I thought I'd be interested in the barista article, but it was too long.
At the coffee shop I most often frequent, I am mostly amused by how well various baristas do or do not hold it together at various levels of being high.
Since 2001, the specialty coffee industry's retail value in the U.S. has increased at a rate of about $7 million a year.
That...is not very impressive?
I liked the barista article, even though it was too long, rambled slightly, and occasionally tried for profundity that felt forced. But I thought it was also really well written in places.
There is a passage right at the beginning which is good enough to get me to read the whole thing.
... More than anything else, though, I was asked what else I did.
"Oh you know," the t-shirt designer or gallery assistant with blunt bangs or unpaid Harper's intern would say on their way into the office. "When you aren't making coffee."
As the years went by my desire to answer the question honestly waned somewhat, but yes, I did know, and yes, I did things other than make coffee. Some of it was just hustle: there were never quite enough hours to go around, so I transcribed for various friends writing books or dissertations; I worked as an artist's assistant for a man I became convinced had hired me at an exorbitant rate simply because it made him feel legitimate. . . .
But I thought it was also really well written in places.
Exactly why it needs an editor! (The fact that the author works as an editor is not promising.)
I liked the piece, but she doesn't sound like much fun at parties. Why would you work in retail if you hate people?
I've never understood the big deal about baristas. No comparison to bartenders on the hipness scale IMO.