I simply couldn't sit and look at the old Life In Transit posts anymore. That was a part of my life that I am done with. Moved away, learned a lot, came home, and now I am a stronger person for it. That's it, it's done...and let us never speak of it again. Some may see it as a step in the wrong direction, but I see it more as a step in the right direction. I learned more about myself in four months than I had in the past two years, and that's really something. I learned that seventeen inches of rain in the month of November is a lot to deal with (especially when you come from a land full of perpetual sunshine), I learned ever to cross girls with an ivy league education and Daddy's MasterCard, and I learned that there are exactly seventeen Starbucks locations in the downtown Seattle area which encompasses approximately 10 city blocks (3,566 individual stores in the greater Seattle area according to Google). Instead of focusing on the negative...the fact that I've been forced to make some of the toughest decisions of my life over the past few weeks, and I'm still not 100% sure how everything is going to work out, I have decided to focus on the positive, remain calm, ditch the proverbial map, and see where I end up on this road of life over next few months. That's what I'm all about this year, trying new and different things. Things that I wouldn't try before. That was my resolution this new year. And now that I have gotten though my self-exploration rant...let the Starbucks bashing continue!
 Look mom...I went to Foothills!
Seriously though, I shouldn't be so bitter toward Starbucks. After all, it is the Mecca for all college students studying for exams, caffeine addicts, and just about anyone with a hankering for overpriced shitty coffee. I myself find myself drawn toward the non-coffee drinks as I find that coffee has a tendency to taste a bit like chalk. The Caramel Apple Cider is particularly good, and it works better that caffeine (or even crack) to wake you up in the morning. Seriously though, if Starbucks wanted to, it could seriously take over the world. They are everywhere, and I'm beginning to think that they may employ a good 5% of the population of the U.S. Also, their product placement is impeccable. They're everywhere. At high schools, college campuses, and even grocery stores such as Safeway and Target. I know that when I am shopping at the scary target in town (so named the Targetto), there is nothing more that I would want then a nice frappachino. Nothing says class like shopping at Target with a Starbucks in one hand and your newly purchased Wrangler jeans in the other.
Product placement is EVERYTHING |
I'd say we should worry about Walmart as much or more (with # of people employed), but going by the people I work with who do nightshifts there, it shouldn't be too much of an issue...