Coffee Addict Problems

I literally spend too much time at Starbucks.  The baristas all know my name and what I get, I have a "usual" parking spot, I have a "usual" table, and I only have a few more drinks before I reach Gold Level on my Starbucks Rewards account. And I know the other "usuals" too - the 30 year old sunglass guy, the senior citizen who brings his own coffee and gets a venti water, and the Republican poet who got in a fist fight with Bo Biden.

I can't go to Starbucks without someone talking to me. Literally.  I'm usually there for anywhere between 3 and 6 hours, and at least one person will start talking to me.  The first time it happened was because of what I was wearing - the Republican poet asked me why I'm "grunge" and I said it was the first clean thing I found this morning.  He then talked for an hour about his poetry and that he doesn't like slam poetry but "all the kids today" do, and he got in a fist fight with Bo Biden when Biden tried to campaign on his lawn, and I should read all his poetry because its written for people like me.

Normally, strangers don't talk to or trust each other. You don't just walk up to someone at the mall and start talking about your life and asking them questions about theirs, and you wouldn't leave your belongings sitting out in the middle of the food court. But Starbucks is different: something about the atmosphere makes it okay to ask about other people's lives, to get life advice, and to leave your Mac on the table.  I would never go into Barnes and Noble and ask people if they're having a good day.  That'd be creepy. But at Starbucks its okay.

I don't know what makes Starbucks so different, but I love being a part of something so odd. Our little group of "Starbucks regulars" is probably the weirdest sub-community ever, but its still great.