Mocha in a minute.

One of the most difficult jobs must be serving coffee at a Starbucks in a city like New York, on a day like Monday, at a time like 9 a.m., to grumbly, yawning, impatient workers from all walks of life lined up for a cuppa coffee that is their psychological body alarm clock. Many believe that caffeine does wake them up, and for some it's actually true. But it's probably less of the physical waking effects of a simple hot coffee (or a complicated one like non-fat, extra-hot, skim-something, blah blah venti latte), and more of a symbol, act or a timestamp of finally getting-kickstarted-with-your business.. and probably a relief from the rainy/cold/windy weather that just makes you even less enthusiastic about stepping out. It's similar to putting on your uniform for work (if you have one), or adjusting your tie/scarf, or feeling the click of polished shoes. Just sights n sounds that are designed to make us feel ready to go out, earn money and contribute to the planet in some manner whatsoever. And coffee serves as your ultimate ally in this daily, motivational, subconscious, optimistic plan (that lasts till you get to your desk).

Here they are- demanding customers, accustomed to high speeds and immediate information, standing and shifting in the line at Starbucks. Anyone who takes more time than the amount required to place an order is a cause of disgruntlement and apparently a wasted existence in the brutal working world. Any one who looks like they are not going to work (tourists, students etc- identified by their clothing, rapid chatter and relaxed pace) become a cause of impatience and irritation. In this little pressurised world, the Starbucks employee have to stay glued to their billing machines. No smiles to customers, none at all- they're a waste on them. After all the customers are either rough workers who need to get on with their daily tasks and have a family to feed at the time of recession, or white-collar seemingly-important folks dressed in black/white/greys who have no time for small talk. This is not the mid-West. Or Europe. So the employees operate efficiently, throwing out orders to others behind, churning out bills and periodically saying 'Next'. You better know what you want, or you'll be frowned upon (by people behind you) when your turn comes and you hesitate about your order. And all this time it is fascinating to see the couple of people behind the counter who are remembering each order with all its little fat-free details and operating like a human machine.

But today, I observed a different affair. While traveling to a different location on a project, I entered the Starbucks nearby to order a mocha. Now this was a small town in U.S. of A.,the kind where you need a car to go buy a toothbrush, 1.5 miles is considered next-door, and towns end and begin before you even realize it. Anyway, there were just three ladies in front of me.. middle aged, blonde/chestnut-haired, all-American wives in pink/blue/yellow tops/sweatshirts and jeans. Probably a group of friends out to get coffee after gym/groceries/dropping-off-kids-to-school. They were shuffling out cash from their wallets n having some discussion about the order. I waited. I was running late (as usual), but I waited patiently observing them. They were standing, tapping, counting dollars, repeating orders. The employee was laughing, responding.. saying "OMGaaawwddd i forgot what you ordered next.. heh heh", and the one behind making the coffee saying " Oh, I lost you at chai tea latte.. could you repeat that.. ha ha".. and one of the ladies responded "Oh yeah, its hard to keep track"... I kept looking at my watch impatiently, sticking out in the crowd as someone dressed formally and not saying much. One of the ladies turned to the other to describe the best way to apply a blusher on the cheeks. Finally the bunch shifted and I was able to place my order. Though there wasnt a queue behind me, practice made me give a quick order and shift aside asap. I kept observing the ladies till I got my coffee, silently drawing comparisons with the ones you spot on reality shows like 'The real housewives of XYZ', when you browse through the channels and there is nothing on.

That's when I realised.. somewhere between checking time impatiently and stopping myself from rolling my eyes.. that I was turning into the black/white/greys folks that demanded pace and efficiency, unless they were on a vacation or were bored. It didn't matter that I was highly disorganized and insincere and a lazy bum (as opposed to Starbucks employees that I mentioned earlier), but when it came to picking up my much needed mocha on a Monday morning, i expected it in under a minute.