Tippin' our hats to you Starbucks!

The other day I received a package from home. It was full of what I had requested: coffee, chocolate syrup, tumbler mugs, and more coffee. There's a Starbucks close to my house that I hit up for my fix. I used to go to Deidrich's a lot (still do, but there's only one) but Starbucks is closer and their mocha frappucinos are good.
A few of the people in that Starbucks know me and now know my wife and daughter. They know I'm here in Baghdad and donated some coffee and a couple tumblers. Now we have a small stockpile of joe for our office. And, let me tell you, this office goes through coffee very quickly.
There isn't a Starbucks here in Baghdad but our office 'break room' has become the place to visit in the morning. As we walk from section to section, we can hear the coffeemaker and espresso machine going and the smell reminds me of walking into my favorite coffeeshop in the morning.
That's me and my commander in the photo. Everyone else was either at chow (eating dinner) or on the phone calling home (since we're 8 hrs ahead of Texas). Silverlake Village Starbucks deserves a big thank you from me and my unit for the coffee and mug donation. Thanks! It may seem like a little thing, but here, good coffee is a big thing. More espresso will be greatly appreciated when and if our friends at Starbucks (and my wife's loving care with shipping) decide to send more. Thanks Starbucks!