The Pond is not so shallow - Can Canada lay claim to Russia & Eurasia?

Russia has announced that the North Pole, Santa and all, are really a part of Russia. 

It just so happens that the North Pole contains oil, diamonds, gold, and all kinds of valuable stuff that it will give up once Global Warming really kicks in.

However, there is a catch.  Using their logic (an undersea shelf connects the land masses) would actually turn Russia into the 10th Province of Canada.

Canada "could say that the Lomonosov ridge is part of the Canadian shelf, which means Russia should in fact belong to Canada, together with the whole of Eurasia", he observed drily.

Source: Putin's Arctic invasion: Russia lays claim to the North Pole - and all its gas, oil, and diamonds | the Daily Mail

Santa may soon be announcing "Pozdrevlyayu s prazdnikom Rozhdestva i s Novim Godom" and to all a good night...

Hopefully the U.S. will give them North Pole, N.Y. instead and that expensive theme park that comes with it, or maybe send in the Snow Job.

Facebook + ??? = Profit?

Here are a couple of my royalty-based ideas to go along with this post.  If anyone decides to make any money off of these, please give me a share or two in the new company, or some used hardware after it fries from all the traffic, or maybe an all-expenses paid trip for two to Tahiti.

The opportunity to monetize applications was a result of Facebook’s decision to allow developers to display unlimited advertisements. On par with advertising as a source of income, some developers, like myself, have come to prefer the use of affiliate links (finding leads for eBay, Amazon, etc) instead. Part of the reason is that Facebook does not allow developers to embed JavaScript within their code; hence making it difficult to enable Google Adsense for the content. Moreover, as is the case with MySpace, contextual advertising is not targeted enough to earn sizable revenues.

My own application is a mashup between Facebook and Amazon API’s to recommend, share, and comment on books. The “My Favorite Books” application is designed to earn through the 4% profit earned off every successful referral to Amazon. Combine this with Facebook’s 24 million active users and a business model instantly emerges.

Source: » Monetizing Facebook applications | The Social Web | ZDNet.com

Somehow I doubt that people will be buying books through Facebook.  Though Amazon & Facebook should really consider changing names.

My top 10 Facebook money-making ideas:

1. Face-scam - Top of the pyramid.  Every friend dumps $5 into a paypal account.  The 100th friend gets $400.  The person who started gets $100.  The cycle rotates until everyone gets paid.  (sounds a bit shady to me, and probably illegal in most states, but hey!)

2. Face-buster - Hit and Miss Blackjack - A round-robin game of blackjack among friends, similar to poking but with cards instead of pokes. (Online gambling is illegal in the States too, so this one probably will only work for us Canucks.)

3. Face-Am-Away - Purchase products and services at a "discount" and refer your friends. (See #1)

4. Face-Pizza - Somehow figure out how to distribute pizza through Facebook, at $1/slice. (I see a lot of fake pizza orders getting sent to your friends.  Who ordered extra anchovies?)

5. Face-off - Create a mirror site that you can access from behind those pesky work firewalls, for only $4.99 for the first month ($29.95 afterwards)

6. Face-squatter - Register all the good names for yourself and auction them off to their rightful owners. (William H. Gates taken yet?  How about Mie Cro Soft?)

7. Face-sitter - Get bonded individuals to manage your Facebook account for you, to keep on the ball with pokes and your wall, and to scan your friends walls for juicy gossip.

8. Face-mask - Build an app that blacks out all those pesky tagged pictures of you all hammered in compromising positions.

9. Face-bookie - Bet on the horses or when Paris Hilton will be released from prison.

10. Face-it - Let's you buy printed photos of you and your friends.

I know this is supposed to be 10, but I had to include

11. Face-mail -  See #10 + mail the photos to your friends with standard blackmail letter cut out of newspaper letters, maybe with a slice of pizza.

Is Microsoft going to go bankrupt?

Not any time soon.  There is some writing on the wall that may affect its future though.  The graffiti wall, that is.

Wang word processors -- the application, in this case -- were highly evolved, fantastically successful dedicated word processing systems that owned their market, until the general-purpose PC came along. While the PC at first was inferior at word processing, within a few years of its launch the fact that outside developers had built thousands of applications for it -- like spreadsheets -- that closed Wang word processors could not match, coupled with steadily improving PC-based word processing software like Wordstar, had all but killed the Wang word processor. Wang -- one of the most succcessful technology companies of the 1970's -- went bankrupt not long after.

