The New McDonald's

I have a theory....it's probably been said before, but I believe that Starbucks will be (or is) the new McDonald's. Starbucks has some of the only "public" bathrooms in the city, which I take advantage of, but public bathrooms mean a lot of foot traffic, foot traffic that is surpassing the upkeep of the store. I was in Starbucks this evening over on Prince St. and could not believe how disgusting the bathroom was. There was one bathroom (total, girls and guys) for a store that could hold 50-60 people that I waited close to 25 minutes to use.

While waiting in line, I began to have the feeling that is was in coffees version of McDonald's. Customers waited in a long line to have a sugary drink made at lighting speed. I don't know about other coffee drinkers, but my belief is that coffee wasn't meant to be consumed in a hurry. To me, coffee means good conversation or a good book. Something that should be enjoy not quickly, but over a period of time. I guess that is my big problem with the current lifestyle: Nobody slows down.

Last though of the day, next time you are drinking a cup of coffee make yourself slow down. Force yourself to sit and enjoy your drink instead of running out the door. And let me know how that works out.

I leave you with one of my favorite pictures from Governor's Island...