Stage 5: Isolation.
Put in your earbuds and crank up the volume. Bend your head over your book and cover the sides of your face to keep your eyes from wandering. You can try anything you want to isolate yourself from the hustle and bustle of the coffee shop, but it will never be very effective.
Stage 6: Annoyance.
Stage 6 is when frustration starts to get the better of you. You’ve been at Starbucks for an hour and you’ve barely written two lines of notes. You start to hate every annoying person occupying the tables around you, and every stupid barista who puts coffees on the bar and yells out the customer’s name at the top of her lungs.
Stage 7: Giving up and going home.
By now, you’ve realized that this was a totally futile exercise. No one should ever go to Starbucks except to get an overpriced coffee and sit at a tiny table with their elbows brushing up against other patrons at other tables. It is with great irritation that you pack up your stuff and leave, while another hopeful college student swoops in to claim the table you just abandoned.
