“Hi. Can I have a Venti Iced Green Tea, with two pumps of classic (sweetener) please?"
The above is my order at Starbucks. Every. Single. Time (mostly). Sometimes I switch it up to a Venti Iced Coffee with nonfat milk and cinnamon dolce syrup.
Regardless, looking around my room right now, there are multiple empty Starbucks cups, many of them now filled with H2O. My mom has resorted to giving me any Starbucks gift cards she receives or finds around the house, my brother calls me the typical “white girl" when he sees me with one of those cups and my dad just shakes his head when I walk in. He's probably thinking, “Goodness, she spends too much money there" or “Am I funding this Starbucks addiction?"
The definition of addiction from the online Merriam-Webster Dictionary states: “ad.dic.tion. Noun. A strong and harmful need to regularly have something (such as a drug) or do something (such as gamble); an unusually great interest in something or a need to do or have something."
According to Statista. The Statistics Portal, “The Seattle-based coffeehouse chain Starbucks was founded in 1971 as a local coffee bean roaster and retailer. It has since grown into the largest coffeehouse company in the world with more than 19,000 stores worldwide and 14.9 billion U.S. dollars in total revenues in 2013. I'm sorry……what?? Y'all, that's a lot of money and a lot of stores worldwide. Starbucks isn't just a coffeehouse chain, but a worldwide phenomenon. I can drive down the road and spot that green logo at least three times within 15 minutes.
Although I get made fun of by my family and friends, I don't just use Starbucks as a place to get my drink. The other day I went there to get away and sit in a quiet place and do homework. I read there all the time. This place is more like a home away from home. I can go there and have peace and quiet, away from the hustle and bustle of campus and my roommates.
To many of my friends it's known as hipster central, and they accuse me of trying to be all granola or something. Although I do admire those Starbucks-loving hipster granolas of the world, I am not trying to conform to their lifestyle. I am just a simple girl trying to find some peace and quiet and get a good drink. If I've had a bad day, need some comforting, or just want something to drink, that green queen logo is always the answer, with a hot drink, something iced or even a pastry—the Starbucks menu can make anyone happy, just have to give it a try.
So, to all the Starbucks haters out there, you can't hate it until you try it, and I do suggest you try it (it might even change your mind).
