The Way I See It:

“What is released from a bean that is roasted to smoky perfection? A philosophical musing, a spirited discussion, a cup of afternoon in a French café. French Roast defines simple imagery and embodies a state of mind.”

Seriously?

You got to love marketing. French roast is defiantly smoky, but more like the bottom of an ashtray smoky. And the second sentence isn’t even a sentence it’s a fragment, one that doesn’t even make sense. And “simple imagery” or a “state of mind”? What exactly are we describing?

The way I see it you can sell anything with good marketing. But it sounds intelligent.

Beyond The Boring

A relevant commentary on our addiction to this “poor man’s wine” is the variety and number of crazy drinks out there. Many more beyond the menu board at Starbucks. Some that would bring on cardiac arrest with the amount of caffeine.

Picture this: a layer of syrupy sweetness, thick cream, and Carmel colored espresso downed in one quick gulp. Ask your barista for a John Wayne and you’ll most likely get a crazy look. But this equally proportioned drink of “two parts of any flavor syrup, though commonly caramel or vanilla, and two portions of half & half, topped with two shots of espresso”, arrests your taste buds with an array of tantalizing flavors. “The ingredients are added slowly in this order, so that the end result is layered with three distinct flavors and temperatures, and is customarily drunk all at once”. (Wikipedia)

A common favorite that many of my regulars ask or are the Black Eye (a cup of coffee with one espresso shot) or Red Eyes (two shots of espresso in a cup of coffee), and I’d always wondered what you would call a triple shot or more. Maybe brown eyes or blue eyes?

Well Wikipedia has enlightened me.

Kennedy: A cup of coffee with three shots of espresso in it.

747: A large coffee with seven shots of espresso in it.

Another hard core drink I came across was the Shakerato / Cafe Shakerato. A double espresso made in a cup with some sugar in it then poured into a shaker with ice, shaken until foam develops, then poured into a glass.

But what one that beat them all was the Sputnik. Two large coffees with 16 shots of espresso, and a Red Bull mixed in! talk about out there. This tops my list for all nighter.


Warning: This is a drug and should not be taken in large amounts on a daily basis. Less then 600mg in generally is not harmful. Ask your doctors be before consuming any drink with large amounts of caffeine. Shaking, blurred vision, hyperactive responses, alertness are some side effects. Extended use may lead to depression, deliriousness, nervousness, restlessness, and stomach issues.

Crappy Customer

I’ll admit. I’m a horrible customer, but only when it comes to licenses Starbucks stores. Perhaps it’s some rudimentary need to show off. Like when you are in elementary school, and the new kid on the block thinks he’s all that. It’s then that this urgent desire to show them up in anything and everything takes over. I try to restrain. I’ve gotten better. But when I walk into the Starbucks on campus I can’t help but note all the differences, the misinformation, and failings in standards. It isn’t their fault. Lack of training and oversight from corporate has led to this clash of personalities (for lack of a more appropriate analogy). When things clash it open opportunities to correct and improve, right?

Improvement on my part might be to stop walking in and ordering the most complicated drink I can think up just to see if they can with stand the challenge. One of my favorites that confuses them every time is when I order an iced venti no espresso Americano, aka, an iced water.

Improvement on their part... Better customer serves. I would be able to stand the mis-made drinks if only they would treat our customers with respect and dignity. I say our ‘cause though they are only licensed, the average consumers doesn’t know that. So, when they order Starbucks at Target, or on campus they are looking at it like a real Starbucks.

Many barista’s have shown the same concern; while Corporate has assured us that training will improve, I still cringe when I walk into the Starbucks on campus. And have to continually apologize to my regulars who come in complaining about the service they received when visiting a licensed store.

They Say

“Decaf, please, I have to have that decaffeinated.” Woman with swollen midsections and rounding stomachs constantly insist that they no longer are aloud caffeine now that they are expecting. But where did that rumor start? The pessimist in me had to question if it was even true. What makes caffeine so bad for you anyway?

