#177: I Want Another Penguin On A Boat.

If we both believe it, it is real, isn’t it?

Technically speaking, I am not really a barista, although that is what it says on the back of my shirt. What sets the professional apart from most coffee lovers is his or her skill to make a «drawing» in a cup of espresso using foamed milk.

A heart is as good as it gets. Symmetrical? Hardly ever, but few customers actually complain. Fewer even voice their desire to see a customized drawing. Expectation are low after all.

It was different the other day. A three year old girl initially requested a «coffee for kids», which her father translated for me. She wanted foamed milk in a coffee cup. Easy.

Next, she asked for a hot chocolate. No worries. But wait, that wasn’t all of it. She wanted a heart, having seen one on her father’s cappuccino. Hmmm… not an easy challenge given that the chocolate milk is already foamed, so how do put foam into foam?

I failed miserably. However, I hadn’t truly failed yet. My final hope lied in the girl’s vivid imagination.

«There you go. I created something special just for you. It is a penguin on a boat. Can you actually point at the penguin?»

That is what she did. No discussion needed.

Now you might wonder what she wanted to have as her final drink. Yeeeess!

«I want another hot chocolate with a penguin on a boat!»

I nodded. Sure.