Barista Hottie

In 2010 something changed. My usual trips to Starbucks began involving regular coffee instead of lattes. My summer drink of choice; iced coffees. To shake things up a bit I would ask for a different syrup instead of the signature sweetener they use. 

After drinking regular coffee and paying a decent price for that, I started to really take into account the cost of a latte. If I were to go anywhere else besides Starbucks I would die before I'd pay $4-5 for a 16 ounce drink. I'd walk out the door and find something else. Starbucks appears to have somewhat of a religious following. They do have something going for them, mainly, environment, excellent service, and good drinks. I've done coffee shop surfing and usually walk away thinking there's something really wrong with the taste of the coffee and never come back. Unless, they have free wifi and it's highly convenient. 

I spend many hours studying in Starbucks. At one point, I spent 2 days consecutively working on my Tax Accounting assignments. I hated Starbucks for the next few days. The only highlight, besides the delicious coffee was the BH behind the counter. BH stands for: barista hottie. (And he really took that one to a whole new level) Yes, a barista is not just a woman. It's any human who has been trained and can make those amazing espresso drinks we throw down $$$ to enjoy. When robots start making espresso drinks I'll change the definition to "any "thing" that makes those amazing espresso drinks..." 

It gets better though. After spending many hours in Starbucks you get to see and hear people ordering there drinks. Something about the heat outside causes people to order venti's and to add a little of this and a little of that. I'm guessing when they're all done, they've probably spent $8 on their drink. It better be a  good one. 

My family buys whole milk and I grew up drinking whole milk. However, when I started working I began drinking skim milk. And ever since then, that's usually what I'll drink cause it's there. Now whenever I put milk in my coffee I usually always go for nonfat milk- it just tastes right. Yesterday I drank a glass of whole milk and it tasted like whipping cream minus the density. I was like WOW you really can tasted a difference!

Starbucks came out with a new drink and I put the $$ down to try it. It's called a Toffee Mocha. It was delicious! It wasn't freaky sweet and it had a nice mix of flavor. Last year they came out with a Caramel Brulee Latte and that was so sweet one couldn't even finish the thing.  As I was ordering the drink the barista making it confirmed with the barista taking my money that the Toffee Mocha didn't include whipped cream. "No whipped cream?" said I. "Would you like whipped cream added to it?" said he. "Is it going to cost me extra?" said I. "no, I wouldn't dream of charging you for whipped cream!" said he. "I'll take it." said I. I take nonfat milk with my regular coffee and add whipped cream to my lattes. That's almost a contradiction. 

Starbucks is doing something right because when all is said and done, I still spend my money there. I usually always walk away satisfied which is the important thing. In today's day and age, competition is coming at a business in all directions. Rule of thumb: Your coffee shouldn't suck if your business is a coffee shop. We can all be happy that Starbucks is going green. My last gift card from my dear sister Lee, was green. And the girl was happy. 

And that's Emily reporting to you live from Sk- Washington

By the by, it's return of the bedbugs and you're next! XD -pop quiz- what do bedbugs, mosquitoes, leeches, and Edward have in common?  

Speak Now

I'm a huge fan of Taylor Swift. I remember the first time I heard her song "Tim McGraw" on the radio. I was in the kitchen CLEANING of all things. I believe I heard it on The Wolf - our local country radio station. The Wolf's a great show to listen to if you like hearing everyone "howling" after they've won something. It's actually one of three country stations all right next to each other. I'm assuming that has a lot to do with living in the country. My mother is a country music fan and I remember when I was in my younger teens, that's all I listened to! I don't like Country music much anymore, but I do have my favorites. I recall the dj's speaking about that being Taylor's first song. Shortly after that, my sister Lee and I bought the CD and gave it to one of our other sisters for her birthday. {Lot's of sisters, XD}

After her debut album- Taylor Swift - She came out with Fearless. It's always a question of if the second album can live up to the first, and she passed with flying colors. Fearless is even better than her first album. I still listen to it to this day! Actually, I still listen to her first one. There's something about her songs.... In July of 2009 I had the privilege of watching her in concert. *happy sigh* 

And of course we can't forget her Christmas cd -Sounds of the Season- It only has a few songs but they're alll amazing. I hope she comes out with a second Christmas album someday. I would buy hands down, no questions asked. It's a great addition to anyone's Christmas music collection- assuming one actually listens to Christmas music. I do, and I'm proud of it!  