So the search began when a friend of mine recently announced that she was pregnant. I started a investigating the effects of caffeine on pregnancy.

TalkAboutCoffee.com uncovers many discrepancies and misunderstanding in that area of caffeine and childbearing.

Some research goes to the one extreme of say that if you want to be able to conceive you should hold the caffeine because it hinders conception, while others say there is no effect at all. One Danish study showed that 300mg in the late trimester had no effect on the child.

It is generally understood that no caffeine is best, but some say that three cups is okay. But how big of a cup? One cup can hold a lot of caffeine. Take for instance the fact that an ounce of espresso has on average 50mg of caffeine verses a cup which varies from 80-130mg (Thanks Wikipedia). So what three cups is pretty vague. I usually get a double tall late, so that would be 100mg in 8oz. Would that be okay?

Basically, what I got out of the article was that everyone’s body acts differently to caffeine, and that in the end they really aren’t sure.

Open Forum for district 110

This was our company picnic. Not really that exciting. Mostly just giving everyone a pat on the back. But hopefully this will give you a taste of Starbucks. Then again I never really could do it justice.

3:30pm

Dang. There is a ton of food left over!

3:15pm

John (regional vise president) and Sara (regional president) gave closing statements.

2:40pm

I thought we were done at two?

2:35

Two guys from my store got an award!!! I am excited for them. They deserved it. one got the Be Welcoming award for always introducing himself to customers and smiling. He’s so great to work with. The other guy got the Be Involved award for always involving customers in coffee tasting and pairings. He does one on every shift. That was exciting!

2:10pm

All the district managers got up and presented awards to stores and partners in their area. It was so awesome. The stories were amazing. One manager told about how a store in her area helped a lady unknown to them through a deep depression with their smiles.

2:02pm

With all these free Izzies I defiantly took advantage of the five minute break.

1:50pm

Five minute break and then the awards.

1:45pm

Oops! Spaced for a few minutes and missed the last couple questions. It’s really not that interesting. They started using business lingo and lost me.

1:12pm

Question: Are there any plans to change tip distribution for our area?
Answer: No. John (regional vice president) reconfirms Starbuck’s statement that they believe the original judge in the California ruling to be wrong.

1:00pm

First question: when are we getting our new espresso machines and Clovers?
Answer (abbreviated version of a long drawn out response): we can’t say now.

12:39pm

Twenty minute warning till the Q&A session. A few more partners from our store showed up.

11:56 am

Just challenged my manager to race me through the obstacle course, but we decided to postpone it till after lunch since Smokey Bones just drove up with the food.

11:40am

Wow! Was I just talking to the regional vice president (Hugh Grant impersonator)? And I think they lady with him was the head-hauncho for Florida!

11:33am

Just hanging out. Found a girl who covered a shift at our store once with me. Talking about nothing seems optimal when you are at a relatively boring party with no one you know.

11:25am

So they just stopped talking and everyone dispersed in the direction of giant blow-up optical course.

11:00am

Some guy is speaking. He reminds me of Hugh Grant, only because of the accent and similar wrinkles around his eyes.

10:57am

Oh. I get it. It’s a question answer session, where they ask the questions and we answer. If we get it right we get a Starbucks card. Boring questions. Who cares about 410K?

10:55am

Feel like I just jumped into the middle of a conversation. I think that they just introduce people…

10:52

Cool inflatable obstacle course!

10:50am

Found a seat, and my assistant manager, manager and district manager. SCARY.

10:48am

Found it! Okay, don’t recognize any one.

ESPRESSO MY LIFE

Words, I’ve had a crush on them all my life, but coffee was my first love. It started slow, in tiny increments. My grandma would let me have espresso sized cups half-full of coffee (the other half I would fill with sugar and cream in that order). When we moved to Virginia, coffee kept me warm on all those bitter cold winter nights. I would curl up with a hot mug and a good book for hours. Slowly, I’ve become so dependent on my cup of java joe that I could not leave the house in the morning with out sipping down a mug or two. Then three, and soon I was moving onto a stronger version. Espresso.

