Watch. Learn. Act. Repeat.

I had a coffee with a lovely girl this morning at the UNR Starbucks. I kept the cup all day. On my way back from the Wal this afternoon (there was a going-away party for one of my student intern coworkers who got a job) I stopped in to Starbucks to get my free refill.

To give a little backstory, I’ve been at Starbucks more often recently – our office participated in a recent KNPB user perception and awareness survey. Between administering surveys at various Starbucks across town and fueling myself in the final days of data entry and presentation preparation, I was at Starbucks almost every day. I’d buy one grande bold brew. Then, a few hours later I’d get a refill. It was the perfect amount of caffeine to get through the tasks at hand.

When I asked for my refill today, I didn’t have a receipt. That hadn’t stopped me before – the baristas knew me and didn’t seem to care.

However, today it was a young gentlemen (I use that word loosely) who asked me if I’d like a refill. I presented my cup and said, “Yes.”

He asked if I had a receipt.

I said, “No, but I promise this is the first refill I’ve gotten in this cup today.”

He said it didn’t matter – I needed the reciept.

I said, “Are you sure?”

“Yes,” he said, firmly. “I’m sure.”

I left, irritated.

I ran into my friend and his girlfriend on the way to class. I told them the story and he showed me his girlfriend’s fancy new Einstein Bros. to-go cup that she purchased for $2.50. The first cup of coffee comes free with every refill costing only $1.

I turned around and went back to Einstein’s, which happened to be just upstairs from Starbucks.

“I’m gonna get an awesome to-go cup and walk past Starbucks proudly,” I thought.

Unfortunately, Einstein’s had only one color left. I guess the moral of the story is that despite the color, I still bought it.

Events represent a culture

When I was invited to attend the most recent A2N2 meeting, “Marketing Reno/Sparks Special Events: Tackling New Challenges in a Tough Economy,” I got excited at the chance to hear first-hand about those events that make our community unique – especially considering I’d just blogged about the communities (and cultures) I experienced on my recent trip to Europe.

During my trip, I felt that unique traditions and events within those European locales tended to strengthen the overall sense of culture I felt for each. On top of that, the stronger that sense of culture, the more I desired to experience that culture (especially the aspects of their lives that were new to me) and the greater lasting effects those cultures had on my perception and in my memory.
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A Happy Tale

I just returned from a wonderful vacation to Seattle to visit a long-time friend. He took time off from Boeing to show me the Emerald City, and did a great job, despite the rain’s best efforts to keep us inside. One pleasant evening, as we walked down toward the water through the quaint neighborhood of Wallingford, it began to sprinkle. We were, perhaps, a fifteen-minute walk from his condo and so we ducked in to what looked like a cozy bar.

The sign read “The E.N.D – Wine Bar.” It was warmly lit with a half-dozen wooden tables, jazz was on the stereo, and we were immediately greeted by the manager carrying two complimentary glasses of champagne. We were then shown the menu (there was just one hand-printed menu in the middle of the restaurant) and the wine selection (no wine list, just shelves of wine arranged by varietal, and all equally priced). Simple, elegant – we were sold. My friend’s girlfriend joined us shortly thereafter for what turned out to be a wonderful evening of wine, fantastic appetizers, and jazz.

Positive Reviews are Rare

The fact that I’m writing this positive review says a lot about my experience – which was indeed outstanding – because such positive reviews are rarer than the experiences that precipitate them. Continue reading