© Celine Sparks, 2023
I got mine; how ‘bout you?
Yes, I did set the alarm for 5 a.m., throw some sweats on, and head out the door exactly like one of those mornings I have to catch a plane to make it to a 3-hour layover in Atlanta.
But this time, it was just a 1-hour layover, and in Starbucks. I’m exaggerating because the zombie traffic meandering all over the coffee shop wasn’t as bad as in some of the previous years. People who haven’t had their caffeine fix yet, but slightly coherent enough to keep repeating to themselves, “Grande means medium, grande means medium,” are filing in. The sudden light when walking into the store is blinding, being that we’ve all driven here in the dark.
And for what? For the blessed assurance that we’re going to get a cheap red cup with a lid on it for free before they run out of them. Free meaning slightly more than the remaining balance from the hernia repair surgery after the insurance paid their part.
I got mine; how ‘bout you?
We were forewarned that this year there would be an employee walkout on red cup day. The unionized stores were threatened with demands about staffing and pay. As I understand it, what the workers were saying was, “Oh no! Is it that day again? Didn’t we just do this a few weeks ago? Is this the part where people come in by the droves with bedhead and morning breath, and wait in line for a shot of peppermint like it was a shot of heroin? I quit! I’d rather walk the curb for four hours in the cold. Where’s the picket sign?”

I’ve never felt as sorry for a blender. I’d think the blenders would be the first ones to sign up for the strike.
Nobody struck at ours; I mean except for the part where I think somebody struck gold at $5.75 a pop.
But I got mine; how ‘bout you?
Due to the early rush, I was up for 20 hours straight yesterday, and admittedly asked myself a few times if it was worth it. Then I looked over at the red plastic cup with a few less-than-festive green and white geometric shapes on it, and thought, “Oh yeah, it’s totally worth it.”
Because, for one thing, don’t forget the incredible savings. Did you know you can bring this cup into the store any time during the season, and if you use this cup rather than one of their paper ones, you get a whopping 10 cents off your order? Just think of the savings. That’s enough to cover the cost of a squirt of hand soap.
My mother-in-law, who is normally extraordinarily good at math, said, “Well, it will cover the tax.” In what century? And in what part of the world?
It sounds good when you’re trying to rationalize what you’ve just bought into, but coffee isn’t a buck anymore. It just isn’t. It’s a starbuck.
And for some reason, we’ll break the piggy bank and get up with the chickens in order to feel that first sip making its way down our throat and into our nervous system, especially on the day that it comes with a cheap plastic sidekick.
We messaged in a group chat for days to remind each other, “Get your red cup.” Girls look out for each other that way. Oh, that my daughters had been as zealous to remind me to pick up toilet paper. Or to apply for a passport in time. That woulda been nice.
But I got mine; how ‘bout you?
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