Source: blog.pmarca.com: Analyzing the Facebook Platform, three weeks in

When I saw Stephen King two weeks ago, his comment was that he was most productive when he had his word processor.   He said his productivity actually dropped when he started using his computer to write stories.  It must be something to do with his line-based style of writing vs. the block-based style. 

With his line-based style, every sentence counts. Going back and changing it was a tedious and time-consuming task for editors or something you did late at night.  The green display did not leave much to the imagination, or perhaps it left everything.  There weren't many distractions.  Ever seen a game of Solitaire on your old Wang word processor?

Then the computer comes along.  Games. The first Social software comes along with bulletin board systems (BBS) discussion boards and user to user contact.  Email. Newsgroups. Compuserve. The Well. Prodigy.  Realtime Chat. Then the real internet opens the floodgates to the masses.  MUDs. IRC. Frontpage web sites.  Fly-by-night ISPs.  Fly-by-day dot com companies.  A stock market bubble. Dave Gorman.  After a while, the internet and a slightly eccentric college student produced Facebook.

When Facebook opened its platform for developer apps a few weeks ago, the adoption rate on some of them were staggering.  In 3 weeks iLike has over 2 million new users. (5% of Facebook population).  Facebook supposedly adds a million users a day.  There are over 1 billion people who may be using the internet in some way. 

This pond is really deep.

I have met one person who is basing their entire business model on social applications and developing around this platform.  For a venture capitalist, it probably cries out for funding.  Taking the top down approach (as I scribble some figures on a napkin) it has the potential for.... $2,000,000 per day! That's if you can get 5% of their users to buy something for a dollar a day.  Heck, I would sell "it" for $0.50 and settle for my million bucks a day.

How about the bottom-up approach?  If I have 150 "friends" and promote my application to them, perhaps 7 1/2 may try it, and maybe 5 more from their network.  Even if I'm Robert Scoble, my friends list is only 489.  Guy Kawasaki even has 464.

That might explain the low turnout on my Bring Richard Cheese to Toronto group. (12 members at last count... no wait, 11 members now.)  Or maybe it's because Richard, you SUCK for not adding me as a friend on Facebook. :)  (Just kidding, get the band to Toronto.) 

So how did iLike get so many users in so little time?  The answer was being the first, and being able to promote the application virally within the Facebook community.  You are more likely to adopt something if your best friend sends it to you rather than some guy from Nigeria, though the 5% rule works for them too. 

When I first joined Facebook a few months ago, I was surprised at how empty it looked.  There was not a whole lot of room for customization.  This was not my little sister's MySpace.  When a little 'edit application' sidebar appeared, it seemed like it opened up a portal to another world.  Okay, so that's a bit melodramatic...

Stephen King wrote a short story called Word Processor of the Gods.  In it, a man changes reality with a few sentences on the green screen of a device his recently deceased genius teenage nephew cobbled out of a Wang word processor.   In the story the result happens immediately, with comical and horrifying repercussions. 

"I will build the most successful Facebook application ever."

[adult swim] | Adult Swim Video

The Robot Chicken Star Wars episode is finally out. 

The funniest part has got to be the Ponda Baba bit, where Walrus Man gets his arm chopped off due to some misconstrued actions....  but I'm ambidextrous!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponda_Baba

Link to [adult swim] | Adult Swim Video

Cape Enrage - An Inspiration

How one man decided that he was going to try and preserve history and something that was important to him. 

In 1992, Dennison was teaching high school physics and discovering the thrill of challenging young minds to push their limits. His favourite activities were climbing, canoeing, and hiking and he frequently found himself pursuing these interests at Cape Enrage. Not only were the cliffs perfect for climbing, but the landscape and lighthouse reminded him of home. That spring, he discovered the Cape Enrage light keeper's dwelling was to be demolished.

"During the summer, this weighed heavily on my mind. What could I do that would make this property viable, yet protect, preserve, and promote it? Finally, I sat down with a pad of paper and started writing ideas. I ended up with five or six pages and a plan for an environmental school project connected to the Cape."

His vision was an outdoor adventure program, powered by students, that would teach them the skills of running a business, encourage appreciation of environment and heritage, and generate enough profits to maintain and preserve a cherished piece of the past.

