The One with the Podcast

Bottom line, I am a podcast junkie.

True story, I do not believe that we live in a generation of people that read the newspaper, watch the news or read books anymore. I know its tragic, but it's true. If you were to ask 100 people what they spend more of their time doing, watching television, listening to the radio/podcast or reading, the majority will say television.

I am guilty as sin on this note. I love to read, but I find myself so busy that I have even switched to listening to books on tape and adding more and more podcasts to my iPod, just to deal with LA traffic. I get a LOT out of them though, since I spend close to 20 hours per week in a car, might as well listen to something educational, heartwarming or inspiring... right?

Most recently though, I have noticed that there are not a lot of sources for audio media out there in the world of coffee. No one has taken the time or effort to convert some of the amazing texts out there to audio book and the podcasts on coffee that are out there, well they are boring! (Portafilter.net is exempt from this statement, but it's no longer around... so.. ) Not only are they boring, but the information in these said "podcasts" are archaic to say the least, let alone novice. I want something that appeals to the coffee professional of today, something exciting, inspiring, heartwarming and humorous. I want to listen to the conversations we have at expo and regionals, over and over again, but how?

Well, I decided during expo that I would have to take matters in to my own hands! Create a podcast that I would want to listen to and hopefully inspire others to do something similar in their lives. I do not have a whole lot of down time, but hey, what if I cut out 1 hour of television per day? (Yes I am willing to admit I watch and hour of TV per day, you know you do too).. Better yet, what if I ONLY watched television for 3 hours per week! Only 3 show I absolutely adore... or even better only 2 shows I adore and one hour of "research" on the Game Show Network?

So, that was in April and now, it's May, even though I'm HELLA busy and could probably enjoy more television or pick up another book, I decided to try and make this "inner circle" of coffee professionals more accessible to the greater coffee community at large!!

Today I recorded my second podcast. I hope to have at least 4 recorded before I start posting, so they can be posted regularly, like once per week. That's ambitious so, let's say at lead 2 per month!

We have so far covered topics like - Using "standards" in a cafe setting, why we started working in coffee and stay in the industry, and competitions - are they good or bad for the industry! I hope to cover a lot more, including processing, roasting, service, and opinions galore!

But how was I going to make this fun? How was I going to make this entertaining and not just boring? TRIVIA!! I hope that this podcast will evolve into the "wait, wait don't tell me" of coffee, or at least a high bred of that and the jeopardy of coffee! I think my first trivia guests really enjoyed the trivia and everyone is stoked to start listening!

So, my loyal readers, I ask you, please if you have any interest in being on the show, have topics for discussion, or trivia questions.. send them my way to stuffandthingscoffee@gmail.com or follow the podcast on twitter @CoffeeCrosstalk

Although it's a little costly, I am hoping that all of my friends and co-coffee lovers will love the show and some lovely folks will want to help sponsor.. but that is down the line. As of now, I need to give a huge shout out to my roommate, Tobias Renfro, who is (for now) donating his time and studio to mastering and editing the podcast. He is a digital NINJA!!

Thank you for reading and I hope to have you all on the line as we discuss "Stuff and Things; Coffee Crosstalk" and enjoy your tasty bevs... Stay tuned!

Cheers,

ALJ

The One About Nail Salons

Nail Salons are my happy place.

Much like the cafe is a happy place for many of our customers, I hold my local and all nail salons as a sacred and cherished place in my day. A place I go to make myself feel better, get pretty and have "me" time. 

What the hell does the nail salon have to do with being a barista? Or the coffee house and specialty coffee culture you ask? Well, I'm gonna tell you. . . 

Many of us, if not all of us as coffee professionals, has had a horrific customer experience at a cafe, whether it be the coffee or the customer service, 99% of the time, it's the customer service. With all these posts about the "Bitter Barista" and "How not to be a dick" articles, I thought I would respond with a different type of post. I am not usually the one to post in response to something, but in this case, I can't just turn a blind eye. 

I bring up the Nail Salon, my happy place, my home away from home. If you've ever been to a nail salon, the first thing they do is say "Hi! Honey" or "Hello my friend, what you need today?" Off the bat, a friendly greeting and an inquiry into how they can help you. 

Here is the rest of the interaction: 

"I need a mani pedi"

"Ok honey, you pick color"

I take my time, picking out the color I want, sometimes it takes one minute, sometimes up to 10 minutes depending on my mood and how indecisive I am that day. I choose my color and they are waiting patiently. 

"You go to chair number 4"

I sit in the chair, and they immediately go to work, sometimes on my hands first then move me to work on my feet, but %90 of the time they do both at the same time. Always smiling, asking me a variety of questions, "You work today?", "You have children?", and my favorite "You have boyfriend?", all just to be nice and have a little conversation and if I don't want any small talk, they pick up on it and still are just as polite as could be and any complaints I may have, they are easy to oblige. 

"Oh, there's an air bubbly thing, there in that nail, can you fix it please?" 

"Oh, yes my friend, of course."

Then when they're all done, they put my shoes on for me, take my keys out of my purse so I don't ruin my beautiful nails, they THANK ME, tell me to come back soon and I leave feeling just so amazing. 

This is the type of service that I've now come to expect from the salons. And you know what? No matter what nail salon I walk into, the service is always the same, always impeccable and always leaves me wanting more. 

Now, if that were a cafe, would I get that type of experience? Would I call it my happy place? I am sure baristas make better money than manicurists and don't work half as hard, and believe me, doing MY nails is a craft that is bar none, magical. 

I feel like making coffee is magical and would love for every barista to become more like my nail salon folk, that way I can have more happy places.