starbucks

the other day in Tennessee, I bought the book How Starbucks Saved My Life by Michael Gates Gill for 75 cents. It was an easy quick read, but I finished it, which is more than I can say for most of the books I have encountered lately. It was a beach or bathtub read, but was well-written and held my attention. The storyline was about a man who earned six-figures & had everything, then screwed it all up and found himself, at 64 years old, with a brain tumor and a job at Starbucks. He made the best of the situation and ended up the better for it. I think the book struck a chord with me because of the many hours I have worked at coffeeshops and the common ground of a life splintering. It was a good book, but I’m glad I spent 75 cents instead of the suggested retail of $14.00. Some quotes I liked:

Zelda Fitzgerald: She realized too late that work was dignity.

On the end of a summer love: Its tragic, but not serious.

The funny thing was my feet didn’t hurt when I was actually working. It was like when I was playing high school football: you didn’t notice the aches and pains until after the game.

At Yale, he didn’t even consider the fact that anyone could “fail” at life. Life was life--with all its bizarre twists and turns.