My Name is Ben.

    "And can I get a name for this order?"

    "Oh--yeah, my name is Ben."

    My name is not Ben. It's nowhere near Ben. I would not like to be named Ben. My name is Linton, coming from Lin (林), being my mother's maiden name. Now, my name isn't exactly a Chinese name, but it's also not exactly an American one. 

Latte from Cafe Immortelle, which
ended up being my top choice.

    I've been "cafe-hopping" for the past month in hopes of finding a 10/10 cafe. Whether it be going to study or to just simply have a cup of coffee, I always find it fun to go to a new place to critique their vibes. Cafes have a reputation for being calm, aesthetic, and most importantly, inviting. A cafe can't possibly make their customers feel laid-back if they aren't hospitable enough, so top-tier customer service is required. 

    One very common aspect of said "top-tier customer service" is one simple question at the end of the ordering process. The cashier takes the receipt which then is handed to the other baristas behind as he/she asks, "And can I get a name for this order?". This shouldn't at all be a hard question, because out of any questions in the world, I should be able to answer this one. As I catch myself from awkwardly stuttering, I still fall forward by responding with, "Oh--yeah, my name is Ben". 

    In this past month, 5 of the 11 cafes I've visited were ones I hadn't tried before (All within Troy of course, but if this blog does well, maybe I can increase my budget to Rochester too). Repeatedly, I was met with this same question that I somehow couldn't answer correctly. The reason being that somewhere down the line, believe it or not, I got too embarrassed by the consistent "hm? what was that?", as I say my real name; a name that you wouldn't expect because you've never heard of it before. 

    So, I started being known as a Ben. Apparently, it was the simplest American name I could come up with (other than Bob, but after trying that name out on a cafe, I instantly regretted it). 

    But why? 

    Why would I want to separate my identity just to avoid a mere "hm?"? After all, I'm only just ordering a drink. After a long 2 minutes of pondering, I settled on the conclusion that I'm just a people pleaser. Why make the barista suffer that 2 seconds of pain and agony just because they may have misheard a name when I can just pretend I'm someone I'm not instead! Although I have still yet to go to another cafe to say, "my name is Linton", at least now I can confidently say "Yeah, my name is not Ben." 

    Everyone inevitably has their differences and their individual traits, and we are all living here in this melting pot that is America. So, simply live socially enough to show who you are to inspire others to express themselves in the same fashion, even if its merely sharing your name.