Thus began a storm-tossed course through a tangle of government bureaucracy and regulations that tested the depth of his commitment and fortitude. But in the end, Cape Enrage Adventures emerged as a flagship model for promoting alternative uses for all light stations and an example of what can be accomplished with perseverance and commitment.

It has now been 13 years since the first high school students began restoration work. The lighthouse still sends out its signals of light and sound, while the once-derelict light keeper's dwelling houses a kitchen, tearoom, bedrooms for staff, and offices. An additional residence and a gift shop were constructed, stairs descend to the beach, and white picket fences gleam with fresh paint. Approximately 40,000 people visit each summer.

Source: A Light with an Image to Keep - Cape Enrage Lighthouse

I hear that back in Toronto the paint is melting off the walls.  Too bad.  This morning I had to buy a sweater at the gift shop in Cape Enrage, NB, because of the chill in the air.  It was a fresh and perfect day to sit on the rocky beach that is Cape Enrage and watch the Bay of Fundy (the 3rd wonder of Canada) come in.  I was shocked that I was the only one there.

June could be the perfect month for visiting the east coast.  The tourists have not yet discovered this place, and it really is untouched wilderness.  If you ever get a chance to visit New Brunswick, you should make the drive to Cape Enrage and support the students, and a teacher's dream come true.

Insiders: 22 Confessions Of A Former Dell Sales Manager - Consumerist

 

Stuff you may not know:

1. Promotion cycle dates - Thursday is the first day of new promotions. If you go to the web site at 11:45 p.m. on Wednesday night and again on 1 a.m. on Thursday morning, the promotions are different. The catalog promotions run from the start of the month to the end. Additionally, on holiday weekends (Memorial Day, 4th of July, etc.) there may be special sales/coupons for the three-day weekend.

2. Promotion styles - Typically, one week will be cash off while the next will be percentage off. If you liked cash off but the current promotion is percentage off, check the "As Advertised-Newspaper" section. These typically have a remnant of the prior week's promotion as well as better versions of the current week's promotions. Cash off helps for cheap systems, percentage off helps with high-end.

3. Dell Customer Care can price match within 24 hours from the time of order. Combining #1 and #2 from this section, if you are unsure of the value of the week's promotion but need to order something, order it Wednesday night. Check the promotions for the new week on Thursday. If its better, call and price match. If its not, sit back and feel smug for no reason

4. Dell corporate email - As of December 2006, everybody (save Michael Dell) working for Dell U.S. has the same form of email address: firstname_lastname@dell.com. Michael Dell's does not follow this pattern and is changed immediately whenever the current one is discovered by lower-level employees or the public.

5. Dell's internal fiscal calendar is different from other corporations. As their fiscal year ends in January or February (I honestly don't remember), the best deals will typically be found in late January and all of February. Also, buying during the last week of any quarter typically means free or deeply-discounted 2nd day or overnight shipping, and the quickest order turnaround. There are no steep discounts for the holidays, though they will run a few weeks of consecutive percentage off promotions during the back to school season in August.

6. The DFS servers are notoriously flimsy. If you apply for DPA (why would you?) and it is unable to complete, it means the server is overloaded but your credit rating has already been pinged. Reapplying will not fix the issue but it will repeatedly ping your credit. The system is unable to verify cell phone numbers and will automatically reject based on the use of one.

Fun facts about the Kiosks:

1. Why should I shop at a kiosk? I can order from home. - A very valid point, but the majority of kiosk customers are morons who think computers are magic boxes that let you see pictures of cats in funny poses while someone steals your AOL password. There's a few reasons why an educated person aka Consumerist reader should hit the kiosk up:

a. Discounts - There are several ways the Dell Direct kiosks can attempt to match or beat an online deal.
i. Closing tools - Dollar off coupons that depend on how much you spend. Spend $600=$25 off; $1200=$50 off; $1,600=$75 off; $2,000=$100 off.
ii. Refuse to Lose - 10% coupons meant to allow a sales rep to seal a large deal. These can only be used when the computer price alone is $1,600 or more. It can not be used on accessories, TVs or multiple computers whose aggregate value is above $1,600. This must be requested from the Manager on Duty (MOD) through an email request, and will generally be credited before the computer is shipped.
iii. DPA coupon - Dell will already give you 2% off your order if, at the payment screen you click the link that offers 2% off when you pay with DPA. The kiosks have a 3% DPA closing tool that can be used also, giving a discount of slightly over 5%. This works for all DPA purchases including TV's, monitors and cameras.
iv. The closing tools are nothing but individual-use coupons entered at the shopping cart. They are invalid on the home and small business site. Reps are supposed to use them as a last-ditch effort, but as long as you're not buying a sub-$600 system, they should offer them without your having to ask.

