By Suzy
Parish
I recently spent many days in a
local coffee shop proofing galleys for Flowers from Afghanistan.
During that time I developed a
survival kit for those long days away from home.
Air
travel collapsible pillow: Let’s face it, hard wooden coffee shop chairs
are not made to spend hours in when writing. Look in the air travel
section of your local store. They have scaled down comfort items that fit
perfectly in a backpack to help you be more comfortable and productive in
your coffee shop office.
Noise
canceling headphones: I tried earbuds, and they worked fine for listening
to music and removing most distractions. The problem was no one knew I
couldn’t hear them when they came up to speak to me. One day I never saw
the barista who brought my coffee. I was deep in thought and never heard
her. I’m sure she thought I was rude not to acknowledge her. Or maybe she
understood. Anyway, I felt bad she didn’t know I had not heard her. The
next day on the advice of my daughter and son-in-law I purchased a set of
headphones. I felt much more comfortable knowing people got the message I
couldn’t hear them.
Saline
eye drops: I don’t think I have to say more than that! Hours of reading,
whether in my home office or away give me dry scratchy eyes. I don’t use
drops with anything other than saline because though the others may remove
red eyes, they work by constricting the blood vessels in your eye and
eventually you get a rebound effect.
Protein
bars: Coffee shops offer tempting carb-loaded muffins and pastries. I
indulge in one, but to stay productive and awake protein takes me farther.
Favorite lip balm.
Small
tube of your favorite hand lotion: Long days on the keyboard cause rough,
dry skin on hands.
Layer
your clothing: My prime writing spot, unfortunately, happened to be right
across from the door. Every time someone entered the shop, blustery air
followed. I learned after the first day to pack my favorite sweater. That
writing spot was so sunny and cheery it was worth the extra effort.
Consideration:
If I must take a phone call, I try to do it outside. There is nothing
worse than working on deadline and have some guy use the coffee shop to
make sales calls. Even wearing my headphones, his voice boomed over the
entire shop. Not everyone wants to hear your latest marketing plans.
Purchase their products! I filled a
coffee punch card this past week. Remember: their mission is to sell
coffee. An
old Girl Scout motto is "Leave no trace." Adapt that to your
coffee shop office. Clean up your mess as your mother taught you. Make
them glad you're spending hours in their shop (taking up space another
customer might like). If you follow these suggestions you just may
cultivate a great relationship with your barista! __________________________________________________________________
Suzy Parish is an author at Pelican Book Group.
Suzy wrote as a Community Columnist for the Huntsville Times. She is currently
a member of American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW). Her novel, Flowers from
Afghanistan was a semi-finalist in the Genesis contest for 2013. Suzy
discovered her love of books as a child in Richmond, Virginia when she took
refuge from the summer heat in the local Bookmobile. She believes in the power
of literacy to improve the lives of individuals and stewards a Little Free
Library in a local park. Suzy’s debut novel, Flowers from Afghanistan will be
released in 2018. Her social media links: www.suzyparish.com twitter.com@SuzyParish https://www.facebook.com/Parishauthor
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