That Guy

I've become something I never thought I would be. I'm that guy who knows everyone everywhere he goes. You know the type. At the bank, the grocery store, the mall, the gas station, there's always a familiar face waving a friendly hand. For those of you who have known me for a long time, you know that this is very uncharacteristic of me. I have never been one to go out of my way to talk to people I don't know or even people I do know somewhat. Being a barista, however, has totally changed that. Every day that I go out in public, I see someone who is either a regular at the coffee shop or at least partially regular. Most of the time the interactions are relatively harmless; a simple "hello, how are you?" On increasingly regular occasions, however, the interactions are very friendly and sometimes even go beyond the surface level questions. On the other hand, there are some encounters that are just completely and incredibly awkward. I've been grocery shopping and I see a customer and they say, "oh, what are you doing here?" Well, I thought I was grocery shopping, but does it look like I'm doing something else? My personal favorites are the interactions where I have no clue what the person's name is but I can spout off that they usually order a skinny sugar-free vanilla latte with an extra shot. "Oh yeah, you're the person who orders that drink. What was your name again?" Melissa is quite amused by my newfound network of social contacts, and I have to say that I do in fact enjoy knowing people everywhere I go. There is something rewarding and fulfilling about being "that guy."