just don’t call me katie

I’ve always loved my name and its simplicity. However, something gets a little lost in translation when I order drinks at Starbucks now that they have started taking names with drink orders (and now that I’m sucked into more regular purchases while waiting for the morning tram from the gym to my office). Yes, we are a little behind here in Switzerland. The Starbucks hand stamped loyalty card was just introduced a few months ago, along with the request for names. Sadly, the Starbucks gold card is still unknown.

It took more than 6 drinks (some pictured above) over the course of a month before I left with a grande soy caramel macchiato that actually said Kate. In the meantime, I had time to think about what I could say that would make it more clear. Should I spell it in German? Should I say, “Kate, like Kate Middleton”? Should I offer a more recognizable Swiss name? Should I go to Starbucks less often? While the best answer is probably the last choice (at least according to my Maestro card), it seems that the baristas have now mostly caught on and I no longer am the recipient of strange looks when responding to Kalte or Ket. However, I am open to suggestions on a Starbucks name for next time I’m in line.