I almost feel bad, like I need to pare this entry down…I feel like it’s going to be a long one, but maybe I can be succinct. Okay, for starters, I mentioned yesterday that people are weird (aka- clown guy, too strange). Well, people are amazing, sometimes too. Witnessing firsthand the strength of people doing amazingly resilient things, like surviving when all odds are against them.
A couple came in today and walked up to the counter, looking helplessly homeless and disgusting and WAY too close for comfort to my personal space, namely my olfactory receptors. Guests are guests, I guess, I immediately pasted on a shocked, eyes not blinking smile (Stepford wives fashion)…
(Shamefully I wanted them to get away from our counter, pronto! Because I felt like they were bad for business. I certainly didn’t want them touching anything…how horrible is that?). They asked if they could use the phone and then sit inside while they waited on a friend to come help them with their car. They motioned out the window and despite the fact that I didn’t expect to see a car, I did. If they could call it a car. No exaggeration whatsoever, this was like a flintstones car. I wouldn’t have been surprised to see a dinosaur pet pop its head out the roof. The car had no taillights at all, not just missing the red part, but the bulbs and everything. Just gaping holes. One headlight, the other a gaping hole there too. Both doors were makeshift from another brand of car. The car didn’t have a color because there was no one surface area big enough to really justify being painted. All of the “car” was scraped together from different brands. The “trunk” (I use the term lightly) was being held to the car with rope, not good strong rope, but rope from a dumpster (rope that I actually saw in our Starbucks dumpster when I took the trash out yesterday). Anyway, I got a really good look at the car when I outside later on a break. There is no way that car could be legal. They barely had a windshield. The first thing I thought was, when they filled out paperwork on Make and Model and Year…what on earth would they write?!? I guess they wouldn’t have that problem as they probably didn’t deal with much paperwork. That wasn’t a car- that was four wheels and a running board. (lyrics from a song my mom’s dad used to sing)
My initial response was, “Sure, you can have a seat anywhere…” and I wanted to ask if they wanted some towels to wipe off their faces and hands and stuff so that they wouldn’t scare people away. Not surprised they could be dirty when they were practically pedaling that car down the street. Instead, I asked if they wanted cups of water, and as much as I wanted to offer them coffee, I wanted MORE for them to be out of my line of sight and smell. PLUS- I didn’t want them staying longer than necessary. We have our fair share of loiterers and panhandling, the last I wanted to have to do was ask them to leave if push came to shove and they tried to stick around all day…
The guy said, “Sure! Water’d be great! We haven’t had much good happen to us lately, so anything is appreciated. My wife just got through beating colon cancer.” Okay, so either this was a great feel-sorry-for-us story or these people had really hit a rough patch. So, I broke down, “Do you want to share a cup of coffee while you wait?” They said No…so I scratched off “panhandling” from the list. Whatever, maybe they were just broke down in their “car” and having trouble getting to wherever they were going… I went back to work, doing my MOD thing (manager on duty, but I prefer the initials, as it makes me sound incredibly hardcore and cool… “Ya down with M-O-D? Yeah, you know me…” Don’t act like you don’t know the song…)
Half an hour passed, the “friends” showed up, in a very nice, new car, gave the flintstones some gas from a container, didn’t bother to come in and get any coffee, didn’t even come in to say thanks for helping, just hugged the couple (yuck! Again, how horrible is it that I was thinking that?), handed them the red gas container, waited to make sure the car started (miraculously it did, as well as emitted about a day’s worth of smog into the air from the front and the back of the car in the process), and the friends left. The guy came back in and said “Thanks so much!” and he left. I walked over to the door, kind of waved, and kept that shocked, deer in headlights look on my face. I had nothing to say…speechless.
These people didn’t want my help nor need it. I wasn’t going to save them…they were stronger than me, even if they barely had a car and probably didn’t have a really nice, soft bed with super clean sheets and comfy pillows to sleep on, curled up in an air-conditioned room. I had never beat colon cancer, but I did have to call my roommate in college once to bring me gas, so maybe I’m stronger than I thought! Hhhmm?
As I was getting ready to come into my apartment tonight, I thought about the couple. My job isn’t exactly a “clean” job. (I’ve had the “clean” jobs before…where I could shower in the morning and still feel that clean after a full day of work because it was an office, sit down job). I mean, I’m not blue collar, doing construction in the heat or anything. And I’m certainly not working up a sweat all day, but even if I just make three drinks, I can guarantee that I will have some kind of concoction on my clothes, hands, and arms. And tonight was no exception as I unlocked my apartment door, I looked down at my forearms to notice dark brown streaks (not too dissimilar from self-tanning lotion gone horribly wrong) running from my elbows to my wrists.
In my show-boating of making three Frappuccinos for a family this evening somewhere between the homeless couple and closing time (at a time when I sent the barista to the back to do dishes), I got a little delirious and my confidence was running extremely high. Please imagine- me with two blenders, pouring espresso, milk, syrups, ice, all at warp speed while trying to spin the whipped cream metal containers on my fingers before I spray it on top. Then picture the whipped cream hitting the drinks, knocking them all three onto the counter while the customers watch, their smiles turning into looks of horror in what felt like slow motion, it was pandemonium for a brief moment. Needless to say, drinks were re-made all around and I sent myself to do dishes.
Where’s the clown when you need him???
Monday, August 2, 2010
C'est La Vie
People are weird. And if that’s new news for you, then spend a Sunday afternoon in a Starbucks sometime. You will leave knowing that I speak the truth.
Today (well, yesterday, at this point), me and my co-worker witnessed one of the weirdest of people to ever visit our store. I am not just talking about eclectic. I am talking about weird.
