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Collected Item: “Distracting Myself with Latte Art”

Give your story a title.

Distracting Myself with Latte Art

What sort of object is this: text story, photograph, video, audio interview, screenshot, drawing, meme, etc.?

Photograph, text story

Tell us a story; share your experience. Describe what the object or story you've uploaded says about the pandemic, and/or why what you've submitted is important to you.

At the moment, the only reasons I leave the house is to shop for essentials and for work. As a barista, my job can get fairly uncomfortable, as there is often a struggle between me and the customer, as they immediately want to remove their mask and take a sip of their drink instead of waiting until they are at a table or outside, or they don't want to wear one at all and refuse to comply when we ask. We also have pushback against limiting indoor seating and maximum capacity of the store, as we do have a small shop that makes it difficult to distance. It has led to tense interactions and anxiety leading up to shifts, and I have been struggling to find reasons to enjoy work. Because of this struggle, I turned towards improving my latte art as a way to both improve my craft and distract myself from the complications and uncomfortable interactions that have disrupted my workplace. It has brought me a sense of productivity and calm, despite the issues pervading the shop. This is my progress so far.

Use one-word hashtags (separated by commas) to describe your story. For example: Where did it originate? How does this object make you feel? How does this object relate to the pandemic?

Arizona State University, HST 580, coffee, latte, barista, masks, anxiety

Who originally created this object? (If you created this object, such as photo, then put "self" here.)

Julia Jensen

Give this story a date.

2021-01-31
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