Karaoke, however you say it, is dangerous.
So while I was out of town, there was this interesting story I just got caught up on today.
A Seattle woman attacked a guy for singing Coldplay at a karaoke bar.
Now I have another reason other than the fact that I can’t sing not to get up and do karaoke here in Seattle.
Back in Seattle.
I am finally back in Seattle after being away 10 days. Now, when I say finally, it’s not that I minded my time away, it’s just tough to be gone for 10 days. I loved seeing friends and family in Oregon as well as having a very relaxing vacation to Seaside with some friends from here in Seattle. All-in-all a GREAT 10 days, but I am glad to be back.
I do hate the process of coming home after being gone 10 days. You’re home and all you get to do is catch up for well probably until the weekend. I’ve almost caught up my newspaper reading (2 more to go), I still have a ton of laundry to do, and well yea my place is a disaster pretty much.
Tomorrow, I’m back to work and back to the life that I love here in Seattle. Glad to be back.
Do stadium construction jobs justify taxpayers money?
I found this at The Fanhouse today. Barack Obama was asked if having the taxpayers dollars pay for the renovation of Soldier Field was the right choice. He responded with
Does the building of the stadium in itself help the local economy that much? I would imagine it helps, but I doubt it justifies the hundreds of millions of dollars of tax payers dollars. What about the jobs it provides year in and year out as the team sticks around? What about the local bars and restaurants around the arena or stadium? What about the impact on bringing the community together around a common interest?
Well I guess if the $300M that Clay Bennett is asking for is paid for in the jobs created for construction alone we might as well buck up right away! Why can’t we just sit down Bennett, Obama, and Christine Gregoire. We’d have the new arena by next month right? Oh wait, it’s Seattle, that won’t happen.
I love this city…
In the last three days… I have gone to two Mariners games (19 innings of baseball), eaten on a rooftop downtown for lunch, saw the Blue Angels, tried to play tennis, eaten on an outside deck while watching the sun set over the sound, and hung out with my neighbors who I didn’t know before Sunday. I love it!
Starbucks is now selling the Grateful Dead.
Nothing much to say other than when I saw that Starbucks is selling a Greatful Dead album I was surprised as I never really thought of Dead Heads going to Starbucks often or being their key clientel. However, after talking with a Barista it sounds like alot of Dead Heads have given up the life on the road and become a key target market for Starbucks.
What do you think, is it weird that Starbucks, a giant corporation is selling a Grateful Dead album?
[Sidenote: I bet I have motivated at least one person to go down to Starbucks and buy the album as soon as they read this post. Starbucks, you're welcome.]
Why is Starbuck’s changing to 2% milk?
Let me start by saying that I love Starbucks. I love their coffee, I love their business, and I wouldn’t mind taking over for Jim Donald one of these days. That is one reason the news that Starbucks is changing to 2% milk is so frustrating. I typically order non-fat myself, and more often than that just an Americano, but this issue is bigger than my preferences, it goes to the heart of the company.
I wish that I had my book “Pour Your Heart Into It” which talks about how Starbucks became the empire it is today (or in ’99 at least) and gives alot of background on both Howard Schultz and the company itself. One part in the book that struck a chord with me was when Starbucks wanted to introduce non-fat milk as an option. Howard would not budge on even offering non-fat as an option until he went in and observed a store and how many people asked for non-fat milk while wearing workout clothes. He still said that they would not change the default milk from whole because whole milk is what lattes are supposed to be made from (through his experiences in Italy). Probably 10 years (I can’t fact check without my book) after they introduced non-fat, 1%, 2%, and even breve as options they are now changing their default drink to be 2% rather than whole.
Isn’t this changing the latte from what is supposed to be? Isn’t this changing the entire coffee and Starbucks experience? For something that took Howard so long to budge on (to even have an option) it is dissapointing to see them change their core offering. What I really want to know is why?
Is it because they are trying to stop people from gaining weight? They fased out all of the trans-fats in their pastry case and offer many more “reduced fat” options in the case now. Could this be due to the fact that McDonalds was recently sued for the weight problem we have in America? I would hate this to be the case as it’s not Starbucks, or McDonalds fault for people gaining weight.
Or is it this…the stock hitting an 18 month low. It has rallied some in the past month, but on June 22 it hit $25.54 and had been on the decline for about a year and a half. I have a feeling that this is the reason for the change and it is sad to see. I know the pressures of being a public company and especially of a company that has performed so well are high, but it should not change who you are as a company. Something that Howard thought was so key to the company was maintaining the consistent coffee and latte experience that he had in Italy. 2% milk is cheaper than whole milk so this will help with the profit margin signficantly. This paired with the increase in prices starting next week (the second increase in a year) should result in some good numbers next quarter and next year.
Now as much as I wish they weren’t changing for principal reasons, I think I’m going to buy some Starbucks stock tomorrow after I just wrote this post.
About Otis
I live in Seattle, Washington. I am passionate about working with and interacting with others. My work experience includes marketing, account management, and sales.
I am a huge sports fan who on top of cheering for my favorite teams (Go Beavs!) also appreciates coaching strategy, as well as the marketing behind teams, players, and events.
Personally, I enjoys exploring new cities and areas (particularly small towns) and getting outside and playing.