b. Printer cartridges - No you can't buy them there...officially. They are non-inventoried items that many kiosks have a heady supply of due to inexplicably random deliveries from corporate. If you're in a pinch and need one that day, go (don't call), get a feel for the employees, and if you think they're cool with it, offer cash.

2. There are two levels of kiosk employees. There are those hired by Spherion, creatively known as "Spherion reps," and then there are Dell Branded Reps, or DBRs. DBRs are effectively the management of the individual kiosk, and are the only ones able to work uncompensated overtime. Deal with them if possible, because they are very likely to be there the next time if you have a question. They've also been there much longer than any other kiosk staff, so they likely have a much better skill set for finding bargains.
3. If you have a problem with DPA, the kiosk has a specific email contact for Dell Financial. Problems can be resolved much much faster.
4. The Dell Direct kiosk website is configured differently than the others. There are "bundles" (linked from the main page under the "start shopping" graphics) and there are "non-bundles". Bundles, so called because...you guessed it...accessories and service are already bundled in, have a higher profit margin. They are also the most customizable system on the website. Non-bundles carry lower profit margins but may be limited. The salesman will always start from a bundle. Let them finish, then make them search the non-bundles for an equal system with a better price.
5. Kiosk reps are judged on the following:

a. Unit price: The average sale price of each reps transactions. $1,200 was the goal as of March, 2007 but $1,600 was preferred.
b. Bundle percentage: Dell varies on what percentage of all sales it wants to be from the "bundle" page depending on the month and who you're talking to. It is typically between 40% and 60%.
c. Service: Each PC/Notebook sale is expected to have a 3 year warranty attached. Typically, the number is between $160 and $200.
d. E&A: This is the percentage of the sale that was spent on accessories. Each transaction should have between 5% and 10%, or one printer and cable per PC or one bag, lock and travel mouse per Notebook.
e. DPA: Dell Preferred Account purchases. The expected percentage of DPA sales has climbed in the past years. It currently hovers between 40% and 60%, and they want a 1 to 1 customer to submitted application ratio.

6. Secret shoppers - The kiosks are secret shopped constantly, and they're playing of a 20-question scorecard. Don't be surprised if the salesman asks really base/borderline-insulting questions if you act interested. They think you're a secret shopper.
7. Communication - Complaints made about Dell to the kiosk reps go unheard. There is no place for the rep to turn around and report the complaint to. Communication between reps and even district management is limited, and reps are discouraged from calling the regional management. Store, district and regional management are all run from email and cell phones. It is not uncommon for the kiosks to receive three answers from three departments, with the end result being all three statements retracted without a solution in place.

(Photo: Josh Swannack)

UPDATE: Corrections offered by a current Dell tech support rep:

* Two years is typically the lifecycle from "new product" to "no longer produced/no more refurbs" though YMMV - If a system is no longer shipping a used/refurbished is always sent, though the refurb should be equal or better as far as hardware is concerned. As of this writing if a system is exchanged, via either Complete Care warranty or concession, and the system is still a currently shipping model a new system is to be sent.

* On all but the two lowest warranties (90 day and 1 year limited), warranty repairs will be done in the home. - Dell no longer sells a 90 day warranty 1yr is the least you can get. Also with desktop machines at home service is the only option. Notebooks on the other hand may have a return to depot or an at home service contract.

* OS Backup Disk - Dell no longers requires the purchase of the backup disk. They are included with every computer that ships with a Windows OS. On the subject of hard drives, if your drive fails within the first year of purchase you should be sent an imaged drive that will contain everything except for your royalty applications (Office ect). If for some reason you lose the media, you can request the OS, Resource/Drivers disk, and the applications disk at no cost to you. (Even if you are no longer under warranty Dell will send you an OS disk) Note that the Resource/Drivers and Applications disk is only available for currently shipping systems. Should you need to reinstall youll need to download the drivers from support.dell.com from another computer and copy them over. Last, within the first year of purchase, if you need to reinstall the OS and you can't access the recovery image, or if it was deleted for some reason, you can request an System Recovery CD that does pretty much the same thing. (Not available on notebooks due to the Media Direct partition.)

