Venga! Pull Up a Chair.

The glow from my gaming keyboard is a familiar sight. It’s usually the last thing I see after a long night of research for the Swansonium Institute or my many projects, fueled by coffee and a constant stream of RSS feeds.

From my home office, I can hear the sounds of my town waking up, the rumble of delivery trucks, the occasional sharp bark from the neighbor’s dog, a friendly “Hola!” shouted across the street.

That’s the work.

But eventually, you have to hit pause. You have to close the monitors, push back from the desk, and step into the life.

For me, that means heading upstairs to what I call the Dragon’s Terrace.

My cat, Freedom, follows me as I grab a cold beer from the fridge. It’s a Victoria today, a sweet and simple session beer that’s perfect for a Saturday afternoon. I pick a glass based on my mood and pour, the condensation instantly blooming on the side.

Out here, the world shifts. The air smells faintly of the Mediterranean. The sun is warm, the sky is a deep, cloudless blue, and in the distance, I can just make out the monolithic shadow of the Rock of Gibraltar.

This is the VengaDragon moment.

On the table in front of me is a marble coaster to match the floors, that cold sweating glass, my cigar cutter, and a Macanudo Inspirado Red. It’s my staple, an inexpensive but reliable smoke that gets the job done. This isn’t about luxury; it’s about the ritual.

The sounds from the street below are different from up here. They’re softer, punctuated by a word I hear a dozen times a day: “Venga!” A friendly goodbye, a gentle “come on,” an invitation. It’s the perfect name for this place.

If you’ve read my “About” page, you know this is the conversation at the pub afterwards. And while this terrace isn’t a pub, the spirit is the same. Writing here isn’t work. It’s therapeutic. It’s my way of quieting the noise, of finding purpose, and of challenging myself to think about the world from a place of gratitude.

It’s me taking a moment to savor the good stuff, a cold beer, a good cigar, a view of the mountains and sea and sharing it. This is the first gem from the hoard.

So, pull up a chair. The first round’s on me.

Venga!

– Mark (VengaDragon)

Now it’s your turn.

What’s your “Dragon’s Terrace”? The place or ritual you have to hit pause and savor the good stuff?