Life with The Swell Guy!

Cup of Joe

A number of readers have brought up my mention of Starbucks in a recent post. I really was not railing against Starbucks. In fact, I love a good cup of real coffee. I'm not into all those "coffee influenced beverages" that people who pretend to like coffee buy.  In my book...

It's not coffee

If there is a need for whipped cream and a cherry to complete the drink, it's not coffee

It's not coffee if "wisp of cinnamon" completes the drink

If the words vanilla, caramel, white chocolate, toffee, spice or sensation is in the name, it's not coffee. Let's include peppermint and eggnog while we are at it

If "uccino" is part of the name, you know it is not coffee

If a blender was involved in the making, it is not coffee

If you need a straw, it's not coffee

It is real coffee

Roasted (not burned) coffee beans, water, and a filter make real coffee along with cream and sweeteners. That is all that is needed

Real coffee should cost less than $2. The exceptions to this statement are airports, theme parks, and other places where you are a coffee hostage

Espresso is real coffee in a concentrated form. This is acceptable when you are feeling Euro cool, are in a hurry, or need a caffeine fix and don't want anyone to think you are a coffee junkie

Names of continents and countries is OK in the name of a real coffee. This specifies the region where the beans were grown and there are nuances in flavor. This is a very good thing. Blends of these beans (without flavorings) by the coffee roaster is also OK

If it was made in the last 30 minutes, refills are free, and the server calls you "honey" or "baby" it is very real coffee and you should patronize this establishment as often as possible

By the way...

When was Tall small? And Grande medium? and Venti large? Can't we get back to small, medium, and large? Don't we all know this is a joke? Ok...that was a swack at Starbucks.

It's Tuesday-palooza!

Football Season at last! Cool mornings. Warm afternoons. Blue skies. Hope. What's not to like?

PS:  As Denine says, "Let's get ready to rumble!"

Tuesday-palooza celebrates life through noteworthy photos. Selection tends towards humor, southern life and laughing at ourselves & the things we do to occupy our time. Your comments, suggestions, and photo submissions are welcome.

ReSale Shop opens at CrossRoads

The front page of today's Index Journal features our friend, Casey McClinton, and the new ReSale Shop at CrossRoads Pregnancy Center. The shop will be a great resouce for the community and there will be an ongoing need for donations.  If you can help at any time, I am sure Casey would love to hear from you.  

Here is the 411:

Casey McClinton

Executive Director

CrossRoads PregnancyCenter

801 Reynolds Avenue

Greenwood, SC  29649

(864) 223-1147

www.crossroadspregnancysc.org

Download CrossRoads Pregnancy Center opens store to raise funds

Bar Mitzvah!

Our friends of more than 20 years, Lynn and Fran Brown, held a Bar Mitzvah for their son, Jake, yesterday on Long Island. It was an amazing day from the service at the Synagogue to the party. I can not sum it up in words just yet. Maybe later....

"It's not just for breakfast anymore"

Just when you thought life could not get better this link comes from reader and bacon buddy Lena Scott.

How to Make Bacon Soap

Soap can be made from just about any kind of fat. Even though fat from bacon, called lard, isn't the finest of fats to use for making soap, it somehow seemed to be the most exciting. Why? Because bacon is amazing. It has an almost mystical power to it and is a food that can be craved to almost n...

Cheap Jesus?

I saw this store in Concord, NC on Tuesday evening. Random thoughts:

-Can you get Christ at a discount? Is a great truth greater at a deep discount?  

- What are the "Great Deals"? On faith? On following Christ? Oh, on that book that did not sell as well as expected....

-50% OFF? I've head about cheap grace. Is that it? Or forgiveness?

-And if I saved 50%, but I tithed 10% what is the deal? Oh, legalism!

-I sure hope there is a list of sins under that "Clearance" sign.

OK.  Forgive me for the rant.  Some days I find myself thinking Gandhi was right when he commented, "I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ."

I'm sure the owners of the store are nice and well intended. I did step in. It felt unnatural (and a little girlie) and I could not connect to the "sacred music" wafting through the store. I browsed a few books quickly and left.

I went down about 25 stores and stopped at "Books-A-Million". It had that third place feel and was comfortable. I was there about an hour browsing.  I checked the section that had books on sailing and cycling, but spent most of the time looking at books on theology and following-Christ. Another guy asked me about a book I was looking over and we had a good conversation about how people view the church. It felt natural and easy. I'm just saying...

