I’ve toyed with hiring desk space and to be honest if there was a viable option in walking distance from my house, I would. But there isn’t. Luckily, there are a large number of largely welcoming cafés for me to camp out in while I do my work. Sorry guys.
1. I basically want the exact same order every day
I know you’ve been sprucing up your menu and you slave over your specials, but I like things plain and reliable. I basically want one of the same two or three things every time I visit. This is not the time for experimenting.
2. I think you’re ace but I don’t want to chat
It’s nice to be nice but the last thing I want to do is turn all these two minute polite exchanges into a chat about the ins and outs of our personal lives. If that what I was looking for, I’d have stayed somewhere with colleagues.
3. I do feel bad about nursing this coffee
I’ve worked in a few cafés and small businesses, I know that it’s important that you make enough money to scrape by and that’s why I try to make sure I order enough drinks and snacks to justify my table. Leave me to it and guilt will make me spend or free the space.
4. Sometimes, I am spying on you all
When I’m stuck for inspiration or working on a particularly dull project, my mind does tend to wander and if you’re talking about something interesting, well, the notes I’m making might just include a few of your juicy details.
5. You aren’t the only place I’m visiting
Variety is one of the things that makes the freelance life so much fun, so even though you may have the best drinks and the freshest baking, I’ll be three or fourtiming you on a weekly basis. This is also necessary for maintaining points two and three. It’s not you, it’s me.
6. Without you, I’d be crazy
Bearing all of that in mind, it’s thanks to you guys that I get dressed and escape the house – you keep me sane as I work and for that, I thank you.
That’s what I do in Costa, hire office space, all one square meter of it. I only go in off-peak times and always get a takeaway cup (to keep the drink warm and so they cannot see how much I’ve drunk) and I always watch the people too!
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Oh yes, I like to do takeaway cups too sometimes – excellent choice! And people watching is an excellent pastime.
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I have unspoken systems that try to balance fairness and stinginess in these situations, usually when I don’t have Wi-Fi at my hotel. The classic is 1 pot ginger tea = 1 hour Wi-Fi (@ 1 cup / 15 min x4)
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That sounds like a very reasonable system to me! I normally go with one coffee is suitable for half an hour to an hour, longer than that and I’ll buy a snack or a second drink.
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How much time is a KitKat shake worth?
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Hmm, is that what it sounds like, a milkshake with bits if Kitkat in it?
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Yeah, all blitzed together for a jug (fancy cafe) of tasty. One hour? It’s hard to nurse for that long, so I feel like I deserve credit.
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Credit for you. At least black coffee stays pretty tasty no matter how cold it gets. Warm Kitkat milkshake probably isn’t ideal.
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