All I had was Starbucks' smallest half-coffee-half-milk drink and I was able to endure the day [1]. While I did miss my customary 30 minute naps in SAT prep and Stats, the focused feeling I had was truly extraordinary. Not only watching, but UNDERSTANDING what's actually being taught with ease was such a foreign concept pre-caffeine. Who knew that learning was supposed to happen in school?
Yet going into a Starbucks in Ashburn is a strange experience. When thinking back to the renaissance coffee houses, focused more on being a place to study and interact with others, the modern-day Starbucks seems so incompatible with that former ideal. Coffee wasn't the reason people went to a coffee house, but rather for the valuable conversation and idea exchange. Sure, some people go into the monopolized chain to actually sit and talk, but so many people go in, get coffee, and get out just to provide the energy to keep up with the workday. The extent of capitalism's hold on its people is evident in this. We as a nation are so driven to make money, and if that takes a lack of social interaction and self-reliance to become the best specialist possible in a specific field, so be it. Who needs values when you can buy them?
Yes, I realize I'm a total hypocrite writing all of this as a fellow Starbucks consumer. But isn't the first step towards change acceptance?
P.S. This blog post is incomplete, sloppy, and short. For this I apologize.
[1] Sustenio diem, Endure the Day. I'm totally making this my new motto. Basically the opposite of carpe diem where I'm simply looking to get by as easy as possible without issue. Perfect.
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