The Creative POV [3]: While sitting in a coffee shop...

You can’t use up creativity. The more you use the more you have.

- Maya Angelou

Hello Modern Human!

Welcome to the Creative POV, where every week an artist, Jenny Whitehead, and a comedian, Mike Lukas, offer creative tips on how to put down your screen and be entertained by the world around you.

You know, like people did before the internet because they had no choice.

For this post, you’re sitting in a coffee shop.

Any time you’re enjoying a steamy five dollar latte in public, it’s tempting to look down at a screen or a book or newspaper and creatively check out. But once in a while, do what artists and comedians do and search your surroundings for creative inspiration.

Here are three tips for doing that while sitting in a coffee shop.

Creative POV Tip 1:

Sitting in a coffee shop?

Look for the edible art.

Artist POV

Jenny Whitehead

Sitting in a coffee shop, the first thing I notice is the swirl of white steamed milk sitting on the top of my coffee before I drink it.

Is it in the shape of a heart? A flower? A fern? A snowflake?

I nod at (and tip!) the barista who took the time to learn how to create this small piece of art for me, a total stranger.

The second thing I notice is the edible art all lined up waiting to be purchased in the glass bakery case.

The swirl of a coffee cake…
The purest color of red ever in a cranberry muffin…
The designed cookies and fancy tortes…

… all trying to tempt and tease me into taking them home.

Do I arrange the crumbs on my plate into a doodle while my friend is talking?

Probably.

Yeah.

I would do that.

Comic POV

Mike Lukas

Wherever comedians go, they look for things that stand out that they can exaggerate, deride, give fake tributes to, whatever.

When it comes to coffee shop edibles, there’s plenty to mock…

For one, it’s all horribly overpriced.

When I’m in line at a coffee shop I like to say things like:

“Hm, should I splurge on this basil chicken salad sandwich today or use the money to pay half my rent?”

Or, “Wow, I could either buy this organic bran muffin or go on a Caribbean cruise.”

Or, “Can I have that pricey scone mounted on a ring so I can ask my girlfriend to marry me?

There are always scones at coffee shops.

I love eating scones the way I love eating rocks and sandals and anything else that totally lacks moisture.

I make sure to tell everyone in line at the coffee shop how dry scones are.

“Scones are the opposite of water. Scones are for people who love tumbleweed salads and dusty pot pie. I once saw a kid drowning in the deep end of a swimming pool so I threw in half a scone and absorbed him to safety. I store the other half in my basement in case it floods.”

I also like to point out the coffee shop foods that look like either body parts or older celebrities.

“Heh. Muffin. Muffin. Boob. Boob. Charlie Sheen’s balls. Sugar-powdered ass. Cher.”

Creative POV Tip 2:

Sitting in a coffee shop?

Look at the Interior Design.

Artist POV

Jenny Whitehead

There are two kinds of coffee shops:

The franchise ones that all look identical
The local ones that have personality

For me, the local ones are far more fun.

They have your regular Joes who get greeted by name.

They have the staff that’s worked there forever with piercings and tattoos we don’t notice anymore.

A local coffee shop is usually a secondary art gallery where art or photography is framed on the wall.

Most people don’t realize that art is for sale!

Taking a few minutes to read the artist’s statement is a great way to get “inside the mind of an artist”. You’ll read about his thought process and technique. It may change your mind on whether you think the art is any good and possibly even motivate you to take one home with you (you know, to keep your pastry company).

The design of a coffee shop is never accidental. Care goes into creating a space.

It might make a person feel like they’ve stepped into Paris for an hour.

Or are sitting with the trendy crowd on a corner in New York City in Soho (even if you’re in a small town in Iowa)

The signage and the menu are often hand-drawn with chalk to feel “friendlier.” The colors are usually comforting, even if the wood is distressed ha ha.

There are usually fresh flowers somewhere.

As an artist, it’s my job (and pleasure) to notice. To take it all in.

Comic POV

Mike Lukas

Comedians are also professional observers, so how a coffee shop is laid out will determine where you want to sit to get the best view of the unfolding hilarity.

Find the seat where your back is against the rear wall and you’re facing the wide array of potential comedy bits before you.