I remember, very specifically, my first espresso drink. Actually, it coincides with my first Starbucks visit. What a memorable experience.

The first thing I distinctly remember was the smell. That amazing, seizing, aroma of espresso and steamed milk! Then, when I got to the register, I was completely overwhelmed. The incomprehensible jumble of different menu items was bewildering. So I ordered a latte, which I probable pronounced wrong. A scrawling conversation was written on the walls. I tried to read the whole thing once but the jumbled sentences verged on poetry and lost me immediately. I love the city and the busy down town setting only enhanced my awe.

No one experience since then has ever been as original.

Tips on My Mind

$106 million dollars is a lot of money.

That’s the amount Starbucks is giving back to all their barista’s in California in compensation for “illegally” splitting tips with shift supervisors.

Multiple customers have come in on every shift I’ve worked this weekend inquiring about the tip lawsuit filed against Starbucks. Most customers wonder if it will affect us. Others inquire more specifically about our opinions. Some, just think it’s great to read negative reports about Starbucks, like “Starbucks got caught with its hand in the tip jar”.

While some barista’s have no idea what’s going on, others, especially employees in California, have an opinion. Personally, I’m with the vast majority that thinks it’s all ridiculous.

Everything depends on how you look at it. According to California law, they were out of line. But every barista has to admit that shifts do everything (and more) that a barista does. Even my manager works on the floor with us. There’s no differentiating between us from a customers perspective. Nothing good is going to be accomplished by taking tips away from shift supervisors.

Fair Trade

Fair Trade had me puzzled. Even Bean Activist Chris O’Brian comments on the complexity of fair trade in his article The Wall Street Journal’s Fair Trade Faux Pas: “fair trade is complex enough as it is without the media complicating it further by making easily avoidable mistakes.” His criticism of the WSJ’s innocent mix up between “fair trade” and “free trade” is understandable. Yet, even from the naïve perspective of the WSJ’s article Tours to Fair-Trade Farms Help Coffee Sellers Spread Word, I was enlightened. The proposal of sending both potential buyers and committed customers of “fair trade” coffee to rural farms in third world countries intrigued me on whole new level. Granted, the business benefits from this set up would be profitable. However, what caught my eye was the endeavor to establish connections with people.

People are the heartbeat behind my love of coffee. When I see those in need protected as O’Brian commented, “justice and sustainability are important in their own right,” fair trade wins my devotion through its commitment to people. In statement made by Global Exchange, they believe “in a total transformation of the coffee industry, so that all coffee sold in this country should be Fair Trade Certified, or if produced on a plantation, that workers' rights should be guaranteed and independently monitored. Our view includes social justice and environmental sustainability.”

My first encounter with fair trade was while sitting in a Starbucks work shop. There they elicited your awe and praise by telling story after story of people and farms that they have saved with their participation with fair trade. As suspicious of it as I was at the time, the stories went to my heart. And after a little research were justified. I found documents establishing the alleviation of poverty in area’s of third-world countries where fair trade had been established. So, although, I may not know all about Fair Trade business, I respect and admire the justice and equality for individuals they are endeavoring to accomplish.

LATTE ART

Well here it is.

Latte Art.

Don’t be scared. Or terrified. Intimidated. Or impressed.

This basic, but well done example of espresso art is not as easy as it looks.

Actually its extremely hard!

Running Out of Steam

In my business this becomes problematic.

No steam, no milk, no froth, no latte, and defiantly no cappuccino.

But what can be more problematic is getting burned out mid-semester with multiple assignments, etc. due. So please excuse the long delay getting back into my blog after spring break. I expect I’ll be on track this week.

Attn:: All Concerned Parties

Starbucks will be closing Tuesday, February 26, 2008 at five thirty for all retraining of Barista’s.