Let me play this out and the reader can be the judge:
A clown walks into a Starbucks. (This is not a joke, this is my reality) A clown walks into a Starbucks, talking on his cell phone. As if this isn’t weird enough, he actually puts his hand up to say, “Just a second” when I ask him what he would like to order. When he reaches a stopping point in his conversation, he cups his hand over the mouthpiece and whispers, “Grande Skinny Vanilla Latte” and I keep staring at him, waiting for the punch line…? I even say, “Is that going to be all for you today? Would you like a muffin or scone? Or perhaps an appointment with a shrink?” haha…ha? He just smiles and resumes his conversation, about airplane flights. And he is speaking in an English accent that is perfectly articulated and not at all overdone, in a very unclownlike manner. hhhmm?
He is not a “happy” clown, like, his clown face is smiling, but his real face is pretty wrinkly and the make-up is a little smeared and sweaty looking. He’s not channeling Joker from Batman or anything but I definitely wouldn’t hire him for a kid’s birthday party, unless I wanted to kids to be scared and crying. He had the clown shirt and clown make-up, as well as a weird hat, weird tie, but he was wearing regular pants and shoes. I would have thought, maybe, it was an accident, like he didn’t realize that his face was painted and he was wearing a red nose and a fluffy tuxedo shirt because his pants looked nice and the shoes were polished. He paid for his coffee with a credit card, which was even weirder, like I expected him to pay in Monopoly money or something.
I mean, we give free drinks to people in uniform, but this was a little much. I was dying to ask him what the deal was, but he made it clear with his “do not disturb” hand gestures, that he didn’t want to be bothered. The fact that the clown was on the phone the whole time was funny, because, seriously, how popular was the guy. It was the most bizarre of situations, made weirder by the fact that he acted nothing was out of the ordinary…maybe the joke was on us. And that is pretty funny after all!
So, yeah, Sundays are strange days in Starbucks. We have our church people coming in to spend $5 on coffee so that they can go to church and not tithe. Haha. I’m kidding, but probably right on the money.
I will have to see what today has in store. Mondays can be pretty interesting, too.
Today (well, yesterday, at this point), me and my co-worker witnessed one of the weirdest of people to ever visit our store. I am not just talking about eclectic. I am talking about weird.
Let me play this out and the reader can be the judge:
A clown walks into a Starbucks. (This is not a joke, this is my reality) A clown walks into a Starbucks, talking on his cell phone. As if this isn’t weird enough, he actually puts his hand up to say, “Just a second” when I ask him what he would like to order. When he reaches a stopping point in his conversation, he cups his hand over the mouthpiece and whispers, “Grande Skinny Vanilla Latte” and I keep staring at him, waiting for the punch line…? I even say, “Is that going to be all for you today? Would you like a muffin or scone? Or perhaps an appointment with a shrink?” haha…ha? He just smiles and resumes his conversation, about airplane flights. And he is speaking in an English accent that is perfectly articulated and not at all overdone, in a very unclownlike manner. hhhmm?
He is not a “happy” clown, like, his clown face is smiling, but his real face is pretty wrinkly and the make-up is a little smeared and sweaty looking. He’s not channeling Joker from Batman or anything but I definitely wouldn’t hire him for a kid’s birthday party, unless I wanted to kids to be scared and crying. He had the clown shirt and clown make-up, as well as a weird hat, weird tie, but he was wearing regular pants and shoes. I would have thought, maybe, it was an accident, like he didn’t realize that his face was painted and he was wearing a red nose and a fluffy tuxedo shirt because his pants looked nice and the shoes were polished. He paid for his coffee with a credit card, which was even weirder, like I expected him to pay in Monopoly money or something.
I mean, we give free drinks to people in uniform, but this was a little much. I was dying to ask him what the deal was, but he made it clear with his “do not disturb” hand gestures, that he didn’t want to be bothered. The fact that the clown was on the phone the whole time was funny, because, seriously, how popular was the guy. It was the most bizarre of situations, made weirder by the fact that he acted nothing was out of the ordinary…maybe the joke was on us. And that is pretty funny after all!
So, yeah, Sundays are strange days in Starbucks. We have our church people coming in to spend $5 on coffee so that they can go to church and not tithe. Haha. I’m kidding, but probably right on the money.
I will have to see what today has in store. Mondays can be pretty interesting, too.
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Mochas, and Lattes, and Crickets- OH MY!!
I’m going to go a little “Hollywood” in this blog, and by Hollywood, I mean a little bit between Cinderella and Indiana Jones (the last crusade one with Sean Connery, not the one with the weird chanting or strange voodoo doll), and maybe a dash of Sleepless in Seattle and While You Were Sleeping thrown in for good measure. And since I’m covering my romantic comedy bases, I have to throw One Fine Day out there even though I didn’t like Michelle Phieffer, George Clooney swooned his caesar hair-cutted way into my heart with that film and I will find a way to reference it today.
So, once upon a time, that time being today, this morning, I started upon doing some early morning tasks outside the store. I was assessing the front of the building, the signage and the tables and chairs outside. I went to get the umbrellas to roll them into their perspective spots on the patio when LO AND BEHOLD, what should I find but masses and masses of CRICKETS guarding the base of the umbrella with their little black-shiny-metal-looking-armored bodies. They were starting at me all beady-eyed and prepared to pounce at the first sign of movement. I could hear it in their chirping, they were sending messages back and forth like warp speed morse-code, I just knew they were saying, “imposter alert, big tall monster kill us will she…step on us, monster will…” (I don’t know why the crickets talk like Yoda, but it seemed fitting). I know people would wonder why don’t I just step on these little guys, just kill them and put them out of MY misery…well, it’s like the scene in Indiana Jones where Indy has to go into the snakes and he says, “Snakes…it’s ALWAYS snakes…” and if I killed the crickets:
1. I wouldn’t be able to say this line everytime I see them and I LOVE that line because the word “snakes” can be replaced with ANYTHING, like, if it starts raining on a busy day, one could say, “Rain…it’s ALWAYS rain…” haha! Or, if someone JUST got their car washed and a bird poops, “Poop…it’s ALWAYS poop…” See, isn’t it great?!?!
