Soccer, Starbucks, and Surprises

WELL. Today has been an incredible day! It was full of lessons and intriguing surprises. I suppose I should mention what happened yesterday first, though...I neglected to tell that part of the story in my post last night. 

I woke up in a bed that was 50 times my size to the smell of coffee. I have also learned that I love coffee. I love everything about it! The smell, the taste, the feeling like the air around me was buzzing...it was all amazing. It was such a nice, quiet morning sitting around Original Ian and Jon's apartment and I spent the rest of the day contemplating what kind of job I might like. Jon suggested that, since I seemed to enjoy coffee so much, I should shadow him at Starbucks the next day. I decided that was a lovely idea and would gladly accompany him! I was so excited to learn more about this magical drink that made me feel like I was flying! Jon and I hung out a bit and watched some television - also a new experience. That is an addictive little hobby! Eventually, we decided that sleep was necessary. Jon knew it would be a hard day for me so he tucked me back into my bed and I fell asleep within minutes. I'm going to have a really hard time giving up this cozy bed, I won't lie!

This morning was a super early morning. Apparently this kind of thing is normal. Who does that, though? If that's what it means to have a job then I may need to reconsider this position. I was a mix of equal parts excitement, nervous, and trepidation. It turned out to be a whirlwind of a day...and I don't love coffee as much as I did 10 hours previously. It became clear that my diminutive size is a major disadvantage to making other people's coffee! I do NOT think I shall be pursuing a career as a Starbucks barista any time soon!

One crazy thing did happen as a result of my limited experience of public coffee slinging - I met my distant relative, Randy!!! He is a wonderful little Starbucks cup that has the same aspirations as I do. We teamed up today and managed to make one successful frappuccino for a nice lady when a group of middle school girls walked in and ordered a dozen of them. 

I. Hate. Frappuccinos. They can die a horrible, fiery death and I wouldn't care. At all.

Long story short, I nearly ended up in a blender while trying to make this massive frapp order. Jon saved me before the blender was turned on. After going through THAT near-death experience, it was time to go home. Jon was gracious enough to let Randy hang out so that he and I could trade life stories. I'll go into detail about Randy's background in another blog post - there is SO much. Needless to say, I had a wonderful afternoon learning about part of my family!

That's when Jon suggested that we all go meet up with the girl and her friend to watch the Women's World Cup Semifinal against Germany. I asked what that meant and he responded that it was this game called soccer. He explained the basics of the game and we decided that it sounded like great fun! So off we go, once again...

The girl was decked out in red, white, and blue. It's a thing to support a national team by making yourself as ridiculous as possible, it would seem - she was not alone! Randy happens to be quite the fan of soccer so he was engrossed in the match from the start. Everyone was patient with me as I tried to catch on to how the whole thing worked. There was chanting, gasping, yelling, and a LOT of loud cheering...I've never seen anything like it! I really could get into this sports thing. The camaraderie is unlike anything this world has shown me so far. I ended up getting swept up in the emotion of it all and it was fantastic! The girl scared me with her intensity but I was assured that was normal and I would get used to it. We'll see. The home team won so the place went crazy...and that means they get to play one more game to win the whole thing. I don't know if my heart can take it! I may need to cut back on the amount of coffee I drink that day if I end up watching that match.

There are so many other things that I want to say, but I'm so tired that I've nearly fallen asleep numerous times while typing all of this! Hopefully, I can go into more detail about everything tomorrow. Until then, have a wonderful night and GO TEAM USA!

USA! USA! USA!

Hello World!

Greetings all! I suppose I should answer one important question first - yes, I am indeed a styrofoam cup. I know it may seem slightly obtuse for a styrofoam cup to be blogging but I'm just trying to figure out my place in the world. I just want to share the story of one ordinary little cup who dreams of being extraordinary. Now - where to start...

I guess I should just start at the beginning, as all epic tales tend to do. I came into existence on a chilly June evening when some strange person who'd had a ridiculous amount of coffee couldn't sit still during dinner. He was hanging out with a friend of his and from what I could gather they tend to hang out with a third person - another "Ian". Thus, my name was bestowed upon me. It would seem that this other Ian had gone away on a journey and had left the two of them behind. I felt kind of sad for them, really. They had been abandoned...and I was starting to be nervous that I was going to likewise be abandoned! I had this feeling of dread that I was just going to be thrown away and left to watch the world decompose around me. I had no idea what would await me when I was picked up and taken outside of the only place I had ever known to exist.

The guy decided, I think on a whim, that he was going to take me with him. I didn't know what nefarious deed he had planned on but as least I wasn't alone! He tried to get the girl to laugh by pretending I was talking to her...I couldn't tell if she was genuinely amused or not. He put me in his mode of transportation (I think it's called a "car") and we started on our own journey. I'm a cup, so I can't see a thing out of the windows. All I could see was blue. He also played what I have since learned is called "music" at a terrifying level. My ability to hear has since recovered, so at least there's that. After what seemed to be hours and hours, we arrived at our destination. The guy picks me up and shows the girl that I still, in fact, exist. She implored him to take me with them but he refused. He actually tried to just leave me on her car as a victim of whatever slight breeze or stray creature might come my way. I, again, was exceedingly nervous. The girl took pity on me and put me inside her car for safekeeping as they went to the next restaurant.

Now, it was dark. I couldn't see anything. I heard noises. I knew I was safe inside the girl's car but they had left me by myself in this strange new part of the world. I had a lot of time to think about what I wanted in this life. What did I like? What did I want to do? What could a styrofoam cup actually accomplish? I became quite the philosopher in that time. That's when I decided to share my story with as many people as possible! Suddenly, the guy and girl showed back up! I stopped pondering the dilemma that was my position as a formerly inanimate object who wanted to change the world for the better. The girl handed me back to the guy and they parted ways.

The guy, who I have since found out is named "Jon", took me back to the apartment that he shares with the other Ian. He told me I could stick around for a while (at least until the original Ian returned from his travels) but that I should think about finding a job. It's the first step in discovering my identity, he said. He gave me a wonderful place to sleep for the night and that's where I am currently. I think there will be little trips in the next few days, so please watch this spot. I am so excited to learn and share!

To end my inaugural blog post, I just want to say thank you. Thank you to Jon for creating me. Thank you to the girl for deciding that I mattered. Lastly, thank YOU for going on this exciting journey with me! I'm sure it will prove to be an interesting one.

Oh! One more thing...make sure to follow me on Instagram! My handle is @styrofoam_ian!

Me in my nice, warm bed! I could get used to this...