Sex and Espresso

Highway 99 is not really a highway but a major business thoroughfare that runs through the city of Seattle and it's adjacent communities to the North and South. Sprinkled all along Highway 99 are a Seattle trademark: Drive-thru espresso huts.

Yesterday, while driving down Highway 99 from Everett towards Seattle, I had quite a shock. I glanced over to see a naked young woman walking across a parking lot carrying a plastic garbage bag in each hand. "That's something you don't see everyday", I thought to myself. Almost immediately after the initial shock I realized she wasn't actually naked. At least, not quite. She was wearing panties on the bottom and pasties on the top. I didn't look long enough to get any further detail (and did manage to keep the car on the road). The explanation for this exhibition? She was an employee of a drive-thru espresso hut and was taking the garbage from the hut across the parking lot to a dumpster.

This is the latest trend in the Seattle area: Drive-thru espresso huts staffed by provocatively dressed young women. Apparently the more traditional (as in, non-exploitative) drive-thrus have suffered a severe loss of business to this new approach. Many owners are having to decide whether to jump on the sleazy bandwagon or go out of business. The Everett Herald recently ran an article about the problem.

For myself, I've never been a big fan of drive-thru espresso huts, preferring the consistency of product I get from Starbucks. I certainly won't go to a hut in order to ogle a scantily clad teenage girl. I wish they'd respect those of us who choose not to see this type of thing by putting on a robe or something when they take out the trash.