2. I am SERIOUSLY, cripplingly afraid of them. It’s the same with roaches…not only can I NOT kill them, I can’t even get CLOSE enough to them to shoo them away. That whole saying about “they are more scared of you than you are of them…” whoever said that nonsense probably never was chased by a roach…and that is some SCARY crazy stuff that a person can never forget, I would imagine, at least.
My dilemma was made worse by the fact that I wasn’t even working on the clock yet. So, here I was, sacrificing my life among this army of morse-code talking crickets and I wasn’t even getting paid for this! I was just assessing how the “open” went before I took over the shift at 6 a.m. and it so happens that the chairs and umbrellas weren’t set up yet so out of the goodness of my heart, I was risking my well-being and my sanity fighting for the rights of the Starbucks umbrellas (aka- the beasts, as they two of the hardest monstrosities to maneuver) all while basically VOLUNTEERING my time.
I left well enough alone. It was too hot for customers to sit outside anyway, and I could send the barista, a young girl who doesn’t know to be afraid of crickets just yet, to set the umbrellas up later as I had more “important” manager duties to do, like restock the straws or something safe like that, haha.
Anyway, the other Hollywood things I was mulling today occurred because a very handsome (married) cop came in and said that his buddies were asking him about me (because he spends a lot of time on his patrol around our store). His buddies had been in several times, but they don’t work in the area, so I had never really chatted with them as I had with him before. I told him to “hook a sister up” (aka, introduce me sometime).
When I am working behind the counter, I’m always waiting for that amazing, God-inspired moment like from “While You Were Sleeping” to happen. And I don’t mean in a way of I’m waiting for God to bless me with some kind of miracle, not that I DON’T expect that, but like I’ve said before, I know that we are often the product of the decisions we make and I have been amazingly blessed with opportunity, but partly because of my own selfishness and blindness to the truth, I had let some things slip away in my life and even in other instances hurt people that were important to me, but I think we have all done this to some degree at different times in our lives, and if we turn our hearts inward or our heads away from possible blessings in the future, we may miss what God is wanting us to see.
All that to say, I’d love to just have some movie character moment where I can jump into the subway and save the life of the brother of the man of my dreams (While You Were Sleeping)…or maybe meet someone who is Sleepless in Dallas because I served them too much coffee! Haha. Or maybe, I can have One Fine Day that George Clooney comes in to order an Iced Coffee with cold half and half and Splenda and I can say, “That’s MY favorite drink, too!” and he can say, “When’s your next break…? Because I’d like to steal you away…” and I can say, “You already stole my heart…” Okay, hopefully it won’t be that corny, but meeting him would rock.
Most of the great romantic comedies and even adventure movies, these Hollywood fairyish tales start with the female being in some compromising situation. My job isn’t exactly “compromising,” unless, of course, we take into consideration the crickets. But, I think that I can still anticipate my Cinderella Happily Ever Cricket-free After. I may even get a "get out of jail free" for traffic tickets if I play my cards right! Between working at a hot spot for "chance meetings" and attending church on Saturday (singles) night, I think I stand a pretty good shot at my Happy Ending.
So, once upon a time, that time being today, this morning, I started upon doing some early morning tasks outside the store. I was assessing the front of the building, the signage and the tables and chairs outside. I went to get the umbrellas to roll them into their perspective spots on the patio when LO AND BEHOLD, what should I find but masses and masses of CRICKETS guarding the base of the umbrella with their little black-shiny-metal-looking-armored bodies. They were starting at me all beady-eyed and prepared to pounce at the first sign of movement. I could hear it in their chirping, they were sending messages back and forth like warp speed morse-code, I just knew they were saying, “imposter alert, big tall monster kill us will she…step on us, monster will…” (I don’t know why the crickets talk like Yoda, but it seemed fitting). I know people would wonder why don’t I just step on these little guys, just kill them and put them out of MY misery…well, it’s like the scene in Indiana Jones where Indy has to go into the snakes and he says, “Snakes…it’s ALWAYS snakes…” and if I killed the crickets:
1. I wouldn’t be able to say this line everytime I see them and I LOVE that line because the word “snakes” can be replaced with ANYTHING, like, if it starts raining on a busy day, one could say, “Rain…it’s ALWAYS rain…” haha! Or, if someone JUST got their car washed and a bird poops, “Poop…it’s ALWAYS poop…” See, isn’t it great?!?!
2. I am SERIOUSLY, cripplingly afraid of them. It’s the same with roaches…not only can I NOT kill them, I can’t even get CLOSE enough to them to shoo them away. That whole saying about “they are more scared of you than you are of them…” whoever said that nonsense probably never was chased by a roach…and that is some SCARY crazy stuff that a person can never forget, I would imagine, at least.
My dilemma was made worse by the fact that I wasn’t even working on the clock yet. So, here I was, sacrificing my life among this army of morse-code talking crickets and I wasn’t even getting paid for this! I was just assessing how the “open” went before I took over the shift at 6 a.m. and it so happens that the chairs and umbrellas weren’t set up yet so out of the goodness of my heart, I was risking my well-being and my sanity fighting for the rights of the Starbucks umbrellas (aka- the beasts, as they two of the hardest monstrosities to maneuver) all while basically VOLUNTEERING my time.
