Years ago, and I mean years (think like 14 ish), I would patronize a local Yogurt & Such around the corner from my office. The woman who ran it was from Pakistan and when I was ordering my boring vanilla frozen yogurt with granola and fruit one day, she offered to throw in her special iced coffee. She told me that the first one was on the house and if I liked it, I could order it again and pay for it. H O L Y shit. That coffee was delicious. Not only did I order it again, but I didn’t go there again without ordering her phenomenal iced coffee. One day I worked up the courage to ask her what the magical ingredients were in this amazing drink. I promised up and down that I’d always buy it there, from her, but begged to know.
It’s funny because I’ve always been this way. I’ll throw a disclaimer out there as to the food items that are non-negotiables for me (stinky cheese, liver, etc.) but outside of that, I tell people to let me try it and tell me what it is after. I don’t want to generate some preconceived notion about something that colors my ability to formulate a real opinion. I want to have an unbiased reaction. So yeah, I taste first and ask later. Clearly this exercise is a lot “safer” when it comes to iced coffee. It gets a bit dicey when it’s a meat dish or the like. Anyway, as an aside, if you’ve never tried this, I highly recommend it. You would not believe what you decide you don’t like before you’ve even really given it a fair chance.
Anyway, let’s get back to the discussion at hand. I asked this lovely woman what was in her fanfuckingtastic iced coffee and she smiled sweetly and said: instant coffee, ice, sugar, and cream. Not possible. How was this possible? How could this treat that tasted like a milkshake contain just those four silly ingredients? How could I really like instant coffee when I had waged a silent, internal war against it for years? Incredulity aside, I went back for the iced coffee until she sadly had to close up shop.
I never did make her “fancy” iced coffee at home, but I had great memories of it.
Can you guess where I’m going yet? Well, the other day a friend asked me if I had tried the new influencer sensation, ‘whipped coffee.’ I didn’t hesitate before responding in the negative. Mostly because I just plain ol’ hadn’t seen anything about it, but then also because I’m not inclined to try influencer beverages. There’s nothing wrong with them. They just usually aren’t my jam. I’m not one for pink drinks or purple drinks or sparkly drinks. It’s funny really because I like pink and purple and sparkly everything else. I’m just not into it when it comes to my beverages. Beverage holders? Yes. The stuff that I imbibe? Nope. So for those primary reasons, I had probably quick scrolled by any mention of such. Or just not really SEEN it because it didn’t capture my interest.
My friend told me that it looked good and she too is not a fancy, super sugary drink person, so I decided to give it a gander. Well, imagine my surprise when every influencer on social media is pushing my friend’s iced coffee drink. I couldn’t stop laughing but then it also made me a little sad. I had these mixed feelings for so many reasons. Mostly, I can’t wrap my brain around how this whole hashtag trending business works. What makes something popular? What makes something (forgive the expression right now) go viral? What is the THING that makes the idea or reality of a drink, dance, place to visit, or restaurant, all of a sudden catch on?
Before we go further, I obviously know that there are psychological studies that have been conducted on this very phenomenon. I mean, let’s get real, this is the very paradigm that the folks study who work in the world of advertising today or [more granularly,] SEO. I’m not talking about the deep-rooted psychology behind all of this. I am not talking about the tags that are used or other promotional tricks and tools that are employed to grab the general public. I am just shooting the shit with you and wondering how the fuck this all works. How did a bunch of gals who like $9 Starbucks drinks decide to like (and hard core promote) a drink that is comprised of Tasters Choice, milk, and sugar? How did the alternative milk, organic coffee crew latch on to the most basic coffee recipe ever concocted? How come Yogurt & Such in Uniondale didn’t become an overnight sensation because of my friend’s iced coffee? Why am I exploring the popularity of a new coffee drink with all of you?
Well, first of all, the recall of that tasty iced coffee inspired me to throw instant coffee onto my shopping list and dust off my milk frother. Yes. I was influenced. It happened. I didn’t look up the recipe posted to any social media gal’s page because well, I know it well. I’m tempted to look because I kind of want to see how they romanticized the recipe. Do they talk about its astounding simplicity? Are they substituting cow’s milk and white sugar with oat milk and natural sugar? Or perhaps Splenda? Are they skipping the sweet component altogether (BIG mistake)? How are they taking the iced coffee that I drank solidly for two years and turning it into something that everyone in America wants to drink, right now, in the thick of a pandemic? Is it because of its simplicity that it is catching on now? You TOO can make a jazzy coffee drink with food you already have in your pantry….ta da!
But I am distracting you from a statement I made. I was influenced. I was conned back into revisiting one of my old favorite coffee beverages. I feel pretty confident that without the mention of such, I might not have ever thought to make it again. Really. And I LOVED it. But it was a thing and then the store closed, and then it was gone. It was shockingly that simple. The same way that this whipped coffee trend will also disappear. Much like unicorn frappes. They come, they invade our homes, they tax our bank accounts, and they leave. Just like they were never there to begin with. Wow.
Cool, I’m talking about the power of social media influence. This is hardly a revolutionary concept. We all know this exists. It is LITERALLY the reason the term influencer was coined. They choose something and we lap it up like lemmings. I am not judging or pretending like I’m above this….as the whipped coffee (or my version of it) is not the first time I’ve been influenced. Often willingly and knowingly. So…what?
Well, in this time of insanity, when it is even easier to be “influenced” because we are home sitting in front of social media and televisions, I think it behooves us to be a little more conscious of it. I am not suggesting that you resist the influence. I mean you can, sure. I’m suggesting that maybe we use this time to recall things and reintroduce things that we let go of too easily. No, I do NOT mean call your ex. Do NOT call your ex. I’m also not talking about iced coffee. I’m saying that we can go back to things that have brought us joy, without a prodding in that direction or hell, we can even hold on to them to begin with. We can recreate special recipes at home if the source becomes unavailable to us. We can cultivate relationships and friendships even when it becomes a little bit more challenging. We can still sketch and write and play a sport we once and would still enjoy. Life will present challenges to holding on. It won’t be as easy. Well, why do things need to be easy? Or as easy? Why can’t we be okay with modifying something to fit the now?
What does that mean? Well, I make the iced coffee at home on the weekends because during the week just doesn’t work. You join a basketball league that meets in the evenings once a week. It’s not super competitive and sometimes it’s cancelled, but it gives you the taste. You don’t have the same exact talent or inspiration as you once did when you found yourself drawing, but it is still provides that cathartic release.
I am fascinated by how easily influenced we are by influencers. I am more amazed by the fact that we let life pass us by without holding onto the things that bring us joy. I am blown away by the fact that we seemingly need reminders of these things to bring them back.
This is a time to recall those little pleasures in life. You don’t need a hashtag. Just use your mind and your spirit. You’d be amazed at what’s still lingering. Enjoy the adventure.
Talk to you tomorrow.
L.
thepathtoworthy.com 