It's Tuesday-palooza!

Some say Labor Day marks the end of summer. I vote to hold off a little bit longer.

Tuesday-palooza celebrates life through noteworthy photos. Selection tends towards humor, southern life and laughing at ourselves & the things we do to occupy our time. Your comments, suggestions, and photo submissions are welcome.

Remembering Jonah Outland

Our friend, Karen Bautista, mentioned today it has been a year since her father passed away. His name was Jonah Outland and he is the inspiration of the regular segments that I have posted called "Good Advice for Men". I thought it would be good and appropriate to tell his story one more time. If you have not already met Jonah, I believe you will enjoy this post. 

Sliding safely into third...

"Most needed are those 'third places' which lend a public balance to the increased privatization of home life. Third places are nothing more than informal public gathering places. The phrase 'third places' derives from considering our homes to be the 'first' places in our lives, and our work places the 'second.'" - Ray Oldenburg

Nice quote. Several years ago Denine and I were part of a missional church plant that spent quite a bit of time discussing how we would fit into the community where we felt led to build a church. One of the concepts we discussed quite often was if we should attempt to become a Third Place like our friends at Prince Street Cafe or if we simply needed to frequent Third Places to meet more local folks. It seemed to us that these places were where people were comfortable to have conversations away from work or home.

It's no surprise that Starbucks has figured out the attraction of a welcoming Third Place. In August 2009, Starbucks stated,  "We strive to create a welcoming environment for all of our customers. We do not have any time limits on being in our stores, and continue to focus on making the Third Place experience for every Starbucks customer."  Yep, they get it.

I don't patronize the local Starbucks all that much. It is close to my office and I am very pleased that they are currently featuring photos and Beth's story about returning to Kenya. There is nothing wrong with Starbucks and I am usually OK with spending money out, but I can not seem to get over a cup of coffee and muffin costing as much as my lunch (on most days). And I can not seem to get over a single order costing as much as we pay for fresh roasted whole bean coffee at home for a whole week. This is not a rant on Starbucks, I just seem to flinch a little about making it a regular stop. Since I am a music junkie perhaps I am afraid I will scoop up a CD while I am at it and turn my morning coffee stop in to a $25 expense. I'm sure if you examine my life closely you could find a contradiction somewhere in my spending choices.

So, having said that, I have been in "our Starbucks" several times lately. In the back of my mind I am thinking I should part with a little cash there since they are representing Baby Girl.  And it is handy since it is just around the corner from the office.  When I stop by I do admit that I find myself thinking next time I should think about lingering for a while. I do remember hanging out for an evening last summer to hear a couple guys from our church play in a band. It was a fine evening and I do appreciate the coffee shop sponsoring the event.

Several weeks ago I dropped by for a cup of joe and I noticed an older guy and a younger guy with open bibles at a table. I remember thinking it was nice they chose this spot to meet for their study and conversation. The next time in I noticed three younger guys there with open bibles and having a conversation about what was up with several "Christian" bands. 

Then last Sunday I had to swing by the office to open up for a rush production run so I figured I might as well stop by Starbucks for a quick bite before heading to church. There was a stream of people heading in and out dressed in their "Sunday go-to-meeting cloths". One guy thumped down about the biggest bible I've ever actually seen a human carry. Seriously, pets and small children could have been hurt. Look out, The Word is up in the house! I'd say Starbucks really did it's marketing homework.

So what's the deal with Starbucks? Again, my intent here is not to bash Starbucks, but what is up? Are Christians and Christ-followers stopping here to connect with the community, or as a true third place, or is it simply a safe place away from church? Do we need something that is "our place" or can we simply look for places to be in the community?  In other words, is Starbucks too safe?

What happens if a couple guys crack a bible (and no, not the 20lb. beast) at the bar at Outback over lunch...or Chilies...or Waffle House...or ...? Yes, I know that Starbucks is comfortable and that can not be overlooked. I'm just thinking about what is involved when we think about doing life in our community together. I hope you take a moment to ponder. Starbucks is a good start, but I think there is more. If you want to meet to discuss perhaps we can grab a cup of coffee...at Starbucks...on me.

Today in Greenwood

Maybe it is just me, but I cannot believe they would taste that good...