I left well enough alone. It was too hot for customers to sit outside anyway, and I could send the barista, a young girl who doesn’t know to be afraid of crickets just yet, to set the umbrellas up later as I had more “important” manager duties to do, like restock the straws or something safe like that, haha.
Anyway, the other Hollywood things I was mulling today occurred because a very handsome (married) cop came in and said that his buddies were asking him about me (because he spends a lot of time on his patrol around our store). His buddies had been in several times, but they don’t work in the area, so I had never really chatted with them as I had with him before. I told him to “hook a sister up” (aka, introduce me sometime).
When I am working behind the counter, I’m always waiting for that amazing, God-inspired moment like from “While You Were Sleeping” to happen. And I don’t mean in a way of I’m waiting for God to bless me with some kind of miracle, not that I DON’T expect that, but like I’ve said before, I know that we are often the product of the decisions we make and I have been amazingly blessed with opportunity, but partly because of my own selfishness and blindness to the truth, I had let some things slip away in my life and even in other instances hurt people that were important to me, but I think we have all done this to some degree at different times in our lives, and if we turn our hearts inward or our heads away from possible blessings in the future, we may miss what God is wanting us to see.
All that to say, I’d love to just have some movie character moment where I can jump into the subway and save the life of the brother of the man of my dreams (While You Were Sleeping)…or maybe meet someone who is Sleepless in Dallas because I served them too much coffee! Haha. Or maybe, I can have One Fine Day that George Clooney comes in to order an Iced Coffee with cold half and half and Splenda and I can say, “That’s MY favorite drink, too!” and he can say, “When’s your next break…? Because I’d like to steal you away…” and I can say, “You already stole my heart…” Okay, hopefully it won’t be that corny, but meeting him would rock.
Most of the great romantic comedies and even adventure movies, these Hollywood fairyish tales start with the female being in some compromising situation. My job isn’t exactly “compromising,” unless, of course, we take into consideration the crickets. But, I think that I can still anticipate my Cinderella Happily Ever Cricket-free After. I may even get a "get out of jail free" for traffic tickets if I play my cards right! Between working at a hot spot for "chance meetings" and attending church on Saturday (singles) night, I think I stand a pretty good shot at my Happy Ending.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
"BEAN me up, Scotty!"
Aaahhhh, the espresso machine. It’s the birthplace of all things “atte” and “atto” and “ccino!” Meaning, all drinks starts with that little machine…pulling the perfect shots of espresso to brew up the drinks. I have fought with it already many times…and yes…it won. The milk steamer, particularly…she’s a nasty little beast and all of us have the scars on our fingers and wrists to prove it. Baristas are easy to spot because they suffer the wrath of the milk steamer on a daily basis. Now it’s probably obvious why I like to work the register, ahem. The cash doesn’t bite…nor does it spit hot milk or steam at random moments simply because it’s backed up. There is a little digital screen that explains what is going on with the espresso machine and it lights up randomly- sometimes it says, “Fill Hopper” and that always makes me laugh because 1. It sounds funny and 2. The fact that the coffee bean holder is called a hopper just seems so fitting. There are many stories to come about the espresso machine. I thought I would just give it a little blog love, as I did suffer a nasty hiss from her yesterday when I was watching Charlie clean the machine before we closed for the night. I think the machine knows that I am avoiding it…and it is just waiting for the next opportunity that I venture near so that I can get burned…keep your enemies closer, and I’ve got my eye on her, that’s for sure.
On a different tangent, there’s a phenomenon called Reactance Theory. I haven’t done a ton of research on it, but I saw it used somewhere in a newspaper article and I read up a little on it…and I realized the more I learned about it, there are varying levels of it that I perceive every day in my line of work, especially on days when it’s just me and a barista and the barista is on break and I have more of a opportunity to really get one-on-one time to visit with our guests and how much “brighter” they become simply by receiving their Starbucks fix for the day.
This theory is just a simple, summed up version of “The grass is greener” combined with “forbidden fruit is sweeter” with a dash of “reverse psychology.” Together, the cause and effect of these themes form this Reactance theory. It’s a phenomenon of the brain that implicates people under pressure are more likely to make a decision that they have been told to NOT make, (aka, the reverse psychology, “DON’T you dare clean your room, you better leave that room a MESS!”) but only if under pressure from a source that also the power to entice a consequence. Basically, this theory kind of sounds like something that a lawyer came up to help with the insanity plea for criminals that committed a really stupid crime and needed a major cop-out to explain their actions…
Strangely enough, why this theory has even piqued my interest is because I equate many brain phenomenon to coffee, as it is a mood enhancer or stimulant. I am sure that caffeine has had its day in court (who can forget the McDonald’s case where the lady got burned on her hand! I mean, seriously! Talk about biting the hand that feeds you! She’s gonna sue for hot coffee and I get yelled at every day by people that ARE BEGGING for their milk to be at 180 degrees!)…but I don’t think that we have really tapped into the full use of all that caffeine has to offer. The simple, basic coffee bean is such a concentrated little burst of energy, full of antioxidants and flavor! To sit and enjoy, to SAVOR slowly, the taste and abundant richness of coffee is an art form.
