Is it wrong to love Starbucks?

I don't generally think of myself as a brand or trend-whore. But every now and then there is something which completely runs in the face of this desired self-perception (in addition to my North Face fleece, my Jack Spade bag, my JCrew clothing, etc.) Take, for example, Starbucks. I love it. The coffee, the specialty drinks, the environment, the music/movie/lifestyle recommendations. It is great.

And I love the new campaign around the idea of "making it yours", especially the ability to create your own custom-drink artwork - with the help of Michael Knight from Project Runway fame, not Night Rider. Not only can you create your cup, but you can then download the artwork as your screen saver and even win a free t-shirt of your cup if you are one of the first people every morning starting at 10:00 AM! How sweet is that? Or is it sweet? What is wrong with me? Would I really walk around with a t-shirt advertising what a high-maintenance cappuccino-orderer I am?

Why don't I watch more wrestling?

Clearly it provides a level of entertainment hard to find elsewhere:

How did Rachael Ray become such a super sleuth?

I (along with over 54,000 other documented people) hate Rachel Ray. I have for a long time. She spells her name stupidly. She has an annoying voice and says stupid things. And I feel like, since she's really blown up in the last couple of years, she has taken her "every day woman" schtick over the top.

Despite my strong feelings, I've often felt conflicted, guilty that I was being too hard on Rachael. Until tonight.

Rachael is in Belgium on her current episode of $40-a-day. After eating a waffle and going to a flea market, she is super hungry so she decides to make a stop for lunch. From the show description: "By midday she is ready for steamed mussels. She heads to Le Pain Quotidien, for an affordable lunch."

I'm sorry, what?! Rachael is doing a show on where to go when you are overseas in Belgium, and she goes to a chain?! One that has over seventy locations!? Across nine countries!!? Including over twenty stores in the US!!!? Oh you are brilliant Rachael! What a glorious tip, thank you! You sure go out of your way to find some real gems for your viewers! God help the couple from Des Moines that is heading to Belgium tomorrow and decides to check-out your hot tip!

Giada, on the the other hand, is HOT and Italian! I'd eat wherever she told me to go!

How do Firms in Competitive Industries Make Money?

Although I have spent a lot of money on this MBA, pretty much all I need to know I could learn from The Real Housewives of Orange County (fine, so I've watched it once or twice, Jo is hot!)

Anyway, Lindsay, one of the young ladies on the show (whose father wants her to go to "Princeton, Harvard, or Yale") when asked in an interview for a job as a receptionist...at a...hair studio...in a mall how she feels about retail sales, breaks it down Porter's-Five-Forces style:

"Yah...I think retail sales are good. They are good for making money and giving people stuff."

Tyson Update: The Rest of the World is Slower Than You and I

Our beloved Tyson is making headlines across the country. Check out this local news clip from this week!

DailyCandy Inside Scoop - Shop at Wal-Mart!

It has only been 5 months...

So on January 23rd DailyCandy sent a Dedicated ("Sponsored") email on behalf of Wal-Mart. It suggested Wal-Mart is the place to go to get all of your Super Bowl party supplies.

Now I completely accept and indeed respect the site's need to monetize their business and have had no problems as they have added ads to their daily emails and sent these dedicated emails. I think it is smart and occassionaly I find the sponsors info relevant.

The Wal-Mart email is ridiculous however. I have no specific issues with Wal-Mart, but you couldn't find a brand more counter to what Daily Candy is about. People subscribe to DailyCandy to learn about new stuff, to get the secret inside scoop. Wal-Mart, as the largest retailer in the world, couldn't be more opposite to this objective.

Shilling for Wal-Mart undermines their expertise. At least a P&G ad might be for an interesting new product. Wal-Mart for my super bowl party? It just isn't believable and offers absolutely no value.

But actually, isn't the bigger issuer why the hell Wal-Mart thinks the DailyCandy reader is their target audience? Give me a break! I appreciate Wal-Mart wants to move a bit upscale, but they are smokin' some cheeba-cheeba down in Bentonville. You aren't Target and you aren't going to be! Upgrade your quality, but don't think you will ever - let alone overnight - be trend-right! Ultra-trend consumers, like those who read DailyCandy, aren't your core customers and never will be. Save your money.

Why can't I still be in New York?

I miss a lot of things about New York, but one of the biggest would be the restaurants. Here are all of the notable ones I dined at this summer, in approximate order of preference:

The Modern
Union Square Cafe
Suba
The Stanton Social
Al di la
Lupa
Buddakan
Craftbar
Craftsteak
Tribeca Grill
Franny's
Esca
Crave
Vento
Grammercy Tavern
Shake Shack
Dos Caminos
Café D'Alsace
Momofuku
wichcraft
Thalia
Haru
Bogota
Agave
Café Noir
Henry Street Ale House
Heights Café
China Grill

Mmmmm!!!!