Caffeine Pill With Your Coffee, Anyone?

I don't know about you all, but I am a big fan of the midday cup o' joe. Especially when it gives me an excuse to leave work and soak up the Austin sun, even for just a few short minutes. I don't know how people work full-time in this city. It is 6:30 pm and 76 degrees here. How does an 8-5 work schedule fit into these sunny days? Anyways, I pulled into Starbucks around 1:00 this afternoon for a little pick-me-up, and as always, an extra-chipper voice (yes, Austin is filled with drive-thru Starbucks... hello, lazy coffee drinker like myself... it is quite convenient though if I must defend it) welcomes me and asks what I would like. I place my order, and she tells me what I owe and that she looks forward to seeing me at the next window. URCH. That's a little aggressive. In that moment, I thought "Man, I have got to blog about the Pleasantville-ish Starbucks employees in Austin"... having that thought might make me a dork, but hey, you're still reading. I round the bend, and there she is, leaning out of the window.... and waving to me. I repeat, waving to me. "Hey there lovely lady!" is what I hear when I approach the apron-clad, bubbly barista. If only I had the monkey mask on hand right then. I quickly hand her my card, hoping she can smell my fear and hurry this exchange up. She runs the card, pops her head back out the window and asks, "Are you having a good day Ms. Lauer?!" Had to say my name, didn't she... I played nice, obviously. We had a pleasant conversation about the weather, and she finally excused herself to take someone else's order. Another employee (male) appears at the window with my coffee and gives me a look that screams, "Imagine spending eight hours in an enclosed space with her". I gave a sympathetic smile and peeled on out of there. Not really... it was more of a slow and subtle exit, but peeling out sounds more dramatic.

Let's rewind a minute. She was waving out the window. Now seriously, that's something EJ/Eliza Joy and I would have done in 10th grade if we worked at Starbucks just to get a rise out of people. I'm not trying to be Cynical Sue here, but it was a little much. She could have been extremely bored, or perhaps she was hopped up on espresso... but I think the girl was just high on life. Or maybe the Austin sun.