She is coming out with a third album and one of her singles "Mine" is available on itunes. Her album will be titled Speak Now and I'm excited!! I looked on youtube for a music video to Mine and couldn't find it. However.... I checked out her website and guess what I found?? It's SOOOOO CUTE!! I love it!!!

Taylor Swift - Mine from Stephen Murray on Vimeo.

Enjoy!! I totally can't wait till her album comes out. It felt like Fall today and I'm in love. Summer's ok but 3 months of that is MORE than enough. I'm ready to bring out the hot drinks, good books, and warm blankets. It even smells better outside! Bring on the rain too. <3 <3 <3

And that's Emily reporting to you live from Sk- Washington

Step Away from the Grapes!

Ya wanna live longer - start drinking. A recent study shows that those who are heavy drinkers have a lower mortality rate than those not participating in the alcohol show. I personally think baboons feel the same way and it's totally catching on with their species.

Leave kittens in the dumpster and you will hear it on the news. Poor kitty kitty's... but really, isn't there something more newsworthy out there to report on? Shock over aborted babies is so yesterday. Let's just say, the most you will hear in the news about abortions will be something about a woman's right over her body.

It appears that somewhere along the lines of history we switched places with the animals. I thought we were supposed to be evolving!! Isn't that going backwards instead of forwards? Awe and reverence to animals is not uncommon in some cultures and it should not surprise us to see car seats for dogs and diamond collars for cats. Those following Hinduism figured that out a long while ago. Perhaps we're just behind and are finally catching up, figuring things out- slowly. 

Back to the Baboons in South Africa. At one point someone came up with a novel idea- let's not kill the monkeys, they're too cute!! And laws were made, and so on and so forth. Today, people are experiencing the fruits of that decision. The cuties are now roaming the streets drunk after raiding South African Vineyards. Awww, that's so adorable! And it get's better. They're also invading houses, killing chickens and dogs, ruining people's gardens, and just making a mess of things. Now, it sounds like there's a baseball rule applied. Annoy me once, annoy me twice, annoy me three times, and that suckah is out. Yay. 

And that's Emily reporting to you live from Sk- Washington

What's the point of two mafias if you're only killing one person?

Mafia is an interesting card game. Everyone plays it differently. It takes 2-3 hands before everyone figures out what's going on and if they're following John's way of playing it or Mary's way of playing it. "What's the point of two mafias if you're only killing one person?" "You use a sheriff?" "We usually call her the angel." And so on and so forth. It's really quite entertaining. Then comes stating the defense- "Why would I kill that person??? They are hosting this party!" Not a lot of things in life allow the overlap of fiction and reality. Except maybe online chatting. I won twice last night.

I'm all for protection of kids, knowing where they are etc... but I think there's a school in California that has become a bit anal. Preschoolers with tracking device- an interesting concept to say the least. Wouldn't it be nice to know everywhere they've been and where they are right now? Kidnapping prevention/intervention. It seems a little out there. However, maybe it's not a bad idea. The question left in my mind is 'how far becomes too far?'

I briefly read an article and will probably look a bit more into it. Apparently the "Outsource! Outsource! Outsource!" mantra we've been witnessing in the last 30 years might be changing. It's more expensive for a business to hire employees due to taxes anyway. However, if they hire an independent contractor, the tax structure changes and it becomes less expensive. I look forward to calling someone about my anonymous extra credit card swipes and having that actually accomplish something. Wouldn't that be nice.

And that's Emily reporting to you live from Portland, Oregon

the pause button has been selected

So I'm writing this post to say I won't have time in the next few days to give you all a REAL post. And it's completely temporary ~ this girl just has Midterms coming up. In the mean time, don't play with fire, enjoy your week(end), and stay safe!