Exciting isn’t it. Well perhaps that could be debated. But undebatable is how daring this move is on the part of Howard Schultz it just another example of the care and concern he has for this company. The praise he and the company have gotten about being honest with their mistakes and desire to “bring it back to the basics” was noted.

One so called “mistake” was the breakfast sandwiches. And there does not seem to be a whole lot of complaint about their absences. Perhaps it is just a lack of awareness but with only fifteen members on the official Save the Breakfast Sandwich site the impact on Starbucks goers doesn’t seem ginormous.

Anyway, don’t plan on ordering your usual Starbucks drink Tuesday night and you can forget about the breakfast sandwiches in future.

My favorite Original Combinations

No way! You can order things of your own creation?

Okay so working at Starbucks has allowed me to experience drinks beyond my original triple grande latte. And I thought I’d share.

Hint for ordering new items at Starbucks. Often if you tell your barista you’d like to try something new, but don’t want to waste four dollars on an experiment drink, they’ll be more than happy to make your original if you hate your concoction.

So next time you have some time to hang out at your favorite Starbucks try one of these fabulous drinks.

1) The Passion Tea Lemonade with Juicy Raspberry instead of the classic syrup

2) A Strawberry’s and Cream with two pumps White Mocha. It really makes it taste like a strawberry milkshake.

3) Next weeks premiering Honey latte, it’s really good, and to modify it try adding Cinnamon Dolce flavoring.

Coffee Addicts and Coffee Snobs are NOT the Same Thing…

You’re an addict when…

-Instant coffee is sufficent
-Your hand writing is so jittery it resembles your 92 year old grandmother’s
-The half a dozen travel mugs in your car aren’t an accumulation of weeks but rather days
-There are multiple brands of coffee in your cabinet (hopefully not your freezer)
-You’ll drink it hot, cold, ten days old…just as long as you get it now
-Your friends know your mugs and your corresponding mood
-The best Christmas present you received was an enlarged car cup holder (for your over sized mug)
-You can’t think strait
-And walking becomes a hazardous cantor
-Your not too concerned about Starbuck’s national closing Tuesday, February 26, at 5:30 pm; there is always JoeMugs


While on the other hand those who inevitable fall into the “snob” qualification would gladly place themselves there to avoid the first catastrophe.

Snobbish behaviors incorporate:

- A single provider of coffee (be it Starbucks or other)
- A personal drink always ordered with a lengthy list of details
- An fervent repulsion to any thought of instant coffee
- All friends know your preference and order accordingly
- Or are to overwhelmed to attempt it
- When you have your coffee is as important as how
- Believes coffee is an experience, not just a way to support their caffeine addiction
- Would never admit to an addiction, but rather claim it as a life style
- Would be greatly disturbed to hear that their favorite coffee company is closing at a random time
- Would most defiantly be sure to stop by before if necessary

One triple short one pump toffee nut Espresso con Panna

I must admit that while I love coffee it can be limited in options and kind of boring. But if you are looking for a quick fix, I’ve found the perfect drink.

Actually it’s more like a swallow. Yes, it is strong, and has a major kick.

What it is:

Three shots of espresso with a little bit of toffee nut flavoring (any flavor can be added, I just like toffee nut personally) topped with a beautiful swirl of whipped cream.

Reminder:

Do not drink in combination with any other form of caffeine unless adequate tolerance has been built up.

Statement or Standard?

So with Starbucks’ up and comming jump to AT&T I inevitably started thinking about the
i-Phone. Up until recently I was very content with my Waffer, though not as pleased with my server, but that’s another story. Then I beheld the i-Phone.

No way, I want one of those! (my first reaction) Then repulsion hit me like a brick wall. Ugh. Every teen in America within the next five years will have an i-Phone, and if not, will be begging and drooling for one.

They are really cool though.

But do I want to be apart of that culture crazy that constantly wants the next newest and hottest item?