I do not take lightly the ability of a simple cup of coffee (that I drink for free now) to brighten my day. I have become more relaxed, laid-back, comfortable with myself, and downright happy since I took this job. Aside from the personal reasons that I enjoy my work, and enjoy being a shift manager, I attribute the simplicity of a cup of coffee to be something that I look forward to every day. I LIKE sinking into a chair, on my break or a couple minutes before my shift starts, and letting my taste buds soak up the rich, black coffee, sipping it to fully appreciate the complexity of the flavor. It is a great environment…I am so grateful at my dad for encouraging me to stick with this job, even if I thought it might not be what I wanted at first. I couldn’t have made a better decision. Starbucks has been like a small slice of home for me, it feels like a wonderful fit, like an old pair of tennis shoes…but without the stinky tennis shoe smell.
Sometimes, I think we forget to thank God for the things that work the way they are supposed to. Like when our car starts just like it is supposed to…and when our house is air-conditioned just the way it is supposed to be…and when our arms and legs feel good and our head doesn’t ache and our heart beats strong… These are all things that happen every day just like they are supposed to…and I never want to be so busy with other brain phenomenon like “reacting” to the world and all its craziness that I forget to look towards heaven and thank God for the little bitty simple things. For a God that is PHENOMENALLY huge, He calls us to use the simple abilities with which we’ve been blessed to bless others in HUGE ways.
I am striving, every day, to be a BIG BLESSER! Haha. Sounds funny, but I believe that because I am here, at Starbucks, I am supposed to use this forum to change lives. I don’t want to stop until I accomplish that! And lucky for me, the caffeine isn’t running low, so I don’t have to slow down any time soon!!! Fill up that hopper with some coffee beans- it's going to be a LONG ride!!!
On a different tangent, there’s a phenomenon called Reactance Theory. I haven’t done a ton of research on it, but I saw it used somewhere in a newspaper article and I read up a little on it…and I realized the more I learned about it, there are varying levels of it that I perceive every day in my line of work, especially on days when it’s just me and a barista and the barista is on break and I have more of a opportunity to really get one-on-one time to visit with our guests and how much “brighter” they become simply by receiving their Starbucks fix for the day.
This theory is just a simple, summed up version of “The grass is greener” combined with “forbidden fruit is sweeter” with a dash of “reverse psychology.” Together, the cause and effect of these themes form this Reactance theory. It’s a phenomenon of the brain that implicates people under pressure are more likely to make a decision that they have been told to NOT make, (aka, the reverse psychology, “DON’T you dare clean your room, you better leave that room a MESS!”) but only if under pressure from a source that also the power to entice a consequence. Basically, this theory kind of sounds like something that a lawyer came up to help with the insanity plea for criminals that committed a really stupid crime and needed a major cop-out to explain their actions…
Strangely enough, why this theory has even piqued my interest is because I equate many brain phenomenon to coffee, as it is a mood enhancer or stimulant. I am sure that caffeine has had its day in court (who can forget the McDonald’s case where the lady got burned on her hand! I mean, seriously! Talk about biting the hand that feeds you! She’s gonna sue for hot coffee and I get yelled at every day by people that ARE BEGGING for their milk to be at 180 degrees!)…but I don’t think that we have really tapped into the full use of all that caffeine has to offer. The simple, basic coffee bean is such a concentrated little burst of energy, full of antioxidants and flavor! To sit and enjoy, to SAVOR slowly, the taste and abundant richness of coffee is an art form.
I do not take lightly the ability of a simple cup of coffee (that I drink for free now) to brighten my day. I have become more relaxed, laid-back, comfortable with myself, and downright happy since I took this job. Aside from the personal reasons that I enjoy my work, and enjoy being a shift manager, I attribute the simplicity of a cup of coffee to be something that I look forward to every day. I LIKE sinking into a chair, on my break or a couple minutes before my shift starts, and letting my taste buds soak up the rich, black coffee, sipping it to fully appreciate the complexity of the flavor. It is a great environment…I am so grateful at my dad for encouraging me to stick with this job, even if I thought it might not be what I wanted at first. I couldn’t have made a better decision. Starbucks has been like a small slice of home for me, it feels like a wonderful fit, like an old pair of tennis shoes…but without the stinky tennis shoe smell.
Sometimes, I think we forget to thank God for the things that work the way they are supposed to. Like when our car starts just like it is supposed to…and when our house is air-conditioned just the way it is supposed to be…and when our arms and legs feel good and our head doesn’t ache and our heart beats strong… These are all things that happen every day just like they are supposed to…and I never want to be so busy with other brain phenomenon like “reacting” to the world and all its craziness that I forget to look towards heaven and thank God for the little bitty simple things. For a God that is PHENOMENALLY huge, He calls us to use the simple abilities with which we’ve been blessed to bless others in HUGE ways.
I am striving, every day, to be a BIG BLESSER! Haha. Sounds funny, but I believe that because I am here, at Starbucks, I am supposed to use this forum to change lives. I don’t want to stop until I accomplish that! And lucky for me, the caffeine isn’t running low, so I don’t have to slow down any time soon!!! Fill up that hopper with some coffee beans- it's going to be a LONG ride!!!
Monday, July 26, 2010
No "ifs, ands, or buts" allowed...Unless you have Gold Card, that is...
It didn’t seem fair to come home and not blog again for the second night in a row. Plus, I really do have things to say today. Imagine that. Haha.
As I just mentioned, I obviously have been closing the store lately, working as manager on duty for the second shift of the day which means that all the closing duties fall under my jurisdiction. I have not done a perfect job the last couple nights, but I feel like I am getting my “sea legs” (aka- coffee chops) when it comes to getting everything ready for the openers in the morning.
