Dear Cranky Barista,

I would like to start this letter off by saying how much I truly appreciate you. You have made my day better by simply making me a beverage I would have otherwise had to make myself. I am more than willing to pay the two dollars and some change for a 20 oz. cardboard cup of hot water and a little bag of peppermint tea, and then dump the remnants of my five dollar bill into your tip jar. Even though I know how to make my own tea, and how easy it is to make it myself at home, I appreciate it being done for me so I can get my thoughts in order before I sit down to work on whatever it is I have to get done.

With that being said, I do not necessarily appreciate your eye roll or snippy remarks. I understand you probably deal with incompetent and obnoxious customers nearly nonstop during your grueling shift at the coffee shop. However, I am not one of those customers. I simply enter the shop, place my backpack at an open two-person table, order my drink at the counter, take it back to my station, and get to work. I don't bother you or your fellow employees (or the other customers for that matter). I mind my own business, sip my tea, get my work done, and leave. The only words I manage to speak to you is "Can I get a 20 ounce hot peppermint tea, please? Thank you." That's it. Literally.

I would be more understanding if the situation was a bit different; perhaps you have an off day or are in a bad mood every once in a while, or you have to work with the new guy who always smells like moldy milk which leads you to believe he never washes his work shirt. I wouldn't be too peppy in those scenarios, either. But I'm sad to say that every time you see me walk through the front door, all I receive from you is a scowl and an always-reliable roll of the eye.

I'm not sure if this is how you treat all of your customers, since I tend to glue my face to my computer screen once I'm settled, or if I've somehow offended you in my time at the wonderful, little shop you choose to work at, but either way I would like you to know that I'll still be coming in. I will not be deterred by your crankiness. I thoroughly enjoy this quaint and homey coffee shop for many reasons.

I am also going to take this opportunity to apologize for anything I may have done to annoy or offend you in any way. I won't pretend to know what it may have been that soured your opinion of me, but I can assure you it was done unknowingly.

If I have not actually done anything to you and it's just your poor attitude effecting your customer service, I would like to kindly suggest you look into alternate employment options. Part of your job is to be nice to customers. It really is. Maybe you're not a people person, and that's fine! I'm not, either, usually. But if you're not a people person, this type of job isn't really meant for people like us. There are lots of job opportunities with less exposure to people.

I'm honestly not trying to be rude and I'm sorry if it has come across this way. I'm just tired of faking a smile for both of our sakes.

Thank you, again, for occasionally making my drinks. They're always delicious and well prepared!

Sincerely,

The girl who sits in the corner and soaks up the WiFi