Just think about the name for two seconds; “i” pod, “i” phone, “i” everything is what our culture is screaming at us, and yet we passively allow ourselves the pleasure (it is fun) of falling for that amazing and glorious new piece of technological gadgetry, such as the i- Phone.

Brewers Coffee Company

I just discovered the cutest and most original café in Fort Myers (at least so far). Tucked away behind Jason’s Deli off Cypress Lake Drive, Brewers Coffee Company, has made my top ten. Don’t get me wrong, I still love Black Hawk.

Brewers is light and airy, with a very clean and bright feeling (the numerous windows help). There are lots of tables, a cozy corner nook, and a variety of coffee choices with breakfast/lunch spread. Free internet, which is a must in my book, is provided.

What totally sold me (surprise surprise) was their ice cubes! My usually bland Wendnesday was turned around when I ordered an iced latte. I usually order less ice so that it doesn’t get watery. Well, when I received my “less ice” latte I was surprised to find beneath my whipped cream, cubes of frozen coffee! Who would have thought…

Happy Valentines Day!!!

One of my favorite sites surprised me with an early Valentines Day post. Of course with all the amazing ideas you’d need a few days’ heads up to organize them. One of my favorites, and one I’m thinking about executing, is the coffee paring idea.

“If you're in charge of the dinner plans that evening and you decide
you're staying in, try your hand at coffee pairing… If you have a french press
or vacuum press, make sure to utilize it; the ensuing coffee will hold flavors
that otherwise would have been left behind. Also note that it's always safer to
pair coffee with desserts then with non-desserts, so unless you're feeling
confident don't do coffee and dinner (experiment with pairing at a time of less
pressure).”

Valentines Day is a chocolaty, sweet, flavorful, romantic day that vast numbers of people attempt to make unique and special for that one “someone” in there life. A perfect pairing then, I think, for this romantic holiday would be Café Verona. This Columbian blend of rich dark roasted coffee has a slight coco-ish flavor. Granted it’s hard to distinguish if you’ve never done a coffee tasting before, but trust me on this one. Interestingly the reason this blend has a subtle coco taste is because when shipped, the coffee and coco beans often get mixed together on accident (coffee and coco beans look very similar before roasting). Therefore, as you might have guessed, Café Verona pairs excellently with chocolate. So this Valentines Day perhaps try your hand at a coffee pairing, there will be piles of chocolate handy!

How To:

After brewing for four minutes in a French press, take a small sample, fist swirl and smell, next taste, finally sample your chosen pairing, and try the coffee again. Note how it changes the flavor of the coffee and sample. Enjoy!

Finnnalllly!!!

Admittedly I very rarely “hang out” at Starbucks when my study buddy is my computer. Mostly this is because of the outrageous prices for internet access. But according to the Associated Press this is about to change. It never made sense to me, despite the fact that I love Starbucks Coffee and Tea and even work there, to pay for my internet connection. There are a bazillion little coffee shops in every neighborhood willing and able to offer you free access in exchange for your business. It always seemed greedy to me of Starbucks to make you pay $10 an hour (or something close) for access. Granted this did, in my mind, cause a distinct and marked difference between quaint neighborhood café’s, and the Starbuck weed (I say that with the utmost affection). But Starbuck finally seems to be catching on. As of this spring the switch will be made from T-Mobile to AT&T who will be offering a mixture of two hours free internet access with the use of a Starbucks card followed by a $3.99 charge per hour after that. AT&T customers will get automatic access. So I guess now I will have no reason to leave work.

Cultural Pairing

Culture. In the definitions I read on Dictionary.com it seemed to generally be in the context of cultivating society and oneself in the arts. With this understanding, what comes to my mind when I think of a “coffee culture” is a group or society that is fundamentally in pursuit of a better understanding of the art of espresso, and coffee brewing.

One element of this coffee culture that I am so fascinated with is coffee paring. When you take different blends of coffee and strategically combine them with your favorite desert, fruit, nut, and cheese anything that is hinted at in the coffee itself.