It’s funny when I call the next morning, and I ask how was the “close” (meaning, was everything stocked, cleaned, prepped for the morning rush, etc…) and they tell me that I forgot to do something, it’s like, “Doh!” Because I will have thought it was perfect when I left and they will have a list of like 7 or 8 things that I will have forgotten! Shameful! Haha. Not really, it’s quite an extensive list to get accomplished in about thirty minutes as far as cleaning, sanitizing EVERYTHING from the bathroom to the espresso bar to the coffee machines to the pastry case, as well as closing down the safe, the registers, etc... I am sure as I get better, the list will be completed much faster! If only I would start doing things earlier in the evening instead of walking around talking to people! Haha! You would think I was trying to run a social club instead of a coffeeshop!
Yesterday and today were fairly focused days for me, as far as work goes. I was pretty in tune to my duties and not as connected to our customers. I do feel like I was making people feel at ease and comfortable, but as the clock gets closer to time to shutting down shop, I can feel my patience wear thin and I think I may not be as genuinely happy to see that big group come strolling in five minutes before we lock the door.
In fact, last night, I was pulling chairs inside and a lady walked up from her car and said she was “astounded” that we were closing so early. I told her we could make her a drink and she said, “No, I am meeting some friends here…sooooo….” As though she wanted me to pull the chairs back outside for her and her friends to stay and chat for a while. I am sorry, we can make exceptions, but staying twenty minutes after close so that some friends can reacquainted is not on my list of reasons to stay late. Seriously, could they not have done their research and met before 9 oclock?!? But I kept my “happy face” on and told her she could go to the Starbucks down the street because it was open an hour later than ours. (Aaahhh, the beauty of working for a business that is, literally, almost on every street corner!) The lady wasn’t happy because she said, “All of my friends are coming here!” and she said it all whiney, as though I was going to let her friends in and we were locking HER out… I told her that her friends would probably see that we were closed as I was turning the lights out in about ten minutes anyway. I mean, we were officially “closed” as it was 9 oclock, and she was stalling me from doing my duties. I continued to drag chairs in while she stood in the parking lot staring at the door, like I was going to say April’s Fool! I was thinking, “You should probably get on the horn and start rallying the troops, sister…” (I mean, isn’t that why they invented cell phones? And I could tell from the looks of this lady that she had a fancy cell phone, probably adorned with diamonds or something…) but I just told her I was very sorry and would she like a drink before we shut down the espresso machine? She told me “No” very snippy and got back in her shiny Caddy-lack and drove away. I laughed to myself because there was nothing else to do. And I pulled in the last of the tables and locked the door.
People can be pretty high maintenance, but places like Starbucks with our “do-it-yourself” Frappuccinos and made-to-order-however-you-want-it drinks have created these monsters, so I guess we must cater to them. I am no exception to the rule, as I probably am the most demanding customer that most of the Starbucks employees have to deal with my customized drinks and picky preferences. After all, I know what goes into making these specialized creations, so why shouldn’t I get exactly what I want…and nothing less. Thank you very much and have a nice day. And yes, I do want that extra espresso shot while you’re at it…it’s going to be a long night. At Starbucks- we leave the light on for you…until it’s closing time, that is. Haha!
As I just mentioned, I obviously have been closing the store lately, working as manager on duty for the second shift of the day which means that all the closing duties fall under my jurisdiction. I have not done a perfect job the last couple nights, but I feel like I am getting my “sea legs” (aka- coffee chops) when it comes to getting everything ready for the openers in the morning.
It’s funny when I call the next morning, and I ask how was the “close” (meaning, was everything stocked, cleaned, prepped for the morning rush, etc…) and they tell me that I forgot to do something, it’s like, “Doh!” Because I will have thought it was perfect when I left and they will have a list of like 7 or 8 things that I will have forgotten! Shameful! Haha. Not really, it’s quite an extensive list to get accomplished in about thirty minutes as far as cleaning, sanitizing EVERYTHING from the bathroom to the espresso bar to the coffee machines to the pastry case, as well as closing down the safe, the registers, etc... I am sure as I get better, the list will be completed much faster! If only I would start doing things earlier in the evening instead of walking around talking to people! Haha! You would think I was trying to run a social club instead of a coffeeshop!
Yesterday and today were fairly focused days for me, as far as work goes. I was pretty in tune to my duties and not as connected to our customers. I do feel like I was making people feel at ease and comfortable, but as the clock gets closer to time to shutting down shop, I can feel my patience wear thin and I think I may not be as genuinely happy to see that big group come strolling in five minutes before we lock the door.
In fact, last night, I was pulling chairs inside and a lady walked up from her car and said she was “astounded” that we were closing so early. I told her we could make her a drink and she said, “No, I am meeting some friends here…sooooo….” As though she wanted me to pull the chairs back outside for her and her friends to stay and chat for a while. I am sorry, we can make exceptions, but staying twenty minutes after close so that some friends can reacquainted is not on my list of reasons to stay late. Seriously, could they not have done their research and met before 9 oclock?!? But I kept my “happy face” on and told her she could go to the Starbucks down the street because it was open an hour later than ours. (Aaahhh, the beauty of working for a business that is, literally, almost on every street corner!) The lady wasn’t happy because she said, “All of my friends are coming here!” and she said it all whiney, as though I was going to let her friends in and we were locking HER out… I told her that her friends would probably see that we were closed as I was turning the lights out in about ten minutes anyway. I mean, we were officially “closed” as it was 9 oclock, and she was stalling me from doing my duties. I continued to drag chairs in while she stood in the parking lot staring at the door, like I was going to say April’s Fool! I was thinking, “You should probably get on the horn and start rallying the troops, sister…” (I mean, isn’t that why they invented cell phones? And I could tell from the looks of this lady that she had a fancy cell phone, probably adorned with diamonds or something…) but I just told her I was very sorry and would she like a drink before we shut down the espresso machine? She told me “No” very snippy and got back in her shiny Caddy-lack and drove away. I laughed to myself because there was nothing else to do. And I pulled in the last of the tables and locked the door.