From your vantage point, you should be able to effectively sneak glances at everyone and everything in the place the same way a CIA agent or pervert might.

It’s easy to spot the best seat in a chain coffee shop since those places are so consistently laid out. Their design is for fast traffic and maximizing cash flow, so their observation couches are usually located further in the unprofitable back.

With the mom and pop coffee shops, it gets tricky because they tend to mix it up and their spaces have no particular rhyme or reason. Grab a seat more towards the front because in those places chances are its you who’s the one being observed.

The main reason the interior design of a coffee shop needs to be noticed by a comedian, however, is in order to determine whether you could do a show there.

Maybe a Monday night open mic to entertain service industry pros on their only day off.

Ask, where would I put the stage so that people aren’t latte-ing and creaming-up in front of me?

How would I light it so the place looks like a showroom and not a hospital cafeteria?

Where would I sell my merch afterwards like the Mike Lukas comedy CD currently available on Amazon?

What kind of sound system would this place need so that everyone inside can clearly hear my killer fart bits?

Who is the manager that’s sleeping with the owner whom I can convince to get this new open-mic started?

Creative POV Tip 3:

Sitting in a coffee shop?

Look at the Light.

Artist POV

Jenny Whitehead

Always take a look around the room and focus on the lighting.

A room can look different depending on the time of day (or year) you’re in it or the weather.

If it’s a coffee shop I go to often, I might notice the colors on the wall brightening with morning light but becoming calmer, grayer, more subdued on a rainy day.

Shadows on the floor can be short or long, depending on the time of day.

They are especially worth noticing if the shadows are capturing the shapes of people sitting by a doorway or window.

Are their necks elongated?

Have they become cartoon versions of themselves?

Look up at the lighting above.

Is it a chandelier or modern strip lighting?

How are the light fixtures adding to the ambiance?

Again, much care has been taken in deciding each and every detail.

Does it work? Or can you imagine how you would do it different…better?

Comic POV

Mike Lukas

A coffee shop’s lighting is key to the success of any off-duty comedian.

Part of being funny is being seen, so I make sure to look for and stand in the best lighting when I’m about to deliver my dry scone routine.

Coffee shop lighting will vary from being dimly lit for the stoned punks and hipsters to being as bright as a corporate office for the caffeinated money makers.

The lighting also tells you the mood of the place, so adjust your comedic energy accordingly.

Remember, though a properly timed whisper in a dimly lit space might crack up the people standing next to you, a loud punchline in the midst of a dark quiet room can make everyone squirt piping hot liquid through their noses.

However early morning comedy is rarely appreciated, so experiment in the A.M. at your own risk.

My facial expressions are key to my comedy so the brightly lit waiting line is perfect for me to work the crowd for practice.

I’ve found that folks in dimly lit spaces tend to prefer quiet but I’ll still try some bits on them if the local library’s closed.

The other thing I like to do is find the darkest spot in the shadows of the coffee shop.

That’s where I can sneak a one-hit before I leave.

It’s where I can use the coffee shop’s free internet to watch my filthy Bob Ross outtake vids uninterrupted.

That’s where I can jot down my notes with curse words and my scone fornication sketches (aka “scone-ing” or “giving them the scone”) and not be afraid of some nosy looky-loo reporting me.

Hope those give you some fun reasons to put down your screen and let the world of the coffee shop entertain you for a few minutes.

Next week, we’ll go over our Top-3 creative ways to enjoy sitting in traffic.

See you then!

Jenny & Mike

Be sure to click and visit Jenny’s website for her Books, Jewelry, & Photos!

Get the free FUNNY MUSCLE Newsletter:

Plus you’ll also get…

Top-10 Mistakes Unfunny People Make – a strong Funny Muscle avoids the list.
5 Surefire Ways to Make Your Next Speech Funnier – get laughs instead of yawns.
3 Humor Heightening Devices – pro comics use these to get bigger laughs.

Just ‘click’ and enter a valid email address (then confirm it!) and you’ll get the free newsletter and your funny giveaways.

Then get ready to enjoy some laughs!

Liked it? Take a second to support Mike Lukas on Patreon!