As a culture that is looking to extract the most from its coffee experience, there is a great deal to be said of the coffee life style, and what it typically pairs with.

How about a good book for instance? A classic like Jane Eyre or a more recently published book such as The Kite Runner; either of these would provide the perfect accomplice to a quiet afternoon with a cup of your favorite brew or espresso drink.

Music too is an inevitable pairing. My most recent purchase from i-tunes was Jack Johnson’s newest album Sleeping Through the Static. I love Jack Johnson. For me it’s the culmination of the Relaxation!

As Film is such a great part of our culture it naturally touches the realm of very sub culture. Any genre, depending on your taste can add to this cultivation of the coffee culture.

But anything really can go with coffee. As long as what ever you choose does not interfere with your perception of what that espresso drink represents to you, you have the gist.

Music, Books, Coffee, Art, Time, People these are the things that make up a culture. But every individual has to create their own culture out of combinations of these. We are all circles, and its when these touch, and mix that our cultures change ever so slightly to accommodated one another. And thus, no two coffee pairings are ever exactly alike.

AeroPress

Okay so let’s forget brewing coffee with a drip machine, and French Presses, and Espresso makers; what’s left? Nothing. Or at lest so I thought until recently.

Originally, the pictures were the only thing that saved Tim Wendelboe’s blog and relating web site from being lost forever in the marches of past links that I had trumped through, till today when I was searching for something new. I was caught by the title of his most recent post the first unofficial aeropress champion is and decided to navigate deeper into this AeroPress device.



Apparently, there is more than three ways (mentioned above) to extract that tantalizing and often addicting juice from its beans.


This new thingamabob extravaganza was designed by Alan Adler a mechanical engineer at Stanford University. Unfortunately for Mr. Adler, as I was perusing the website for his handy-dandy new fangled contraption, the tone it took on didn’t set well with me. I felt like I was reading the script for the Home Shopping Channels advertisement of the AeroPress. The page itself was boring, and the pictures corny. Mr. Wendelboe’s pictures were much more appealing.

But what I can’t figure out is the Norwegian Tim Wendelboe, and how he is connected with AeroPress. His Blog seems to be centered on this little machine. However, a lot of his comments are geared toward coffee roasting and creating his own blends. I suppose this will just require more digging and maybe a few lessons in Norwegian.

Until then, I suppose I should hold off any judgments of him, or this little machine till I’ve tried it at least.

Every Nasty Detail

After a casual conversation on calorie in take (more specifically “foofooy” coffee’s), this wasn’t he blog I wanted to run across on my nightly jaunts through my most frequented coffee blogs.

Brewed Coffee perused a topic I would have never ventured to begin. And though he did leave me hanging, once you start mite as well get every gross detail, I looked up all the calorie equivalencies for myself.

Mayo Clinic is very informational:

Coffee “extras”
(serving size 1 tablespoon)

Cream: Fat-6 Carbs-0 Calories-52

Half-and-Half: Fat-2 Carbs- 0 Calories- 20

Plain Nondairy Creamer: Fat-1.5 Carbs-2 Calories-20
(liquid)

Whole Milk: Fat- .5 Carbs-1 Calories-9

Fat Free Milk: Fat-0 Carbs-1 Calories-5

Sugar: Fat-0 Carbs-12 Calories-48


Starbucks Café Latte
Espresso (16 oz.)

Made with Whole Milk: Fat-14 Carbs-21 Calories-260

Made with Fat-Free: Fat-0 Carbs-24 Calories-160


Initially I didn’t want to get into all the artificial sweeteners but where is the fun in that.


Artificial Sweetener

Aspartame (NutraSweet, Equal): ADI-50 mg per kg Equivalent-18-19 cans of diet cola

Saccharine (Sweet’n’Low, SugarTwin): ADI-5 mg per kg Equivalent- 9-12 packs of sweetener

Acesulfame K: ADI-15 mg per kg Equivalent-30-32 cans diet lemon-line soda

Sucralose (Splenda): ADI-5 mg per kg Equivalent-6 cans diet cola

*Acceptable Daily Intake


So there you have it all the nasty sticky ins and outs of it.

