The Cast of Our Local Starbucks

If you live in New Jersey, then chances are that you’ve been to one or two of our local Starbucks (or three, or four, or five…). More than just a trendy coffee house, these shops have become the new local hangout in our area, second to only the bar scene. With the amount of traffic these businesses get, it’s no wonder you will see so many people come and go daily. 

So much so that “people-watching” has become a local sport, in between sips of coffee. Lately I’ve taken to frequenting my local Starbucks in place of an office, complete with internet access, air conditioning and a never-ending supply of caffeine. Best of all – it’s rent free! While spending my working days there, I’ve come across some of the most interesting people of my life.

Some of Starbuck’s frequent fliers include students, job-seekers, a knitting club, a local psychic, and of course fellow freelance writers.

Starbuck’s main medical student always has his head in the books. I’m often comforted knowing he’s there, just in case I trip and spill hot coffee, or get a paper cut (or something else requiring medical attention). Of course, I’ve never asked him if he was a medical student, I just kind of assumed. Either this or he’s a really, really motivated medical hobbyist. It’s my theory that this man came from Matawan. Eventually, he worked up enough courage to begin his pre-medical career at Brookdale Community College. Hey, we all have to start somewhere, don’t we? I can’t wait to see what textbook he’s carrying next, and what clues it will give me to this man’s future.

Have I told you about the man who is perpetually looking for a job? I’m sure you’ve seen him; every Starbucks has its own, especially since the economy caused so many to lose their jobs. In fact, I used to be one, until I realized the benefits of freelance writing. He tries hard, constantly refreshing and scrolling down the Monster.com page, never deterred from his next potential source of income. I often wonder what profession this man had before he joined my coffee table. Was he an engineer? Or a construction worker? Or a trauma doctor? Perhaps he worked with top-secret government departments, and was discharged for being a double agent. Or maybe, and probably more likely, he ran a local business that failed when the economy dropped. Occasionally, I think to myself, “Why not apply at Starbucks?” But then I remember this is no place for a man with double-agent experience.

Just the other day, I was sitting at a community table at Starbucks when an attractive young man sat across from me. Wondering if this was going somewhere (of all the tables in all the coffee shops in all the world, he had to walk into and sit down at mine), I patiently sat there and waited. And waited. And eventually, I just gave up. Next, an elderly woman sat down next to me, with another directly across from her. Alright, now I was getting agitated. One person across from me was acceptable, but to be surrounded? This was a self-proclaimed loner’s worst nightmare.

Soon, the table was full of elderly women and this one young man. Moments later, the clacking of knitting needles filled the room. Oh, no, I was inadvertently attending a knitting club meeting. I had previously sworn to myself that I would never attend such a thing, and soon fell into a pseudo-panic mode. Should I move? Should I stay? Would I be stabbed with one of those awfully sharp-looking needles? There was too much going on around me to be sure. I slowly slipped my netbook into its case, and inched my chair back. I’m not sure exactly how, but I made it out of that fateful knitting club without not so much as a scrape. By the way, I’m pretty sure that strapping young lad was their leader. Oh, well.

A few days later, I was sitting at my usual table and a woman approached me with a technical issue. She had the same laptop as me, you see, and wanted to know about adding extra space to the hardware. Suddenly, and without warning, my new phsychic friend began receiving a message for me… from beyond the grave. To this day, I’m still not sure what it was exactly. Every so often I still run into her, and we chat about this and that. By the way, she told me about hurricane Irene months ago.

If you’re ever looking for something to do in our little town, then give your local Starbucks a try. While it may not be as entertaining as making your own gourmet coffee at home, it definitely has its benefits. Who knows? You may just make a new friend. Or at least watch one.