No Parking Anytime: 'Thorny' helps community show off its human side

Along Thorndyke Avenue West, a formerly forgettable stretch between the Burlington Northern railroad tracks and the upscale homes and shops in Magnolia, there's a sign of change.

It's a plastic robot.

Seven months ago, Patrick Mouton put the 2-foot-tall, white figure with rectangular pink eyes at the edge of the strip mall where his cafe, the Brewhaha, is located.

In a neighborhood where there used to be graffiti and where Mouton's car once got stolen at 4 p.m., he figured the robot would be gone by now. But "Thorny" remains on Thorndyke. And someone -- Mouton doesn't know who -- even put a cup in the robot's hands. And in the cup, they put pink, yellow and white flowers.

"To me, it has come to symbolize how our little neighborhood has come together," Mouton said.

Probably more significant than a robot's survival are the shops that have opened in the past few months. Aside from the coffee shop, which opened five years ago, Thorndyke Plaza was deserted except for a catering business and an entertainment promoter office closed to the public.

But in March, a pho restaurant was opened by a former cable guy who hadn't been able to find lunch when he made calls in the area. And in April, a former postal worker, Mike Walters and his wife, Sarah, opened a nail salon in the mall.

"Rents here are inexpensive," John Davis said. "It's like what happened in Georgetown."

A furniture store opened across the street about five weeks ago, Walters said. This week, Davis, 35, was renovating an empty storefront nearby with plans to open a Cuban and Salvadoran restaurant, he said.

"This area hasn't been discovered yet," Mike Walters said. "People drove by with a tunnel vision, and they didn't notice anything here because there wasn't anything to notice.

"But now there are things here to notice."

Mouton's cafe has become a gathering spot for the neighborhood, Walters said. "He's almost like a bartender. It's sort of like 'Cheers.' "

Mouton said he used to be a social worker, mainly trying to help drug-addicted and homeless youths. "I find I'm using the same listening skills," he said.

Apartments nearby are increasingly being turned into condos.

"A lot of people live alone, or they might not relate to people at work, so the most extensive conversations they have is here at the cafe," Mouton said.

He hadn't seen the robot as a symbol when he set it outside.

He was just trying to get rid of it.

"I go to yard sales a lot," he said. In his store, old LPs hang in the windows. "I used to have the robot inside because I thought it was kind of cool. But all my friends were like: 'That robot has to go. What does that have to do with coffee?' "

But what if people inject life into the tired neighborhood and it gets so popular that rents go up and the people who gave it life have to leave?

"I do worry about that," Mouton said. "Rents get so expensive; every street gets a Subway, a Starbucks and a Jamba Juice. And it looks like every other street with a Subway, a Starbucks and a Jamba Juice."

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Living in the city has its great moments, the overheard conversations that stick in your mind and the memorable scenes on the street. And, it has its hassles -- such as looking for a place to park and seeing signs that say "No Parking Anytime." This is a periodic look at the times that describe life in Seattle. Let us know when you come across one of those moments. E-mail kerymurakami@seattlepi.com.