From all appearances, our first Breakfast with the Board was a success: about three dozen people chatting with the two board members who were present (Bill Beck and Gary Macfarlane), lots of comments, a platter full of scones eaten and a pot of coffee drunk.

The opinion question of the month was whether the Co-op should offer wireless Internet to customers. The “No” responses outnumbered the “Yes” responses about 2 to 1 in our unscientific tally.

Some of the “yes”es included comments like “My college-age son would spend more time in the Co-op if there was wireless,” “You could turn it off during lunch,” “It would be more inclusive,” “There are 3 people sitting alone reading books right now, is reading better than the Internet? Are you making a value judgment about Internet users?” and “We need more places for students to feel welcome.”

Some of the “no”s included comments such as “There’s not enough space in the deli during busy hours,” “It’s refreshing not to have it at the Co-op, there are so many other places that have it,” “It breaks up the idea of community,” “It stops the warmth of human communication,” and “I think this would violate one of the Co-op's core missions, which is to be a third place for the community to come together.”

Some offered technical suggestions along the lines of making it available but with a time limit for each person, some suggested that if we do it we’d need to make sure our network was protected from hacking and viruses.

Another concern a few people mentioned was not wanting the “waves” from the wireless signal – but I’m afraid that there are few places in the world immune from wireless signals and the Co-op is not one of them. If you open your laptop in the deli and look at your wireless scanner, you’ll see a number of locked signals coming in from nearby networks, including the Co-op’s own network for staff. So the “waves” are a fact of life.

Wireless aside, from an operations perspective, the many comments about the “busy deli” give me the idea that members and customers should not be afraid to share tables with each other, even strangers, during busy periods, like people do in Europe where every café is crowded all the time. Members and customers can also encourage each other in a friendly and polite way to not camp out studying or reading at tables during busy times when people need a place to sit and eat. It doesn’t have to be confrontational — probably the “offending party” hasn’t even noticed the problem.

So, the next time you’re eating alone during a busy lunchtime in the deli and you see someone in need of a seat, do the co-operative thing and offer them a seat with a smile. And if you’re one to read or study at the Co-op, we’re so glad our deli offers you a good place to be — please just be mindful if there are others in need of a seat as well. This “busy-ness” is something we staff can do little to change but it is within our customers’ power to make those times more pleasant for everyone.

Thanks to everyone who took the time to stop and talk, and feel free to contact me with topics you’d like addressed at future Breakfasts.

Next month’s Breakfast with the Board (BB) will be on Saturday, May 30, at 11 a.m., in the Co-op near the deli. May’s opinion question, inspired by member comments at the April BB will be: Is there too little, too much, or the right amount of packaging for items in the Co-op?