After working as a Barista for two years, I have had many good days and some bad days, too. Here are some of the recurring frustrations that many baristas have to face everyday.
1. Clopens
This term refers to when you work the closing shift one night and return to open the store at an ungodly hour in the morning to work the opening shift and try not to fall asleep. At that point, you may as well sleep in the parking lot.
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2. Blackout
Blackout is the busiest period of the day. For some reason, something always goes wrong at this time.
3. When The Espresso Machines Lock Themselves For Cleaning
This always seems to happen during blackout.
4. Smelling Like Coffee All The Time
All of your clothes smell like coffee, your hair smells like coffee, your car smells like coffee. You might as well have showered in coffee or used coffee as your perfume.
5. When People In The Drive-Thru Pull Up To The Window And Want To Add Something Complicated To Their Order
When people add things to their order at the window, it completely backs up your line and slows everything down. Then you have to deal with all the annoyed customers that had to wait a long time, or whose drinks and food got cold waiting.
6. When People Skip The Drive-Thru Speaker
There are some people who just don't see why they should have to stop at the speaker at all. They order at the window and force everyone behind them to wait while we take their order and make their food and drinks.
7. When Caffeine Stops Working For You Because You Drink 4 Cups Of Coffee A Day
Experimenting with new drinks during slow shifts is always fun but you always end up drinking way too much caffeine and there comes a point where no amount of caffeine will have any effect on you.
8. When People Order Frappés Instead Of Frappucinos
You are thinking of McDonalds.
9. When You Can't Remember Where You Put Your Sharpie
There are some days where everywhere you turn, there are 100 Sharpies, and then there are days when Sharpies are as rare as scarce as gold. You rummage through all the pockets of the aprons in the back in the hopes that there will be a Sharpie you can steal.
10. Trying To Understand People Through The Drive-Thru Headset
Me: Hello, welcome to Starbucks. What can I get started for you?
Customer: Sskgj egbf skfjhg lgj.
Me: *Looks helplessly at other baristas wearing headsets in the hopes that they understood the customer*
11. When You Make The Drink A Little Too Full With Whipped Cream And You Just Have To Pray That The Lid Goes On Without Making A Mess
Then when you're too lazy to clean up the spilled whipped cream so you just double cup the drink.
12. When The Whipped Cream Becomes Possessed And Attacks The Drink You're Making And Creates A Huge Mess
Oops.
13. When It's Not Supposed To Be Blackout But A Bus-Load Of People Show Up
This tends to happen right at that moment when the shift leader sends everyone on their short breaks. You just look at the one and only other co-worker and panic.
14. When Someone Isn't Pleased With The Selection Of Brewed Coffees And Requests A Pour-Over
People often tell me they need a light roast pour-over later in the day because they can't drink a lot of caffeine later in the day. I then explain to them that actually, blonde roast has the most caffeine and dark roast has the least. They always look at me like I'm an idiot and tell me I'm wrong.
15. When Your Store Runs Out Of Something Crucial
Then you have to disappoint every other customer when you explain that you can't make their drink right now.
16. When Someone Comes In One Minute Before Closing And Orders A Complicated Drink
By the time they finish ordering it is past closing time and I am always tempted to tell them we can't make their drink because we closed while they were talking.
17. When You Go To Another Store And The Baristas Make Your Drink Wrong
Then there's an internal conflict where you are trying to decide if you want to be the asshole that points out their mistake or if you let it slide because you sympathize with their struggles.
18. When The Drive-Thru Sticker Machine Runs Out During Blackout
You have to scramble to fix the sticker machine but the orders keep coming.
19. Doing Dishes All Night
You get this giant wet spot on your apron and it never dries and you just feel gross and moist for the rest of the night.
20. When Someone Calls Out Without Finding Coverage
