Mocha Latte, Quiche, and Modern Times

The library I sometimes use in a neighboring town has a coffee nook in the lobby along with the “New Books” section, the videos shelves, and the checkout desks. There are three tables for patrons of the coffee shop. Most of the time, there are business people sitting at the tables talking loudly on cell phones or even using the area for meeting clients in person. I think I may have mentioned before that this is the noisiest library I have ever used. Even the librarians and the coffee guy are loud.

I saw something the other day while browsing the new books that surprised me. It made me realize how times have changed in the last few years. A man about my age, or a bit older, came in and went straight to the coffee shop. He was neat and clean wearing a “gimme” cap, a poplin jacket, jeans, and work-type shoe. He ordered “. . .one of them 16 ounce mocha lattes” in a Carolina southern drawl. It somehow seemed out of character to hear this older, possibly retired, hardworking every-man order a mocha latte.

Perhaps my surprised reaction says that I’m out of touch with modern times. It’s just that I don’t think that my grandfather would drink mocha latte; his drink of choice was bourbon or the boiled coffee with eggshells added to settle the grounds that my grandmother made every morning. He might have eaten quiche but he would have probably called it scrambled eggs.