3 October, 2019
My journey to becoming a Barista
A few weeks back I started my dream job as a Barista in Y Shed, a local independent coffee shop. It’s been quite a journey to get here…..
My love of coffee started 10 years ago, after the birth of my eldest Son. It was the social aspect of ‘meeting for a coffee’ with other new Mums that saw me frequent the local chain coffee shops. The caffeine kick also proved useful when trying to combat the sleepless nights. Going for a coffee became part of my daily ritual. And although I now mainly turn my nose up at said coffee shops (unless it’s Pumpkin Spice or Gingerbread latte season!) it was my local Starbucks that I have to thank for my introduction to coffee drinking!
By the time my youngest son was born 4 years ago, the coffee scene in South Wales was beginning to grow and I was starting to seek out quirky independent coffee shops in which to get my coffee fix. I was also starting to experiment with coffee brewing at home and was taking a keener interest in the origins of the coffee beans I was drinking. Then life dealt me a cruel blow, my Husband’s cancer diagnosis and subsequent death. Life was changed forever and a return to my career of teaching was, for me, impossible. Fortunately I was able to become a stay at home Mum and focus on the family whilst the children were so young. It was during this time I started blogging and educating myself about coffee. I would visit coffee shops and seek out like minded individuals to chat to. It gave me a focus and a reason to get out of the house. For my 40th Birthday, which fell a few weeks after Greg’s death, I treated myself to a top notch Rocket espresso machine and began practicing my coffee making skills at home. I attended lots of coffee courses and workshops and was lucky enough to be taught by some amazing Baristas. I spent a day with Scott & Gordon of Coaltown coffee and was so inspired by their enthusiasm for the coffee industry. I think that was the turning point for me, when I felt a real spark of passion for the coffee world. I attended Barista school at 200 Degrees in Cardiff and found myself under the tutorage of @coffee_by_joe, @czech_barista_tee and @roberttalbotcoffee who are all Barista legends! Independent coffee shops were starting to appear in my local area and speciality coffee was becoming more accessible. Being a science geek, I found the different brewing processes fascinating and spent many hours experimenting with coffee and reading books about it!
I had often said to my husband that I would love to be a Barista. The idea of creating and serving coffee based drinks and chatting to customers had a real appeal to me. When he was ill he used to say to me that his illness had made him have to change his life and that maybe it was a sign that I needed to change my life too. Maybe I should be pursuing the things I loved to do. For me, experiencing his death has made me want to really live, not just exist. In a strange way it’s like having a second chance at life. A chance he never had, but that I do. I’m determined to live life to the full and do what makes me happy.
So onto my job….. It was by chance that I ended up at Y Shed! Or was it? I do believe in fate! I visited Y Shed a number of times earlier this year, to suss the place out and research it for my blog. It was during a chat with my now boss Sophie that I jokingly said that I’d love to be like a supply teacher/barista for coffee shops, filling in now and again if staff were off. I explained my situation of being a widowed Mum of two young boys and that I couldn’t really commit to a full time job and that weekends were spent running the kids around etc. When I visited on another occasion she approached me to say that she would be losing some of her staff come September when they would be starting or returning to University and would I be interested in covering a few shifts! And that’s how I ended up in my perfect job! Perfect because I am working within school hours doing what I love to do….. making coffee, serving customers and even baking some of my ‘famous’ cupcakes! #livingthedream
I really must thank Sophie for giving me this opportunity. Big thanks also to the many coffee buffs I’ve encountered along this journey and to the many friends I have perfected my Barista skills on!