Bean Juice!

With every different ways to extract that aroma-rific scent dubbed coffee, there are inevitable those who are helplessly addicted. To those I give you Hoops and Yo-yo’s Coffee Jitters

Hopefully, you’ll appreciate it as much as I did.

Quick, Quick! Recovery Coupon!

For me life starts relatively similar every morning. Arrive at work at 4:45. Brew iced coffee, followed by regular and decaf. Open both espresso bars, and cold bar. Stock everything. Don a head set. 5:30 we open. A few people trickle in. Then the mad rush occurs.

In a recent New York Times article it was noted that

“Mr. Schultz faces a difficult task: He has to slow down the company to make
stores feel more like hip neighborhood coffeehouses while also delivering the
steady growth that investors have come to expect from Starbucks.”

Unfortunately the ebb and flow of a society aren’t in Mr. Schultz’s hands.

So can a cozy neighborhood café keep up with the high speed demands of our culture?
Honestly, customers, when they walk in and see a full café, or a backed-up drive-thru, understand and expect a little wait. It shouldn’t and doesn’t affect their café experience.

While human error has to be accounted for in any kind of customer service transaction, and I’m not excusing sloppiness on the part of any barista; those who make more than three drinks a minute will know that it is not uncommon to mix up drink orders, hand the wrong order through the window, accidentally use breeve instead of soy, or visa versa. Though these mix ups may be the result of a busy morning, in my opinion it is often the only effects that are felt by the customers.

Black Hawk Cafe

Comfy couches, high topped tables, and large windows all add to the quaintness of my favorite local café. With a “Free Internet!” sing screaming out to customers across the front doors. The atmosphere presents itself as a great place to hang out, get some work done, or set up a business meeting. Two large flat screen TV’s broadcast CNN in closed caption, while the radio plays acoustic version’s of all the most popular songs. Seating provided out side is a great place for a breath of fresh air, though almost always the tables are inhabited by smokers. And their baristas are fairly good for the most part, and know what their doing; thought on a couple occasions I’ve gotten a latte with a bad shot, but that can happen to the best of them. Though small, and often times crowded, this hip little café is a great place to sink into an over size chair and get lost on the internet, while sipping your favorite flavored latte.

The Way I See It #274

According to Katy Croff, as posted on the back of a Starbucks cup “The Way I See It #274” (let me know if you ever find #1) she says:

“People often ask me if it is worth it to work at sea , isolated from the world,
far from one’s loved ones, seasick, and running on three hours’ of sleep. To lay
eyes on something never before seen by anyone, to learn something new about our
plane, for that one moment of discovery—yes, its all worth it.”

Kathy is an Archaeological oceanographer and National Geographic Emerging Explorer, but when I first read her confession I thought of the life of any great writer/thinker/academic.


Its been said that no man is an island unto himself, yet without getting into anything philosophical, it is often on those lonely islands that the greatest thinkers have emerged. And I would agree with Kathy, in that as a critical thinker, when you stumble upon a great thought or idea, the results are worth the time and effort put in to it.

Froth Failure

There is a certain art to a perfectly pulled shot, I have slowly been discovering. Actually, there is a little art, a little form, and a lot of practice wrapped up into making any type of espresso drink. The other night at work one of my co-workers asked me is I wanted to take the cappuccino test. Naturally I agreed, and then asked what it was. The perfect cappuccino, you may not know, not only has a specific net weight, but also foam density is essential. The test then, is to froth your milk to such a consistency that you can balance a quarter on top. “No problem,” I thought. Conceited as that thought may have been, I embraced the challenge readily. Granted I’ve only been a certified barista for two weeks now, but you’ve got to have a little confidence in yourself, right? Well any way, I frothed my 2% milk good and hard. To my amateur eye it looked spectacular. I piled the seeming foam into a cup, tapped once or twice, and was ready to test my froth. I carefully held my coin a centimeter above the steaming foam, and released. Plop! It immediately sunk to the bottom; disappearing in an instant and taking all my unmerited pride with it. Apparently I still have a lot more to learn before I’ll win any Barista Competitions.

the way i see it:

People just love to hate.

