This next observation is by in no means unique or novel, its primarily personal.

I have read reports and heard NPR stories about the woes of Starbucks. In St. Louis, Starbucks is (or already has) closed 16 stores.

In a leaked internal memo from Charles Schultz, Schultz recognizes

Stores no longer have the soul of the past and reflect a chain of stores vs. the warm feeling of a neighborhood store.

To a Starbucks outsider, it almost seems comical to me that they didn't see this coming. Of the three Starbucks within two miles of my house, each is a drive through.

I am not going to pretend I don't ever find myself rapping off "Grande, non-fat, vanilla Americano." I drink Coffee. I purposely kept that sentence short, because when it comes down to it, if warm water passes through ground coffee bean, I'll drink it. Greasy-spoon diner coffee pot sitting out for the past 8 hours - I'll drink it. But occasionally, a pretentious cup of coffee really hits the spot.

This mood altering cup of coffee is the experience Starbucks should have been going for - not the drive though, hand held status symbols that will become as short-lived a trend as carrying your toy dog in a Louis V bag.

The instigating moment happened today for me. At the Starbucks (with drive through) I noticed they're offering "The Perfect Oatmeal." When the women before me in line ordered it the "barista" reached under the counter and grabbed a packet of oatmeal, dumped it into a paper bowl, and added hot water. This feels more like a Salad Tosser, than the perfect bowl of warm you to the soul oatmeal. All the intangible elements to a coffee shop (smelling like the burlap sack the beans came in, sipping coffee out of a stained cup, and relaxing for hours with a book) have been stripped from Starbuck and replaced by packet oatmeal, perfectly measured drinks, and drive-thru lines.

Don't even get me started about a Cashier wearing the earpiece and taking two orders at once (on in the ear piece and one in person with me).