St. Arbucks: The Third Place Sanctuary

My first week in California was absolutely awful. Really, I guess the first month was pretty terrible but in the midst of all that unbearable chaos there was a moment of serenity. On my way to church, we stopped by our local Starbucks and when I walked in, all my homesickness and anxiety left. As the smell of roasted coffee beans filled my senses and the ambience of the lighting shown upon me, I said to myself, “I’m home.”

There’s this theory going around about something called “the third place”. I give props to Nora Ephron (director of such films as Julie and Julia and Sleepless in Seattle), who introduced me to this theory during some special features on one of her movies. The theory goes something like this: everyone has a home (hopefully at least haha) and your home is your “first place”. Everyone also has a job and the location of their chosen occupation is their “second place”. Between these two places, much time is spent and many peoples (leaders in the relaxation movement and no doubt some Starbucks execs) think that besides these two all-consuming places, we as humans need a “third place”. My third place and I’ve heard many others as well, is Starbucks.

This third place is extremely important to me. Starbucks is my escape, my home away from home away from home. It is my sanctuary, a place to write, read, and lollygag by myself, or sometimes with my posse. In fact, in many ways Starbucks is like a church: eternally devoted followers (like you and me), its own lingo (double shot grande non-fat macchiato means nothing to non-Starbuckers), and its own “sacred” icons (that half-naked maiden on the logo). Not to mention that it has locations/chapels EVERYWHERE (sometimes ten and eleven in one city). Starbucks is a home away from home because in many ways what you do there resembles a spiritual experience (maybe I’m confusing spirituality with that feeling of being cultured haha, wouldn’t put it past me). Whether you are sitting in those red armchairs or chilling with your head against those plushy headboards behind the benches with the angelic lighting fixtures creating a halo effect around all you do……Starbucks is a sacred place and don’t argue otherwise.

Very few places could keep me for more than two hours, but Starbucks can easily possess my entire caffeinated being for three and a half hours straight. One white chocolate mocha with a copy of Pride and Prejudice and BAM…it’s been four hours! But it isn’t a sad shock when you find out how long you’ve been there; it’s actually really comforting to know that there is a place you can lounge at for so long and not feel lazy or intrusive. But upon further consideration I’d say that I also can feel that same way at church. So I guess that my church is really my third place and in turn that would make Starbucks my fourth place. Hmm, well that’s interesting….but that’s also an entirely other cup of Joe :)