The Sign Says 11:00! The Sign Says 11:00!

Last night I was reading an article on Slate.com about where to get Starbucks gossip from employees. Previously, I enjoyed reading about the secret economy of Starbucks on Slate and I have to say, there is something perversely compelling about reading the Starbucks Baristas' Group Blog. It's voyeuristic, and yet as someone who logged a couple of years working in coffee bars of the small, independent variety there were some common complaints I could relate to as well.

The current article also links to this video, about a "comic" who attempts to visit all 171 Starbucks locations in Manhattan in one day.



I was a little surprised to find out that the magic number is "171" - I would have guessed higher than that. Here's a fun fact: the first Starbucks he goes to that is prematurely closed is the Starbucks in my office building. I can't tell you the endless minutes I've spent in that particularly poorly designed space waiting at the bar for my drink or waiting for someone to surrender the whole milk, or move away from the napkin dispenser. Ah, youth. Also, it seems ridiculous to me that our Starbucks would be open at 11:00pm. I feel like sometimes I leave the office at 8:00pm and it is already closed. I looked at the sign today and the official close time now reads "10:00pm". Is this a lot of narrative about the Starbucks in my building? Yes, especially since I've been going to Dunkin' Donuts for the month of August - my new coffee buddy has coupons.

For your listening pleasure-

I'm not one of those people who necessarily carries a torch for Miranda July - after all, what person in her thirties wants to be known for bringing cute to every art form she touches? So I wasn't sweating it when I heard she had a new book coming out. Then, the other night I was listening to a episode of Studio 360 that was a couple of weeks old when I heard July reading a short story from her book. The story, titled "This Person", blew me away. Luckily, you can listen to it online if you don't feel like buying the book or getting in the queue at your local library! The rest of that particular Studio 360 episode "Potter, Mars, Griffin" didn't do much for me, but by all means, listen to the last segment here and let me know how you enjoyed the short story.