• confirmed: Louie Giglio starting Passion Church in Atlanta – hear it straight from Louie on this video; twitter is discussed on the video; according to Louie, no date or location yet, no blog yet, despite what the rumor mill might crank out; read WOOHOO blessings from Carlos “Ragamuffinsoul” Whittaker; my thoughts: Thrilled to hear of the news with Passion Church launching… [let's] rejoice and celebrate others who are seeking to reach more people — so contrarian to territorialism, turf wars, and name-calling pirates
• Texting While Walking May Be Dangerous : NPR; texting while driving is even more dangerous; cf. Newsweek posted this AP piece: “… Most involve scrapes, cuts and sprains from texters who walked into lampposts or walls or tripped over curbs.” via LA Times’ Texting — the modern way to run with scissors?
• I started using CushyCMS – excellent (free) web-based website editor, don’t have to use FTP or client software to update content any more!
• Chess-Boxing Hits it Big; I play chess with my son, but only boxing on Wii
• Plaxo is bought out by Comcast Interactive Media; good for Plaxo but I don’t get it
• Christian sex better than Kama Sutra, which translates to The Better Your Walk with God, The Better Your Sex Life [ht: MondayMorningInsight]
• will “Vivanno” be as iconic a word as “Frappuccino?” — I don’t think so, unfortunately [disclosure: I'm a former SBUX shareholder]

Tired is the new Fine. I’m noticing that answers to “How are you?” is switching from “Fine.” to “Tired.” Haven’t you? In DETAILS magazine — Being Tired Is Not a Status Symbol — “Some people think telling everyone how exhausted they are makes them seem important. But flaunting your fatigue only makes you insufferable… Stop complaining–No one cares how tired you are.” [ cf. So Tired: Where Web surfers go when they haven't slept a wink; EDGE's Jeanne Harnois notes, "Caffeine, the new status symbol"; tired.com contrasts with wired.com ]

Pastors in rural area churches, or “in the sticks”, there’s a conference for you in Loudonville, Ohio — aptly called “the sticks” conference, November 11-12, 2008. [ht: LeadingSmart] cf. conference blog has latest updates and a Free Gas giveaway.

Kinko‘s is fading away. Several months ago in car with wifey, behind a FedExKinko’s truck, I commented to her that the Kinko’s font is so thin compared to the FedEx font, I think Kinko’s is going to fade away and disappear. Lo and behold, it’s now official. I saw it coming, er, going.

Jason Calacanis retires from blogging and holds a mock press conference to answer questions. He’s only been at it for 5 years; I’ve been blogging since 1999. But then again, I didn’t have to deal with the pressures of being an A-List blogger.

Starbucks is closing 600 of its stores all over the United States, and here’s a list of 7 in Orange County that I have been to and/or have co-worked at:

• valley view & firestone 16610 valley view ave la mirada ca
• pch & boat canyon 636 n pacific coast hwy laguna beach ca
• lake forest & muirlands 22621 lake forest dr lake forest ca
• marguerite & college dr 28171 marguerite pkwy mission viejo ca
• trabuco hills 27775 santa margarita pkwy mission viejo ca
• newport & el camino real 14001 newport ave tustin ca
• newport & main 13681 newport ave tustin ca

See the complete list of Starbucks stores closing before June 2009. [ht: savvywallet] 3 other OC Starbucks are closing too.

Thrilled about the news! 1 of my Starbucks ideas is coming true: delicious soft serve ice cream and/or frozen yogurt!

From USA Today’s Starbucks brings new fruit smoothie to the table ::

On Tuesday, Starbucks (SBUX) will roll out Vivanno, a $3.75 better-for-you fruit smoothie made with one whole banana, juice, ice, and protein and fiber powder. It has no artificial colors or flavors, and no added sweeteners… Starbucks also will roll out another summer-like beverage Tuesday in 315 Los Angeles-area stores: Sorbetto.

Grady calls Sorbetto a “drinkable sorbet.” Similar drinks are common in Italian cafes, he says. A 10-ounce cup of Sorbetto is $2.75.

According to Reuters’ Is Starbucks’ Vivanno the next Frappuccino? ::

… chalkboards announced that Vivanno Nourishing Blends smoothies would be available in just four days. … drinks would come in orange-mango-banana and banana-chocolate flavors.

[update 7/16] got a free sample cup of Sorbetto this morning, tastes great! Price point is too high — $2.95 for a 10 oz drink. That is a smaller cup than a Tall! My suggestion: larger size, lower price point. I had thought Sorbetto was frozen yogurt, but it’s not — it’s a mix of frozen yogurt with juice. I asked barista if I could order a Sorbetto and just get FroYo without juice; she said “Yes.” (!)

[update 7/17] I got my first Sorbetto, the mango + yogurt blend, pretty good. It’s similar to yogurt drinks like Lassi and Doogh in other parts of the world. But, at $2.95 for a 10 oz cup, it’s way over-priced and I’m not sure it’d work for the American palette. This Sorbetto would work great in the Middle East and Asia if the price is right.

