There needs to be a word for the action of stirring or blending your drink with its own straw. I can’t decide if it should be a noun, such as strawrobics: “The frozen drink required considerable strawrobics in order to succumb to suction”—or a verb, such as strawgitate: “All of the sweetener kept falling to the bottom, so I kept having to briskly strawgitate my iced tea.”

As a registered Starbucks cardholder, I received a birthday coupon for a free drink of my choice. Now I’m sitting in the Starbucks on the east side of the Orange Circle, where I can easily judge the suckers who chose the Starbucks on the west side of the Circle. Those fools! Their Starbucks may be open later, but it’s not in a historic building.

Using my phone to type this post, I’m reminded of an Android app that I’d like to see: an app that automatically logs me into WiFi hotspots with web-based authentication, like Starbucks or Coffee Bean. It’s annoying to have to launch the web browser to log in and use the WiFi. Then again, unless I’m doing something particularly intense like watching YouTube videos, the 3G is fast enough.

So anyway, I got a white mocha.

On the corner of Bank Street and Greenwich Avenue in the west village.

About a year ago, there were 165 Starbucks locations within 5 miles of my work (near Broadway and 55th Street). Now there are 177. I’m actually quite surprised that the number has only increased by a dozen, but I guess I’m already close to the most Starbucks-dense part of the city. Cory points out that the Starbucks “center of gravity” is around 5th Avenue and 40th Street.

Ash had to do an off-site event for work yesterday near our apartment, so I decided to walk with her to her work and to the event. She had to get a bunch of stuff from her workplace and pile it into one of those grocery carts that old people use, to take to the event. As we walked from her workplace to the event, by way of Starbucks, we took turns acting like old people. It was fun–bad karma, I’m sure, but fun nonetheless.

It’s currently 63 degrees outside, which is phenomenally warm for winter in New York.

I was able to sit outside at Starbucks today and enjoy the nice weather, and I’m really glad I did since this is apparently the warmest high temperature we’re going to get–by about 20 degrees–for the rest of the month. It’ll go back to being in the 40’s (with lows in the 20’s) by tomorrow.

Oh well. It was nice to have a preview of spring to remind me that it can actually be pleasant here.

One of the interesting caveats of living in New York is that you’re required to hear the song “New York, New York” at least once a day. Sometimes you hear it from a dancing stuffed animal at Duane Reade, sometimes you see it being played with a bow and a saw in the 59th & Lex subway station, and sometimes, like today, you get to hear old blue eyes himself being played at Starbucks. The last one is the best.

Everyone’s doing the obligatory what-I-got-for-Christmas post, and I figure I might as well join in. This Christmas didn’t bring any gag gifts, since most of my friends are really far away. Well, actually, Chelsey got me some tortillas, but that was actually not a gag at all. I really wanted some tortillas.

Anyway, I got a striped button-down shirt and a bright green long-sleeve t-shirt from Gap, a Starbucks card, and a cool Kenneth Cole watch (a real one, not even from a street vendor!).

Tonight is Christmas dinner: turkey enchiladas!

A man at Starbucks, discussing my car with his friends:

“Well, it’s got a hula girl, and it says U-H-L-L, so I bet it’s from the University of Hawaii. University of Hawaii… hono-Lu-Lu or something.”

Who knew? When I add lots of water to it, the coffee at work is actually halfway decent! And it only needed two packets of blue stuff.

Granted, I’d prefer pink stuff, but they’re out of it. I’d also like some half-and-half, but they only have powdered shit, and I can’t stand powdered shit.

Starbucks needs to start putting their packaged drinks in twelve-ounce aluminum cans. That way I can get a Caramel Frappuccino from the Coke machine.