DNA Science Matt McCabe plays his last set at Caffe Lena in December. He passed away from COVID on January 12. (Sarah Craig) When a new variant of the COVID-19 virus appeared in the UK as 2020 drew to a close, I didn’t think it would show up a half hour’s drive from my home soon after. The first cases were near Denver and in San Diego, and then traced to a jewelry store on Broadway in Saratoga Springs. We’ve felt rather insulated and isolated here, hours from New York City. The Legacy of Caffe Lena This week began with an email from Sarah Craig, executive director of Caffe Lena, the oldest coffeehouse in the US. Don McLean debuted “American Pie” there, Arlo Guthrie first tried out “Alice’s Restaurant,” and Bob Dylan and many others have commanded the iconic tiny stage in the small, homey establishment that opened in 1960.