About presents and gifts for me, in a world of gift cards, here’s my insider tips: I love Starbucks, Five Guys, Under Armour; Target, B&N is okay; I don’t shop at Best Buys, but often get their gift cards, so kindly stop it. Could also use my amazon.com wish list as a shopping guide….

Here’s my surprise finds for the week:

• this guy is researching for a dissertation on videogame typography – whoa
• Plaxo bought out by Comcast – what’s that about? Cable and online address book?? here’s their explanation
• MOBILE PRODUCTIVITY TOOLBOX: 45+ Mobile Productivity Resources – nice list at Mashable, from last year; anyone know of a better list?
• I tried out free YouMail.com for a few days, very cool to get customized greetings for my voice mail depending on who’s calling, nice text transcription, nice to get text msg with caller ID on who called, nicely integrates & replaced my cell phone voicemail inbox; BUT notification was slow, not instant like my own cell phone voice mail, so I switched back; if only GrandCentral.com would open up already!
• and, a confession — I gots a man crush on Carlos “Ragamuffinsoul” Whittaker, and his wife Whittaker Woman, for whom God wrote a whole commandment to not covet — both are very active bloggers, giving their lives away; he doesn’t need the link love, but I need the confession (aside: note the 2 “t”s in Whittaker)
• great to co-work with Tony Steward on Friday; co-work with us next Friday 7/18 morning at Starbucks (Alicia & Jeronimo, Mission Viejo); gotta try their new Sorbetto, which will be at that sbux nxt wk; cf. “The Sorbetto is nice-it’s a drinkable yoghurt drink, kinda like soft-serve but with the option to add Naked Juice concentrates. One of the bases is from Pinkberry. … If it doesn’t sell well in Cali, they say it won’t be rolled out nationally.“
• some of the Best Intel is in the comment thread of blogs, anyone know of a search engine that can search them without having to ping coComment? would someone build a web app that auto-subscribes to WordPress comment feeds and search them hmm.. or maybe CoComment could do that *hint hint*

The most recent change that Starbucks has added as bonuses to the Starbucks card are a good start: syrup and milk options for free, brewed coffee refills for free, free drink with whole bean purchase. (I don’t know why the graphic avoided the word free.)

Now, here’s some of my wild-brained ideas that I’ve submitted to myStarbucksIdea.com — register there as a user for free, and vote for these! and/or add comments there for these ideas!

• delicious soft serve ice cream and/or frozen yogurt
• 30 daily featured drinks + top 10 selling drinks scoreboard constantly updated
• improve website by combining similar ideas [where I mentioned askanything.marshillchurch.org]
• great drink with no sugar and no caffeine
• web sequel: my Starbucks drink website — as in myStarbucksDrink.com
• suppress receipts without saying No every time

Ya think any of these have a leg to stand on? FFT (fan-freakin-tabulous)? awesomatimistic? kewl beans? off the hook? perfectomundo?

From the official announcement at Starbucks.com:

In addition to the free Wi-Fi access for qualifying AT&T customers and any Starbucks Card holder, customers will be able to purchase tiered access to the AT&T Wi-Fi network at Starbucks at attractive price points. For a two-hour period, customers will pay just $3.99 per session. Monthly membership will also be available for $19.99 per month, and will include access to any of AT&T’s 70,000 hot spots in 89 countries around the world.

NYT Bits blog Cheaper Wi-Fi Access at Starbucks and Beyond comments on this switch:

… as many as 60 hours of access for the price of one $2 cup of coffee. The offer comes as Starbucks switches the company providing it with wireless service to AT&T from T-Mobile. Most of AT&T’s broadband data customers will also have unlmited free access to Wi-Fi at 7,000 Starbucks. They have already been able to use AT&T’s other 10,000 hotspots free.

And NYT carries the AP article, AT&T Joins Starbucks to Provide Store Wi-Fi. Wired’s title is more provocative: Starbucks Ditches T-Mobile and Brings in AT&T as Exclusive Wi-Fi Provider. Plus, AT&T’s version of the announcement.

[update] when free Wifi will actually roll out to a Starbucks near you:

T-Mobile will transition network operations to AT&T on a market by market basis starting this spring and ending in early 2009. … T-Mobile HotSpot customers can continue to enjoy Wi-Fi access at Starbucks locations for at least the next five years under an agreement between T-Mobile USA and AT&T.

AT&T says that, beginning this spring, anyone who uses a Starbucks Card (a prepaid gift card, like one you would give to a friend) will be able to get up to two hours of free WiFi service per day at any Starbucks location with WiFi service. Better yet, if you’re an AT&T broadband or U-verse subscriber, you’ll be able to use unlimited WiFi at Starbucks for free. For everyone else, paid service will begin at $3.99 per two-hour session, and monthly membership will go for $19.99 per month.

[update 6/1/08] I’m noticing Starbucks with wifi signals on both SSID’s tmobile and attwifi. Each have different login, but seems to work equally well. I’ve been able to login to attwifi in Laguna Hills/ Aliso Viejo, CA, as well as Dallas, TX. For AT&T DSL Pro or Elite customers (like I am), you get attwifi login included free with your DSL plan. To login, “Use your primary High Speed Internet, DSL or AT&T U-verse username and password on the hotspot’s webpage.” I did have problem getting my DSL login credential to work with the attwifi hotspot. It took 4 tech support calls to find someone who knew how to sync it up and fix it.