Source: Insiders: 22 Confessions Of A Former Dell Sales Manager - Consumerist

Where's the UPS? Coaster Dangles Riders Upside Down - for 30 minutes

 I'm having a wierd evening tonight.  Arriving in Saint John, New Brunswick (not to be confused with St. John's, Newfoundland) on business, I was immediately surprised at the scale of our operations here.  We have a large billboard at the airport, prominently located above the luggage claim conveyor. 

The only luggage claim conveyor.

There are quite a few companies in Saint John.  The Saint John Board of Trade lists over 69 pages of them, at 10 a page that's 690 members.  So us having an ad with only 10-12 others in the airport near the baggage claim is probably something.  Not sure what that something is yet.

Booking my hotel was easy.  When I search for 4-star hotels on Trip Advisor, I get two.  So I book the Delta, since I'm sick of hearing the Hilton name right now.  Last time we stayed at a nice B&B which has apparently shut it's doors permanently.

It's 12:30am in New Brunswick, and as we are driving along in the darkness I try and make out the sights.  Traffic is crazy (we wait for two cars speeding past the the airport before we can get out of the driveway) and the night is clear.  Apparently it is a fluke, since the last few days have been pea-soup foggy.

I can already tell that things have changed a bit since I was last here a few years ago.  There seems to be more gas stations and Tim Hortons shops.  That's about the bit that's changed.

We drive by the largest landmark in the province, the oil refinery with I-R-V-I-N-G spelled out on the tanks.  This must be the largest vanity license plate in existence.  I wonder if they do tours?

Here's the sign on the night they were replacing the bulbs.

We arrive at the Hilton first, then head to the Delta.  I make my way to the front desk, where a young lady is ahead of me checking in.  She speaks with a french (maybe Parisian) accent.  The front desk clerk searches for her reservation, and finds it, only it is a booking for the Delta ... St. John's.  That's St. John's - NEWFOUNDLAND.

(plane that is not going to Newfoundland below.)

Apparently she had booked the wrong connecting flight to get back to Paris.  This is probably a weekly occurence, as the clerk was really calm as she called the airport to try and book a flight for the next day to Paris.

Could have been worse though.

A dozen riders on a roller coaster spent half an hour hanging upside down — 150 feet above the ground — after a power outage shut down the attraction.

Source: Blackout leaves coaster riders dangling - Yahoo! News

Where's the backup generators in this theme park?  What happened to gravity bringing them down?

The grammatical screw-up wasn't the wierdest thing that happened tonight though.   As I entered the elevator after returning from a late dinner and a bit of grocery shopping at the only restaurant that was open (Subway - going to try the fresh lobster salad tomorrow), I noticed dirt on the floor.  I came to the third floor, the door opened, and there was some more dirt.  This wasn't mud from outside - it looked like topsoil.  Following the trail around the corner led me to the ice machine.

An ice machine with a plant shoved in it.

Stephen King Visits Toronto from the 11th Province of Maine

Tonight I got to see Stephen King, David Cronenberg, Clive Barker, Margaret Atwood, and others as Stephen received his lifetime achievement award at the Luminato festival in Toronto. George Strombolopolous hosted.

I have read Stephen King books since I was 9 years old, my first one being Skeleton Crew. I can still picture in my head the story of the raft, and the oil slick that pulled people to their deaths - it still gives me the shudders. I dropped out of Grade 13 English the first day because the teacher said that Stephen King would not be considered a "real writer" in her class. I ended up taking Grade 12 College English and getting a scholarship.

This was the first time a non-Canadian has won the Canadian Booksellers Lifetime Achievement Award, and the first time Stephen King has visited Toronto. King cracked that he thought that Maine should be considered the 11th province of Canada anyway. They could take advantage of all the Canadian tourists who wanted to hit the "southern province" and they wouldn't get people from Ohio or Michigan who complain about the cold water. (Well, the dollar is almost at par and passport rules have been relaxed a bit...)

Margaret Atwood made the first "toast". Clive Barker came on wearing some designer jeans, and in a hoarse, nervous voice pronounced his entire life's successes to be due to some words Stephen spoke to him after his first book was published. Then King took the stage with Chuck Klosterman, in an interview setting.