And that's Emily reporting to you live from HB, California <3

Chinese ~ Lily Allen 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zWJP7F-azlo&feature=av2n

Something about Summer and Lemonade Stands

There’s something about summer and lemonade stands. I was on my way to the beach on one of my various trips and  walked by a stand with 3 kids. They had their signs out and once they saw me they made their sales pitch. “Would you like to buy some lemonade? It’s $1 a glass” (they did give quite a bit) Saying no really isn’t an option. Perfect weather for it too. In Portland, OR one 7 year old girl wasn’t so lucky. She didn’t have a $120 license to sell her lemonade- booo hooo. Welcome to America where you’ll soon need a license to breath. After all, we are emitting carbon dioxide in the air and heating up the world therefore causing global warming. Places around the globe do seem to be getting an increase in heat. Except for Argentina…

How many things can you do and ride a bike at the same time? I’ve spent some time practicing that one. I ride a bike 1.5-2 miles to work every morning and 2-3 miles in the afternoon. Needless to say, I’m feeling pretty fit now. In the mornings I usually make my phone calls - so far there isn’t a rule against riding bikes and talking on ones cell. I’m sure that will change soon if it hasn’t already. It’s only a problem when you almost fall off your bike crossing the street. I visited a Starbucks (surprise surprise) and didn’t have a chance to finish my coffee. I had to be at work in 15 minutes so I just rode the bike with the Starbucks cup in my left hand. I did get honked at… I think people were just jealous of my coffee.

There is a particular shoe that seems to be popular in southern ca right now. They’re Vans and they are so cute! They come in many diff colors and I’m headed out to get myself a pair this morning. Wish me luck.  Pink might be fun… I saw a girl with red, another with light blue, and another with yellow. Hmmm.

I’ve been working in a Finance dept. for almost a month now. I haven’t graduated beyond scanning and shredding papers… but I am learning a lot. Never assume you know everything that’s going on… cause you are most likely wrong. It pays to realize that people may be nice and still have a relatively low moral ethic. Before taking any action think of the consequences; look at all the angles and think things through. It’s a pretty good idea to do every single task 110% cause you don’t know what opportunity that might bring you. Understand that there is always going to be office politics. Hahaha. And there’s my wisdom for the day.

And that’s Emily reporting to you live from HB, California

In one of my last posts I mentioned the zombie car crash in Portland, Oregon. Now the lemonade stand… I bet we all want to live in Portland now.

supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, US passports, Surfing

Mary Poppins is a classic you have to watch at least once. It is from that movie the famous saying “supercalifragilisticexpialidocious” became just another in our casual repertoire. In afternoons you’ll find me handing out paint, sharpening pencils, and socializing with 15-20 kids who are attending “art camp.” Last week I was Super Awesome Ninja or Cherry while we had a “Molly” “Brown Eyes” “Watermelon” “Lucy” and then some. Yesterday as I was walking about helping as needed, I chanced to listen to two six year olds sitting next to each other. The girl was saying “supercalifragilisticexpialidocious” and the boy was saying it next. I didn’t think much of it except when I walked by again 15 minutes later and they are stillllll doing it.  I asked him if he knew who Mary Poppins was and he didn’t. Apparently this was the first time he’d heard that wonderful and glorious 34 letter word.

I’m taking a Federal Income Taxation course and learning an amazing amount. Everything is taxable and if it’s not taxable now I’m sure someone will figure out how the gov can get their cut later. However, there is absolutely nothing wrong, according to my textbook, with tax planning to pay as little as possible. And of course we are talking about legal methods. Right now there are US citizens living in UK trying to give up their US passports/citizenship because of taxes. Can you imagine that? Changing next year is the inheritance tax. Currently it’s minimal and by next year it will be close to 50%. Ouch. Now is a good year for inheriting money, however, the keyword is legal.

The US Open of Surfing is happening right now. I have my t-shirt to prove it. Surfers from all over the world come and competitively surf. (didn‘t see that one coming) It’s pretty impressive to watch. I went into Starbucks and bought myself a tall mocha frap and as I was waiting for my drink they called out a Claudia, Danielle, and two more names I can not recall. It’s pretty neat when you start meeting people from Canada, France, Ireland, and so on. And I’ll be the millionth to say it, surfer dudes really do have it going on.

And that’s Emily reporting to you live from HB, California.

Tuesday night is In the Heights - should be good.