[correction] Here’s the official news release about the proactive effort on T-Mobile’s part to make their HotSpot service available in the areas impacted by the California wildfires [ht: Cara Walker for T-Mobile] –

T-Mobile USA Offers Complimentary Wi-Fi Internet Service at Designated T-Mobile HotSpot Locations in Southern California

People Displaced by Wildfires Can Stay Connected at Open T-Mobile HotSpot Locations in Affected Areas including Select Airports, Hotels and Starbucks Coffee Shops

BELLEVUE, Wash. – Oct. 24, 2007 – In response to the Southern California wildfires, T-Mobile USA is offering complimentary Wi-Fi Internet service through Oct. 31 at nearly 1,200 T-Mobile® HotSpot locations in Southern California.

People can access complimentary T-Mobile HotSpot service during this limited time in the following locations where T-Mobile has agreements to offer HotSpot service in San Diego, Los Angeles and Orange counties, as well as Imperial, Kern, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Tulare and Ventura counties:

· Airports:

o Throughout Los Angeles (LAX), Ontario (ONT), Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena (BUR), Palmdale (PMV), and Van Nuys (VNY)

o Complimentary service is also available to patrons of airline clubs of Delta, United, US Airways, and American at airports within the affected counties

· Nearly 1,000 Starbucks coffee shops

· FedEx Kinko’s

· Borders Books & Music stores

· Hyatt Hotels

· Red Roof Inns

· Select T-Mobile retail stores

The service is intended for those who have been displaced from their homes or are seeking refuge from the wildfires. This complimentary service for fire-affected areas in Southern California is for Wi-Fi service only, not T-Mobile voice or other services.

For a complete listing of T-Mobile HotSpot locations, visit www.t-mobile.com/hotspot

or call 1-877-822-SPOT (7768).

All users should visit www.t-mobile.com/hotspot to view T-Mobile HotSpot terms and conditions and the security policy. T-Mobile HotSpot service requires a Wi-Fi enabled laptop computer or PDA.

[update] Free wifi only to month’s end in Southern Cal, according to Fast Food Maven::

Starbucks said it has teamed up with T-Mobile to offer free Internet access at 1,000 cafes in Orange, Los Angeles, San Diego, San Bernardino, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties. … Starbucks is lifting fees temporarily so evacuees with laptops can use cafes to reach family members online.

Access will be complimentary through Oct. 31, the chain said.

[ht: Nancy Luna the Fast Food Maven]

And for safe computing, see Chris Pirillo’s comment on the above and tips on securing your Wifi connection. In case you don’t know, free wifi connections may not always be safe.

It is delicious! This drink you have to imbibe with the plastic cap off, to get the full texture of the whipped cream and the toffee nuggets. It wasn’t the easiest thing to order b/c it’s hard to pronounce. I also find myself gravitating to less sweet, actually, non-sweet, drinks over time, so I probably won’t be getting this one very often at all.

What is Dulce de Leche? This Business Week article gives the back story:

Dulce de leche is a caramel-and-milk dessert enjoyed throughout much of the region. What’s more, Häagen-Dazs introduced dulce de leche ice cream in 1998, and Starbucks followed suit with its own ice cream in 1999. So Americans are familiar with the flavor, says McKenzie, but “it still has a nice exotic edge to it.” Besides, she adds, caramel and milk go great with coffee.

[update] TODAY show features the drink [ht: starbucksgossip]

Starbucks just had their annual shareholder meeting, where they revealed key business drivers behind their growth strategy: exapnd store footprint, increase average unit volumes, promote continuous innovation, leverage the Starbucks brand with complementary offerings, remain employer of choice, extend the Starbucks Experience beyond our stores, leverage business partners.

I sure hope they come up with better growth strategies and tactics. Maybe try some of these ideas — 2 former Starbucks marketing strategists over at Brand Autopsy and Idea Sandbox volley back and forth on solving Starbucks problems: loss of coffee theatre, loss of coffee aroma, loss of store soul, lack of merchandise focus, and loss of identity. [note to self: brilliant idea, have to do a blog volley with Next Gener.Asian Church some time]

Wallstrip weighs in with their take on SBUX:

God and Starbucks “You are not an accident. Your parents may not have planned you, but God did. He wanted you alive and created you for a purpose. Focusing on yourself will never reveal your real purpose. You were made by God and for God, and until you understand that, life will never make sense. Only in God do we discover our origin, our identity, our meaning, our purpose, our significance and our destiny.” - The Rev. Rick Warren for Starbucks

Now, probably some liberals and/or atheists won’t like the purpose-driven quote to come, hinted at in: Starbucks stirs things up with a God quote on cups

“Coffee drinkers could get a spiritual jolt with their java in the spring when Starbucks begins putting a God-filled quote from the Rev. Rick Warren, author of the mega-selling The Purpose-Driven Life, on its cups.”

Good chance the quotes will be selected from the 40 Purpose-Driven Bullet Points.