King spoke about some of his favourite bands (AC/DC, Metallica, Neil Young, Bob Dylan) and some of his favourite books (too many to remember, though Life of Pi and Lovecraft stuck out, his site has some recommendations). Klosterman asked if King's style of writing was similar to an AC/DC song. King responded that he tried to write his books like those songs that are so in-your-face that they erase all of your thoughts and tell you to "shut the hell up and listen!". He would do his 'day-writing' on his current book, and then use the night for rewriting and other "clean-up" projects. It is during these rewrites that he removes pieces of the story that may cause the reader to "take a break."

He talked about how he is slowing down in his "old age" and blamed it on his computer. (He probably has internet access, the ultimate time-killer). He said his most productive days were on the IBM Selectric that his publisher gave him. His stream-of-conciousness writing style fitted the word processor nicely. I can see how squiggly-red lines and a blinking cursor can screw up a writer's creative juices; that's what editors are supposed to be for.

His favourite children (books)? Lisey's Story. The Cell. Rose Madder. Oddly enough, those were three of only a few books I have not read by him.

King was in an accident in 1999 that left him in serious condition. He talked about his accident in vivid, graphic detail, saying "I remember certain aspects of the accident. The red blood pooling in my lap. The twinkles of light on the broken glass. My leg bent at odd angles with a round knob sticking out, which turned out to be a bone. I was just glad I didn't rip my jeans."

King also talked about what fame was like, and the only time he earned an honest buck. The King family were travelling through Miami when he noticed a car broken down by the side of the road. He pulled over to see if they needed some help. The man, a white-haired, "Bob Barker-type" gentleman wearing a suit and tie, walked up to him and said "Son, do you want to make a quick $10?" King ended up changing the flat tire, with the man's wife still in the car, her in a fur coat with the air conditioning on. "It's Miami, what do you expect?"

The most eventful part of the night happened when my brother and I were leaving. As we walked past a set of elevators, a security guard got on her walkie-talkie, and it looked like something was up. The elevator doors opened and out walked David Cronenberg, Tabitha King, Clive Barker, Margaret Atwood, and others, but no Stephen King!

Then I realized that the twenty-something kid I saw with the goofy grin was actually Stephen. I think I need to borrow your glasses, Son.

Thanks to Torontoist for giving me the info!

Hold on to your horrors, scary story-lovers: Stephen King is scheduled to make his first official Canadian appearance to receive a life-time achievement award from the Canadian Booksellers Association.

Source: Torontoist: King Booked!

100 years later, Tesla's dream of wireless power becomes reality

 Radio, Microwave, Wifi, and now WiTricity:

Massachusetts Institute of Technology researchers made a 60-watt light bulb glow by sending it energy wirelessly — from a device 7 feet away — potentially heralding a future in which cell phones and other gadgets get juice without having to be plugged in.

The breakthrough, disclosed Thursday in Science Express, the online publication of the journal Science, is being called "WiTricity" by the scientists.

Source: MIT team claims wireless power demo - Yahoo! News

Winter visited 470+ Starbucks and counting

Winter (soon to be The Artist Formerly Known As Winter, or just draw a picture of a siren instad of his name) knows about caffeine. 

He knows about drinking 28 cups of coffee and 2 espresso shots in a day, and the subsequent itching and gutrot it produces. 

Winter knows Starbucks.

Taking the definition of obsessive-compulsive to a new level, Winter has travelled the globe to try and visit every Starbucks known to man.  In the spirit of David Gorman (who tried to meet every Dave Gorman) or my long lost relative Ray Sears III (who has cataloged over 50,000 relatives with the surname Sears since 1976),  Winter's trying to do something different.  His challenge is never-ending, since they are looking at adding over 200 stores a month to the chain.  See SBUX's conference call transcript from November, 2006.  Current count is 13,728 locations in 39 countries.

When I visited China a couple of years ago, the most disturbing find for me was the Starbucks located within the Forbidden City in Beijing.  The experience was like I had just whitewater rafted down the Grand Canyon to the most secluded spot in the desert, and there was a Starbucks serving ice caps.  I picked up a large dark coffee for $7.00 (I ignore the Starbucks lingo when ordering) and it tasted like any other Starbucks, only twice as expensive and a bit culturally offensive to me.  I did however like the Subway franchise in Beijing - it serves beer. Jared probably wouldn't have lost as much weight if they served beer in North America...

