meanwhile, in america

Last night I wrapped up my last 8-hour shift at Starbucks. That is, henceforth I'll be doing nice, manageable 4 hour shifts on Thursday nights. My feet and muscles just let out a huge sigh of relief.

But though I hate an 8 hour shift, I really do still enjoy my time at the 'bucks. Plans are underway for a Bean Responsible day where advocates from each store gather in Aberdeen for a morning of training with me and my (as yet unfinished) Bean Responsible guide.

Here in the UK, the company is not so ubiquitous as its American incarnation, and still has plenty of room to grow. In fact there are two new stores opening in Aberdeen in the next 6 months. The coffee culture is different here. People come in expecting to sit at one of 23 tables with a mug (getting annoyed if you give 'em paper) for at least an hour. They eat pastries and muffins and sandwiches on actual plates. There is less of the frenetic grab-n-go mindset that's been established in North America.

So while stores all over the US closed earlier this week to retrain employees on the art of good coffee and quality standards, we were sitting pretty with a cup of Kitamu, closing our doors at 7pm each night.

Yep it's a different culture over here. I realize the above sounds smug, but in fact I miss heading out at 8pm to meet friends for coffee, or grabbing something steaming to kill time before a movie. I resent having to specify that I want a paper cup (familiarity) even though I'm "sitting in." Funny the things that trigger homesickness.