People can be pretty high maintenance, but places like Starbucks with our “do-it-yourself” Frappuccinos and made-to-order-however-you-want-it drinks have created these monsters, so I guess we must cater to them. I am no exception to the rule, as I probably am the most demanding customer that most of the Starbucks employees have to deal with my customized drinks and picky preferences. After all, I know what goes into making these specialized creations, so why shouldn’t I get exactly what I want…and nothing less. Thank you very much and have a nice day. And yes, I do want that extra espresso shot while you’re at it…it’s going to be a long night. At Starbucks- we leave the light on for you…until it’s closing time, that is. Haha!
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Service with a :)
Carrying on about traits, in the fashion of yesterday’s blog…I came to the conclusion, like a dozen light-bulbs going off in my brain all of the sudden…I get my servitude ability from my parents!
This may not seem like much of a revolution, but let me elaborate upon this from the beginning.
I had a training today at the corporate office near downtown Dallas. The trainings are so fun and very informative, and I will be talking about this one more in blogs to come. I posted a picture. I received an abundance of information about the specifics of the company as a whole and impact of Starbucks on the community and the world at large…found out some interesting facts about how to incorporate some of my big ideas into reality starting with the local stores and moving onto bigger avenues of influence…(like TOTAL WORLD DOMINATION…muah-hahaha! That was my Dr.Evil laugh)…
So, later this evening, I was standing in line at WalGreens. The line was very long and at the drugstore, whatever a person is buying is EASILY on display for all to see and since the line wasn’t moving very fast, there was quite an audience of people watching the lone cashier who looked more than ready to go home for the evening (or at least like he wanted to call over "Cindy" the photo shop worker who was simultaneously smacking her gum, flipping through a magazine, and texting, while informing him she was "...on her ten, kid." aka- she's not helping you, buddy).
There was one little Hispanic man in front of me who had two items, batteries and adult male diapers (and I only know this specifically because the man had kind of whispered to the cashier that the newsletter he had for them said they were on sale and they didn’t ring up that way, so naturally I looked to see what the item was…and I saw the specific name of the product “Adult Male Diapers” size medium). Immediately I start to get a nervous feeling in my stomach as the cashier can’t figure out why they won’t ring up…and sure enough, he picks up the “intercom” phone and calls for management…thank heavens he didn’t ask about a price check on them, I’m thinking. However, the whole line starts to get fidgety and they are getting curious about what is going on. I try to think of ways to help my “line” buddy by covering the product, but I am only buying a small package of Neosporin and that isn’t embarrassing and won’t help distract the line. Plus, the cashier is holding it up all high in the air. I hear two guys behind me snicker and I get upset. The Hispanic guy is facing the door like he wants to disappear and he isn’t really understanding what the cashier is saying to him. I think he just wants to grab his batteries and be on his way, but at this point, there are three people at the register trying to fix the price (apparently the guy got the ad from the “Sunday Paper” and the ad didn’t start until tomorrow). I’m looking around for something embarrassing to buy, but there’s nothing around the register except gum and chap stick and weight loss stuff. So, finally, they get it sorted out and the guy leaves, it’s my turn and the cashier kind of looks at me like he thinks we’re all gonna share a laugh about what just happened. The guys behind me are laughing louder now and I just know they are about to say something, so before they can, I open my big mouth and say, “Ya’ll think it is funny or something? People wet their pants. That could be you one day and I hope that people are compassionate enough to not laugh…” And I walked out to more laughing. Which who cares…those jerks.
And all this story-telling to bring me back to my parents…that’s where I get my compassion for people and my passion for serving others. My mother has served our family, selflessly (and without ever receiving ONE tip for it, haha!), for all of my life. She would constantly go out of her way to set up perfect dinners, cook wonderful food, maintain an immaculate house, all because that was her nature. She was a servant to us, her family. She had a deep compassion for putting others before herself. She instilled in my sister and myself the ability to serve others as an outpouring of our hearts. In effect, it is something that I ENJOY immensely. When I see that others are happy, I am pleased.
Now, couple that with my dad’s influence. My dad was a servant in occupation. He TEACHES people how to serve, not just through example, but through practice. My dad serves people in surprising and engaging ways. He taught me how to appeal to people’s needs by actively searching out ways to meet them WHERE THEY ARE. Meaning, he showed me how to serve others by seeking to find creative means to extend assistance and help alleviate hardships of others.
Through these two influences, I have found myself thriving in situations where I get to interact with people that have needs. Whether or not those needs are necessary (education) or just cravings (coffee), I love enlightening people and helping to serve them WHERE THEY ARE.
So, if it’s coffee they are after when they walk into Starbucks, I am proud that I can tell them that we buy our coffee beans from farmers that are being paid higher than any other coffee bean farmers in the world. From the tree, to the roasting plant, to the bag, to the store, our beans are treated like fine jewels and that is why we can guarantee that if people brew our coffee properly, they won’t find a better cup anywhere. The next time you go into a Starbucks, nicely ask the barista to brew you some of the Pike Place blend (or Guatemala Antigua, which are two of my favorite milder blends) in a coffee press and drink it out of a porcelain tasting cup, to truly savor the full aroma, acidity, and body of the coffee. I think you will agree that it’s worth it to sometimes, slow down and stop and smell the coffee-flavored roses.