The whole experience reminded me of Homer and Apu travelling up the remote mountains of India to visit Kwik-E-Mart's head office.

They walk up to the sliding doors. A bell dings as they enter and approach a man with white hair and a flowing white beard. He drinks a Squishee, and a sign behind him announces, "The Master Knows All (except combination to safe)."

Apu: He is the benevolent and enlightened president and C.E.O. of Kwik-E-Mart -- and in Ohio, Stop-O-Mart. He is the one we must ask for my job back.

Master: Approach, my sons. [they do] You may ask me three questions.
Apu: That's great, because all I need is one --
Homer: Are you _really_ the head of the Kwik-E-Mart?
Master: Yes.
Homer: Really?
Master: Yes.
Homer: You?
Master: Yes. I hope this has been enlightening for you.
Apu: But I must --
Master: Thank you, come again.
Apu: But --
Master: Thank you, come again.

The two of them leave, disappointed.

Recently there has been calls to close the outlet, based on the comments coming out of a Chinese blogger's site.  I think that an outlet just outside the gates is fine, but putting one inside is like having a McDonalds inside a church - it just isn't right.

Here are some stats as of June 4, 2007 on Winter's quest:

Updated June 4, 2007, 14:30 GMT-5. Location: New York City. Upcoming: Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina.
Starting mileage: 15350
Time traveling: 73 days, 5 hours (includes 5 days Scrabble)
Days since last speeding ticket (4/6/06): 427
Days sans shower: 2. Odor level: (fresh NATURAL gamy ripe pungent homeless noxious radioactive)
Miles driven: 26423 + 425 (Hawaii) + 50 (Alaska) - 905 - Port Jefferson Scrabble
New stores visited: 499visited not visited
Stores skipped stratragically: 14 (+ maybe 1 new Ottawa)
Stores opened in North America. since trip start: 247!!! (104 along path already traveled) (WTF!!! THAT'S, LIKE, 20 A WEEK!!! HAVE THEY NO MERCY???)
Stores missed due to Cabal's evil machinations: 2
Stores missed b/c they didn't answer the @#$%^& phone so I didn't know they were open!!!: 1
Stores missed due to poor scheduling: 1
Stores rephotographed: 427
Recognition ratio: 182/473 (26 stealth)
Visual recognition: 11
Visual recognition of DVD: 1
Unmistakably (even by my paranoid self) negative reactions: 6
Coffee consumed: (X - 27) * 4 + 104 = 1992 oz + 52 oz French press + 3 shot + 8 oz misto + 11 DoubleShot + 2 Top Pot au laits + 4 oz Blenz + 8 oz Tim Hortons
Stores where I was refused a sample: 1
Spent on coffee: $66.19
Spent on gas: $2,482.25 (JEEPERS!!!) - $1.50
Spent on tolls/parking: $146.92
Parking tickets: 2 ($39 + $15 (won't pay) + $65 (might pay))
Spent on airfare: $398.16 + $215.14 change fee + $219.70 + $105 change fee + $34.90 + $460.80 + $80.43 (parking)
Spent on ferry: $83.48 (Canadian)
Spent on rental cars: $167.08
Other expenses: $105.76 (tires) + $4.13 (sheet, toothpaste) + $71.62 (tire)
DVDs sold (at $20, $14 profit): 40
Medication: 8 fake cold pills, 16 real Nyquill, 20 fake Benadryl, 28 fake Excedrin (2 to blunt effect of hunger, 2 to get thru movie), 3 x 10 mg Loratadine, 6 x 30 mg pseudoephedrine hydrochloride, 3 x 10 mg phenylephrine hydrochloride

But the most impressive list on his site is the stores he has not visited.

His other obsession is documenting his Scrabble travels along with his Starbucks travels.  Because one obsession isn't usually enough.

I once worked for a guy who has perhaps the largest collection of Rubik's cube-related material on the internet.

 A bit of a sad fact was that I never actually saw him solve a cube, though I did see his binder of patterns and permutations for solving it.   Obsessions are strange things.

Mark doesn't have a documentary yet but Winter does.  He has released a DVD documentary, Starbucking.  Here's where to get it.

Check out Winter's 6,000 or so photos of Starbucks locations around the world. 

I see a coffee-table book in his future.