Over the years I have been defined by an odd collection of items. I'm the friend who loves penguins, the quiet girl in the red chucks, the gazelle, and the girl with unexpected tastes (my geekiness, taste in alcohol, and eclectic music will often catch people off guard for some reason). Probably the most persistent thing has been my addiction to caffeine though. In high school I was the girl that never drank coffee but had a bottle of Mountain Dew always on her desk. Because of this my friends at the time got their homerooms to vote me as the "Biggest Caffeine Addict" in our high school poll, luckily not the year book. I always felt that this was a bit unfair but I got a coffee mug out of it, so I didn't complain too much. When I started my Freshman year of college, this soda habit of mine kind reached its extreme, so I tried to cut back a bit my Sophomore year. But at this point my addiction was pretty set in stone and I actually would go through withdrawal symptoms. Eventually my friends began to tell me that it really wasn't worth the headaches to completely remove the caffeine from my life. So I gradually started switching over to coffee, which is now my preferred form of stimulant. And while I hate to prove people right, I'm pretty sure I only function throughout the day at this point due to the multiple cups of coffee and tea I consume.
Since coffee is such a defining element in my life, I have visited a good portion of the local coffee shops that are around. I probably stop at Crazy Mocha the most, just because it is the most frequent one to see after Starbucks, but I've gotten cups at The Coffee Tree, Beehive, Commonplace, and Allegheny Coffee and Tea Exchange, to name a few. Tonight's sticker is another local coffee shop that I've managed to get to, but it was a bit of an aggravating journey. Even before I started wandering the city looking for stickers on a regular basis, I would often just wander the city to feel like I was doing something. It was on one of these early trips that I came across Zeke's Coffee. I didn't end up stopping at the time, but it was a name that managed to stick my head. So when I started collecting stickers again and kept coming across the Zeke's bumper sticker, I knew it was a coffee shop but for the life of me could never remember where. Now I could have done the sensible thing and actually go to the website to find it's location, but instead I let the question linger and bug me. Finally I was wandering around East Liberty looking for some new stickers and I rediscovered the coffee shop's location, ending my minor agony. They are a nice little find though whether you need just a cup of coffee or a bag for home since they are a coffee roaster with ties to a company in Baltimore as well. Chad from Zeke's was kind enough to answer me when I reached out about their sticker. Our "FUELED BY ZEKE'S" bumper stickers were originally conceived by our HQ company in Baltimore. It's been our "motto" since the beginning. The stickers are phrased in my favorite form of advertising which causes the reader to explore. I've always loved advertising that is interactive and encourages participants to become involved in some way. If you're unfamiliar with what Zeke's is.. you have to look into it, and the Fueled By Zeke's moniker doesn't tell you right away what we're selling.. you have to dig a little. Bumper stickers also veil the message a bit in and of their placement.... "is Zeke's a gas station? is it an electric company? is it some type of automotive additive? It leaves the reader a fun surprise at the end of their research.. and gives them the "OH HA! it's none of those things! Coffee! yea! I'm fueled by coffee too!" We're a playful company at heart, but also very much hard working. We like to have fun with the public when we can, and the stickers help with that in a way. We give the stickers out for free and our fans seem to love them... so we keep making them. We've had people send us photos from all over the world where they've placed our Fueled by stickers. It's just good fun. I do kind of love that aura of mystery that these stickers are designed to create. It shows a dedication to getting the public involved with their shop and not just looking to get their name out there. And even though my search for Zeke's was a little different from most, the fact that they are looking to give people a journey of discovery is a bit of validation on my end. If you're a coffee fan I highly suggest giving them a try, they are a great mix of things and have a nice variety of roasts to choose from without being truly overwhelming. You can also probably grab a sticker while you're there to continue getting people to question what in the world a Zeke's is.
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Maggie Ondrey
An amateur photographer and writer capturing a small portion of the city. Archives
August 2017
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