Get any group of people together and before long they’ll find some negative commonality between them. Even those things they love and couldn’t live without (i.e. coffee), they’ll find something to hate. Perhaps it because the more we love, and grow particular of something, the more often we are dissatisfied with some aspect of that very thing that we depend on.

Take any big name company. Wal-Mart. Starbucks. McDonalds. Google anyone of them and it’s pretty easy to find someone hating. Yet we all still walk in their doors and buy their products without any hesitation. While we sit around and bash Wal-Mart, complain about the wait at Starbucks, and how unhealthy McDonalds is for us; they in turn are still the top in there markets and still growing.

I think that complaining has become apart of our attitude. We whine merely out of habit. So next time you’re standing in line, and a complaint arises, stop, and think of something positive to say instead. We all understand your beef with Wal-Mart. And yes, the line is long; we’re standing in it too. And McDonalds probably shouldn’t be consumed on a daily basis, try the Pita-Pit once in a while its right next door, you’ll feel better about yourself.

One Raw Sugar, two Splenda, and half a Sweet’n Low please

My mother always told me that artificial sweeteners were cancerous (same with dark soda) and would make you fat. Therefore they were promptly banned from the house, my father was broken of the habit of incorporating Sweet’n Low into his coffee every morning, and I now cringe at the though of having artificial sweetener as a part of my diet.

Unfortunately, similar to many other wives tales like running in the rain causing you to catch a cold, or swimming after you eat making you sink, or eating without praying giving you a stomach ache, when hold them up to the light of science they rarely hold true.

According to the research I perused over as I was tumbling this topic over in my head, artificial sweetener don’t, directly, cause cancer. Pheewff. We were all holding our breaths there right?

German scholars agree that artificial sweetener doesn’t lead to cancer, and our government concurs.

Nevertheless, being so enlightened, I still can’t help but cringe when I hear some one call a drink with nine Splenda, or eleven Equal. And even if it doesn’t directly cause cancer, you have to wonder about those rumors of unusually sized brain tumors…

Fort Myers Cafe's

I just wanted to note that despite espresso map's claim to having found the best espresso in the country, I believe he over looked a few when he drove past Fort Myers on his way to Miami. Therefore, I’m making it my job to up date you on the local coffee shops in the area.

A Quaint Cafe?

I heard it said recently that Starbucks offers an addictive experience. That struck my interest because, while coffee is not a forbidden addiction, it becomes the method by which an invigorating experience is handed out. Which brings up the question; has coffee truly become a subculture in American society or is it just another product of a well marketed company, like McDonald’s, that is fast becoming one of the many faces on the American billboard of consumer products? When Howard Schultz came back from Italy in the late 80’s, he brought with him the experience of a café culture. Many countries have them—breezy, open aired café’s, where customers stand around high top tables and linger over lattes, cappuccinos and macchiatos. This experience was the spring board for his attempt at creating this type of neighborhood café out of Starbucks, with an American twist of course, market the hell out of it and see where you can take it. Can you market a culture? Apparently you can. In the last decade or so Starbucks’ have sprung up everywhere nationally and world wide. But has it lost some of its quaint, neighborhood appeal by being such a large corporately owned coffee producer?

In The Beginning

This blog essentially was born out of a class project. Fortunately, my obsession with Starbucks has led me to consider the culture that has arisen in our society from coffee.

We have always been all about coffee. Think about the tea rebellion and the entire phenomenon of taxation without representation, which ultimately lead us to drink coffee over tea.

Then here is the Starbucks craze. And now when you say “Let’s get a cup of coffee” what you really mean is “Let’s go to Starbucks”.

Now I'm an Official Blogger

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