On Latte Art, Barista Showmanship, and the general effects of too much caffeine on an inflated Ego

Most of you are familiar with Latte art, and generally, you like it. At least I've never heard anyone say, "Please don't put a rosetta on my Latte." (Not that it couldn't happen.) We Baristi usually tell customers that we pour art to highlight our espresso; to show the high quality which differentiates us from others. That may be true. But the real reason we do it is because it's boring to just pour milk over espresso again and again and again. We baristi tend to be over-caffeinated, over-educated (for what we do), and usually a bit ego-maniacal. Pouring lattes is boring. We have an eccess of energy and enthusiasm. We need the challenge of pouring art. And we need to one-up our co-workers and competing coffee shops.

This, by the way, is also why we're flipping our tampers and portafilters and whip cream canisters and cups and anything else we get our hands on. We've got ridiculous amounts of caffeine flowing through our veins; Simple motions no longer feel possible; We HAVE to flip every item we touch. I don't think this actually impresses anyone but ourselves, but we keep flipping. At least it satisfies our neurosis...