noticed people.
Om was curious, sharp, funny, generous, sentimental, demanding, and deeply loyal. He made people feel seen. He connected people. He encouraged them. He showed up.
I miss his texts, his advice, his very specific opinions, and the sense that somewhere in San Francisco he was probably drinking an excellent coffee and quietly judging everything around him.
Remembering Om today, and every day.