Friday, July 23, 2010
You Say Tomato...I say, Ketchup...
So, I’ve never been good at admitting when there are certain qualities in which I may be deficient. Tonight, I realized that despite the fact that I laud “being observant” as something in which I have always excelled, I don’t. Excel, that is. In fact, I’m really not that observant at all.
It’s one of those qualities like “being a good listener” that people always claim (and the “claimers” are always the worst listeners anyway) because being observant isn’t really something that a person can use to describe themselves- meaning, the observing is always going to be relative to them, unless they actually NOTICE something about someone else and that person says, “Wow, you are observant”…
Tonight, I had a couple instances of NON-observance. A customer was very impressed when I remembered his name (he was good looking) and another customer, a female (she was wearing a TON of jewelry), was impressed when I remembered her drink. They both commented on me “being observant” and I was left thinking, “No, that is having a good MEMORY” not actually noticing something outside of what is going on around me. I do have a good memory…that is a quality in which has come in handy for me to make up for deficiencies in other areas, like having a short attention span.
I know that I am not observant outside of my own surroundings because I had to close the store with a barista tonight, and I realized that I hadn’t really been WATCHING what the other shift managers did when they closed to prepare themselves to be ready to shut down shop. In effect, tonight, we got out the door much later than I had anticipated because of my own lack of preparation. It ended up being fine, but I was thinking, all these years that I have “claimed” be observant, I have actually been living a lie. Haha. It was a harsh realization mainly because I had taken great pride in being able to describe myself using this term that I thought was a notable trait. It is with great displeasure that I come to tell all my loyal readers- I am not observant, people. I am disciplined and I am motivated, but I will have to think of another adjective in which to use to describe myself in interviews when a potential employer asks me the “use three adjectives to describe yourself” question.
Last note on Starbucks- consistency does not exist when it comes to coffee cravings. Fridays are supposed to be slow evenings. Today, we did more business in the evening and had more people hanging out in our lobby than I have ever witnessed in our store. It was exhilarating and exhausting all at once, and I will have to remind myself to never request the closing shift on Friday again. My idea about date night (when I am working) will have to be filed under the list of “Give this idea after I have retired.”
My favorite couple that came in- Johnny and June* (*names have been changed to protect the innocent) who were headed to a tango dance hall to practice ballroom dancing. They were dressed impeccably (sarcasm being used here) and they ordered a caramel macchiato with an extra shot and a skinny vanilla latte, respectively. Yeah, Johnny, no amount of extra shots is going to make your tucked in pearl-snap button-down look attractive with those tight jeans.
Furthermore, when I got home and was in my bathroom getting ready for bed, I overhead a commercial for eharmony advertising another “free weekend” of matches and I couldn’t help but laugh because who wants to meet a person they know was checking matches on a “free weekend????” I mean, I want to know that a guy shelled out BIG BUCKS to meet me online, right? I might meet someone like Johnny, otherwise! Right? Are you with me, girls? That’s all I have for this TGIF!!!!
It’s one of those qualities like “being a good listener” that people always claim (and the “claimers” are always the worst listeners anyway) because being observant isn’t really something that a person can use to describe themselves- meaning, the observing is always going to be relative to them, unless they actually NOTICE something about someone else and that person says, “Wow, you are observant”…
Tonight, I had a couple instances of NON-observance. A customer was very impressed when I remembered his name (he was good looking) and another customer, a female (she was wearing a TON of jewelry), was impressed when I remembered her drink. They both commented on me “being observant” and I was left thinking, “No, that is having a good MEMORY” not actually noticing something outside of what is going on around me. I do have a good memory…that is a quality in which has come in handy for me to make up for deficiencies in other areas, like having a short attention span.
I know that I am not observant outside of my own surroundings because I had to close the store with a barista tonight, and I realized that I hadn’t really been WATCHING what the other shift managers did when they closed to prepare themselves to be ready to shut down shop. In effect, tonight, we got out the door much later than I had anticipated because of my own lack of preparation. It ended up being fine, but I was thinking, all these years that I have “claimed” be observant, I have actually been living a lie. Haha. It was a harsh realization mainly because I had taken great pride in being able to describe myself using this term that I thought was a notable trait. It is with great displeasure that I come to tell all my loyal readers- I am not observant, people. I am disciplined and I am motivated, but I will have to think of another adjective in which to use to describe myself in interviews when a potential employer asks me the “use three adjectives to describe yourself” question.
Last note on Starbucks- consistency does not exist when it comes to coffee cravings. Fridays are supposed to be slow evenings. Today, we did more business in the evening and had more people hanging out in our lobby than I have ever witnessed in our store. It was exhilarating and exhausting all at once, and I will have to remind myself to never request the closing shift on Friday again. My idea about date night (when I am working) will have to be filed under the list of “Give this idea after I have retired.”
My favorite couple that came in- Johnny and June* (*names have been changed to protect the innocent) who were headed to a tango dance hall to practice ballroom dancing. They were dressed impeccably (sarcasm being used here) and they ordered a caramel macchiato with an extra shot and a skinny vanilla latte, respectively. Yeah, Johnny, no amount of extra shots is going to make your tucked in pearl-snap button-down look attractive with those tight jeans.
Furthermore, when I got home and was in my bathroom getting ready for bed, I overhead a commercial for eharmony advertising another “free weekend” of matches and I couldn’t help but laugh because who wants to meet a person they know was checking matches on a “free weekend????” I mean, I want to know that a guy shelled out BIG BUCKS to meet me online, right? I might meet someone like Johnny, otherwise! Right? Are you with me, girls? That’s all I have for this TGIF!!!!
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