Before We Talk
A short audio note before every Grey Revolution conversation — who we are, what the episode is about, and what to expect. No script to memorize. Just a few minutes to know what is coming.
Connie McHugh-Griesmeyer
Manning's Coffee — the customer's side of the counter · Tacoma native · St. Patrick's & Bellarmine
Ruth Miller stood behind the counter at 11th and Commerce from 1939 to 1954. Connie sat at it. She's one of the few who can still tell us what Manning's was like from the stools — before the fire of September 21, 1963 took the building, and the mall took the reason.
Before we talk, I'll be asking you:
- Who took you to Manning's — and what was the occasion?
- What do you remember ordering — and what did the place smell like?
- Do you remember the day it burned — or the day you realized it was gone?
They already ran State Street Beer and Lander Coffee. Then they opened a bike shop. Named it after their oldest child. This is the owner story.
Q1 — Tell me about the conversation with your dad — the one where this actually became real, not just a dream.
Q2 — You and Alicia already had two businesses. Why bikes? Why now?
Q3 — The shop is named after your oldest. What do you want them to understand about what you built here when they are old enough to ask?
He started in a moldy garage. Trained most of his competition. Strips the San Franciscan roaster to bare bones every Wednesday. There is no third crack.
Q1 — You mentioned black and white photos of the race cars somewhere. Could we look at those together?
Q2 — The grease pit — eight feet down, grandfathered in. Could you show me?
Q3 — Your wife and you, never far. Would she be willing to be in one shot together?
Co-author of Manning's: A Success Formula with Tracey Pemberton. Internet entrepreneur, digital marketer, and Tacoma resident. Meeting to explore the Manning's series and what didn't make it into the book.
Q1 — What did you find in the Manning's research that didn't make it into the book?
Q2 — Is there a collaboration model that serves both Locke and Kant and The Grey Revolution?
Q3 — What are you building next?
Founder of Cycling Over Sixty, board member of TWBC, podcast host, filmmaker behind BIKE RX. Building the Tacoma cycling community pilot. Meeting to explore what Cycling Over Sixty and The Silver Peloton can build together.
Q1 — The Tacoma community pilot — what have you learned so far that surprised you?
Q2 — BIKE RX sits at the intersection of cycling and health. Where does that story go next?
Q3 — What does a collaboration between Cycling Over Sixty and The Grey Revolution actually look like in practice?