Some people will go to no lengths to get to a Starbucks

"Going to the other side of the street can be a barrier," said Launi Skinner, senior vice president in charge of Starbucks' store development.

I like Starbucks' coffee. Miss Signficantly Other owns stock in the twitch-inducing beverage company. I was weaned from Taster's Choice on tall mochas when I arrived here in the Jet City.

But this shit is nuts: In Spokane, two Starbucks sit across from each other in a strip mall and a grocery store, close enough that baristas could toss pounds of coffee beans at one another if they wanted to.

If your product isn't good enough for people to at least walk across the street for, it is no longer "special".

Personally, I won't walk across the street for a Starbucks coffee. But then, I don't particularly seek out the coffee chain. I prefer my own coffee at home and any established coffeehouse when I'm out. It's about getting a good cup of coffee. There are many good cups of coffee out there.

I love the Green Bean here in Greenwood. It's a non-profit with a noble mission: ...the Green Bean Coffehouse will exist in order to promote positive transformation in life of the Greenwood neighborhood and then globally by supporting people groups from parts of the world less fortunate than ours."

Now that's worth crossing the street for!