2006-06-19 - 12:45 p.m.
So now there's some kind of Starbucks employees' union agitating about how it's Starbucks's fault that they have gotten fat. It seems that they have the privilege of eating up all the day's left-over, unsold pastries and a certain amount of Starbucks's libations and guess which types of drinks they've been choosing to mainline? Apparently the average expected weight gain for a Starbucks employee is 15 pounds, and they're blaming Starbucks for that, as the weight-gaining employees claim to have had no idea that these items they've been enjoying were so fattening. I'm not sure what kind of retribution they are demanding, but one demand is that they want Starbucks to post the calories next to each item on the menu board. Yeah, like THAT'S a good marketing action to impose upon the employer who pays you a salary (i.e.,if their profits diminish, they just might have to let you go)!
It must be quite a burden to go through life that stupid and helpless. I mean, surely one knows that pastries are a big no-no unless you are, say, a triathlete (who can eat them with impunity but probably don't), and the fact that the employees can have them for free doesn't turn them into broccoli. Also, with the frappaccinos, if the more than a cup's worth of thick whipped cream decorated with streams of chocolate sauce topping the drink in a plastic dome doesn't tip them off that this is going to be some fattening drink, then you'd think maybe the sweet chocolatey-sugar rush that takes their head off with the first sip would do the trick.
The sad thing is that they could have chosen to have had numerous delicious-tasting (and buzz-inducing) low- or no-cal cappaccinos, lattes, espressos, or just plain COFFEE (zero calories there). And in my experience, I've never had anyone at Starbucks pull a gun and hold it to my head when I ordered my standard cappaccino, "Nope, buddy, you're gonna swallow an iced mocha frappaccino, instead, and while you're at it, I'm going to cram a couple of pastries down your throat!" Since nothing like that happens at Starbucks, I can't see how Starbucks is at fault for their employees getting fat on their products.
It kind of reminds me (but only vaguely) about the woman who complained because there was a Starbucks store that decorated their wall with a stylized version of "Rape of the Sabine Women", the sensuous curves of which, to the Starbucks designer, were reminiscent of the steam curling up from a cup of coffee. The classic picture,"Rape of the Sabine Women" is hardly either pornographic or violent; in fact, to my eyes, I wouldn't even know that the scene it was depicting, what with those soldiers and their horses, was prelude to a rape. Rape might not even be the right word, as what the action it is prelude to is an abduction (but the raping may come later, though). Anyway, this classic art piece was "offensive" to this woman and she demanded that it be removed. Maybe she was afraid that the art would stimulate some male customer to go out and rape somebody (although to today's eyes, the women depicted in the picture looked too much like those employees who enjoyed too many iced mocha frappaccinos and left-over pastries to be sexually stimulating, but I won't go there). Anyway, the woman got her way and the sensuous, curling-coffee-steam art was removed, to Starbucks's atmospheric detriment.
On the subject of coffee vendors, I discovered a wonderful new place yesterday--the second-floor balcony patio of Borders's cafe' (where their coffee vendor is Seattle's Best). I'd seen it from the street several times, but it wasn't until yesterday when I was shopping in the store that I decided how nice it would be to take my book purchases out there and enjoy a cappuccino as I read. It was a perfect way to enjoy this delicious summer weather, and I loved the view of the Mediterranean-looking house-studded hills in the vicinity that rose up from the San Fernando Valley.
As I read, another enjoyer of this balcony was a man fooling around with his guitar. This might have had the potential of being disturbing, but it was just the opposite. The man really knew his way around a guitar and the tones that he played were so beautiful and added to the wondrous atmosphere. Before I left, I went over to tell him how much I enjoyed his playing and he was at first taken aback, because, I am guessing, he might have experienced people coming over to him to complain--at any rate, he was VERY pleased and several times he thanked me profusely and he kept telling me how nice I was to do that. Gee, it's so easy to say something nice and the reward one reaps is an immense payment for a moment of expressed appreciation. So much better than complaining about everything.
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