Rabbitfoot Records: My Home Not-So-Far-Away From Home

Sanford has always tried to be good at coffee.

But seriously? Any coffee place that doesn't open until 10am is pretty useless. Same goes for places that just serve coffee as an afterthought, despite touting themselves as a breakfast joint. These places have come and gone so much over the years I've lost track. Fortunately, I'm not a die-hard coffee drinker, so it's not a huge deal for me.

So you can imagine how very mild my excitement was when Rabbitfoot Records opened on First street. It seemed like a cool concept, vinyl records and coffee, but mostly I was just impressed that an established business from Titusville would even consider opening a second store in Sanford.

BUT THEN, I visited for the first time. There I was, just a silly little girl with a laptop, searching for some wifi. Little did I know, I had just stumbled on the place I would be spending pretty much every day of my life for the rest of my life. Little did I know, I'm way more hipster than I ever thought. Little did I know, I was meeting my downstairs neighbors for the first time. Little did I know, I'm actually super into vinyl. Little did I know, I had a void all along, a tiny cavity in my heart that was gently calling out "Rabbitfooooot....Rabbitfooooot!". Little did I know, my life was not quite complete.

Actually, let's back up. I was at the beginning of a really rough breakup when I first found Rabbitfoot. It's all kind of a blur, but my most vivid memories of that time period all take place at Rabbitfoot, whether it's arguing on the phone while being harassed by a homeless man outside on the sidewalk or frantically going through my online banking and realizing someone close to me was stealing my money. In between those moments of anxiety were Bailey offering me a complimentary Perrier and Tiffany giving me the longest, most comforting hug I had in a while.

That being said, Rabbitfoot is the bomb. The first day I went there, I met a veeeery pregnant Kendra and Tiffany. We chatted timidly at first, but it quickly became apparent that I was dealing with two extremely quirky ladies with a snarky sense of humor...like myself. They were also worldly, cultured and...

Who am I kidding? They were cool as shit.

We ended up getting sandwiches at Magnolia Square Market (with my discount!). I was super excited to go back. I ended up there probably every other day, drinking chai lattes and chatting up whoever was working.

The coffee (organic from Columbia) is actually great, even though I have a strange relationship with coffee in general. I usually get what I call the Sumalee Special, iced green tea with a touch of honey. The pastries, made by Get Just Desserts, are very tasty and may be responsible for a slight weight gain on my part.

The music portion of the store is awesome. You can request to play any of the vinyl for sale, and take it home if you like it. It's a far cry from these impulsive days of skipping songs you don't like or pressing shuffle. There's something cool and communal about listen to records. You commit to one artist, one album, you anticipate tracks, you have to flip it midway. It's a new experience for many in my generation that, like the atmosphere at Rabbitfoot, forces you to slow down and really enjoy something.

But really, my very favorite part is the people. Rob and Kendra are just kickass, and I'm really happy they chose Sanford. (Rob is actually my boyfriend's boyfriend, in case you didn't know. Deep down I know that what we have can never match what they have. Or at least that's that they both tell me.) I love talking to Tiffany about pretty much anything because she is funny as hell. Austin and I always swap server stories and his ability to deal with the shit select customers say amazes me. Collectively, they are all a witty, low-key bunch who are just as happy to make you a coffee as they are to spend the afternoon making a new snark-buddy. (Only cool people need apply.)


In other words, I think a visit to Rabbitfoot should be mandatory for anyone visiting Sanford. Their coffee and music alone are impressive, but the atmosphere is truly what people come to small towns for.

Find them on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rabbitfootrecordssanford
(Also, all of the photos minus Rob and my selfie were stolen from their FB page. So I take no credit for the awesome signs.)

Sunday Funday: How I Totally Lost Rob's Fork

 I always think hosting at the Willow Tree is funny because I'm basically standing in the middle of the sidewalk on the street on which I grew up, currently live, and regularly drink, with a big 'ole smile on my face for nine hours. I'm pretty much guaranteed to run into people I know all day, while sweating my ass off.

Today, Rob from Rabbitfoot was walking past the restaurant, said, "Hey, Jeremy needs your house keys. I'm going to get ice", then reappeared five minutes later with two bags of ice, sticking his hand out. As I handed them over, it occurred to me for a split second that I was giving my keys to someone I wasn't related to, wasn't dating, that I have only known for six months, and who asked for them while strolling down the street on his way to do something else. 

....woah.

Then I blinked, remembered I was in Sanford, and things didn't seem so weird. 

And Rob IS my boyfriend's boyfriend, after all. 

That incident inspired me to spend my break shooting the shit at Rabbitfoot, so I walked my food (single mettwurst with side salad, thousand island, chipotle mayo, bier cheese soup and french bread, thanks for asking) over there on a Willow Tree plate.

BUT! I forgot a fork, and almost had to go all the way upstairs to get one. Luckily, Rob loaned me a fork (AND a knife). (Whoa, close one.)

BUT THEN. I took the plate back to work, and unknowingly shanghaied Rob's cutlery! I wrapped it in a napkin so I could drop them off when I went home. (I'm responsible.)

Meanwhile, some jack ass pulled into the alley to do a three-point and yelled, "What up, girl?" I was prepared to be pissed, since catcalling is the bane of my existence, but it was Percy! Hell yeah, I love it when my favorite people from other bars visit our bar!

BUT THEN. While I was distracted, someone bussed the fork and knife and put them in the dishpit! I felt horrible. Rob's cutlery was lost forever in Willow Tree dishwashing purgatory!

Okay, not really, but that's how it felt.

So, I swung by Rabbitfoot on my way home and begged forgiveness (barely granted), and listened to Rob's ideas for wall art. (It's gonna be great.)

I went upstairs and did some serious clean up in my apartment. I even put the shade on my lamp that Jeb fixed for me! He took it from my house at Martini Monday before the commission meeting to fix it, and I just picked it up this last Martini Monday at the Shining Casa. (What can I say? I never make it uptown enough.) I gotta tell you, it's like a whole different room in here. I never realized I missed this lamp so much!

Later on, Jeremy decided to go out for beer so we could watch the Big Lebowski. When he came back, he said, "I just ran into Sada downstairs."

"Really? What was he doing over here?" I never run into Sada on my block. He must have been on a mission. You know. Because it's such a long walk from the Willow Tree to my house. "Is he coming upstairs?"

"He said something about returning Rob's fork?"

Whew, what a relief. Man, I love Sanford.