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Even More LEGO

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Are LEGO toys a passion or an addiction? It’s getting to be a close call for me with more and more LEGO sets introduced. The latest Minifigures Series 8 released at the beginning of September.

LEGO Minifigures Series 8

We got the Evil Robot and the Fairy. For the Evil Robot, you can feel his big bucket-like helmet and his gun’s rod. Long, skinny pieces are distinctive to feel out. For the Fairy, search out her wings. They’re an odd shape and also flat.

LEGO Evil Robot and Fairy

If you purchase over $75 at the LEGO Store, you get this limited Monsters Fighters promotional set. It’s a good time to start Christmas shopping for kids! Have you seen the Christmas Advent calendar sets?

Analyzing My Starbucks Rewards Behavior

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One of the interesting aspects of joining the Starbucks Rewards is not just the program’s perks but taking a look at your coffee-addicted behavior. Okay, so you may not really want to know how many times you’ve visited Starbucks (thankfully, there are no (visible) dollar amounts spent at each visit), but looking at your Rewards History, you can easily chart your visits and stars earned. Here’s what my July 2012 looked like.

I earned 12 Rewards stars during the month and as you can guess, I treat myself to a drink on most Fridays. On July 13, I earned a free drink (every 15 stars at the Gold level).

Doing a real quick analysis on a monthly basis gives me the chart below.

Starting in June 2012, my Starbucks visits (and consumption) went up considerably. I should take a look at blog posts from that month to see what was up. For the on-going 12 Star Dash, I added the orange reference line. Interesting… If I had seen this data before, I wouldn’t have taken the contest so lightly, having met the 12-star goal only three times all in the past three months. To complete the Dash, I need to rack up 12 stars in less than half a month.

Hmmm, time to strategize…

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Starbucks Getting Competitively Playful

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Have you noticed Starbucks’ recent forays have been playful competitions? There’s the (ending) game to bring the Pumpkin Spice Latte (PSL) to a city near you. Each day of the PSL competition brings new challenges to rack up more points for your favorite PSL city.

Today, I get a somewhat mysterious email from Starbucks for their upcoming 12 Star Dash competition. All that’s known is the task of earning 12 Starbucks Rewards stars between August 27 and September 9 to win $5 in assumed Starbucks “coffee cash.” Typically, you earn one star per transaction at Starbucks, but this contest will probably introduce some playful wrinkles. No additional details are provided even after registering to compete in the 12 Star Dash.

Anyways, I’m game for some playful competitions.

Something and Sounds at Starbucks

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Picked up Draw Something and SoundHound from Starbucks today. These are the weekly Pick of the Week freebies, and as an added bonus, the Starbucks treat receipts are back. Buy a drink in the AM and get any grande iced drink for 2-bucks after 2 PM. That’s any drink including a custom creation with extra shots.

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Oahu in a Cup

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What does the essence of Oahu taste like? Take a sip of Starbucks’ new (and limited) Oahu Coffee to find out. Check out the coffee’s description:

This 100% Oahu Coffee is grown in rich volcanic soil amid gentle Pacific breezes, resulting in sophisticated notes of baking chocolate and dried fig, and a silky, smooth texture.

Who knew our trade winds induces flavors of chocolate and fig? Anyways, look for this limited release in-store or better yet, order online at StarbucksStore.com.

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Starbucks Pearl City Shops Is Refreshed

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It’s not just the Enchanted Lakes Starbucks getting refreshed. The Pearl City Shops Starbucks is also charged up for the national launch of Starbucks new Refresher flavors.

Check out this electrifying display! I didn’t see this at Enchanted Lakes.

Since it was lunchtime, there were samples of hand crafted Cool Lime and Very Berry Hibiscus. What did I think? Well… I expected more tartness from the Cool Lime. That or I would have preferred some carbonated zing. But the carbonation is reserved for the canned Refreshers (Raspberry Pomegranate, Strawberry Lemonade, and Orange Melon). Both the Lime and Very Berry drinks are available either hand crafted (made in the store) or in instant VIA form. Of course the hand crafted versions have fresh ingredients added that are not in the VIA packets. As of now, there are no canned versions of Cool Lime or Very Berry Hibiscus.

Starbucks Very Berry Hibiscus Refresher

Next I sampled the Very Berry Hibiscus and true to my expectations, I was reminded of the Hibiscus flower while drinking this. It’s a better blend than the Cool Lime, but I can’t shake that flowery image as I drink it. Oh, and a word of caution. After sampling the Refreshers, your palette is in for a bitter shock if you chase it with a coffee-based drink.

So the Refreshers live up to their namesake and is refreshing. This marks a different market for Starbucks, going beyond coffees and teas. But I’m still a coffee fan, addicted to its taste, color, and scent, so I’m sticking with the brown stuff. 🙂

Here are a few more pictures of the Starbucsk Pearl City Shops location.

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