blockbuster video just opened around the corner. not more than 50 feet from a locally-owned video store. some time over this past weekend, signs went up in the windows, exhorting folks to support local business and emphasizing the value of their memberships. from the time that i first noticed the beginnings of the blockbuster, i've been worried about the fate of this independent shop. obviously, someone isn't giving up without a fight.

while in college, i was intimately involved with the Grove Cafe, a student-run campus coffeehouse, nestled in a glen of the eucalyptus trees that ucsd is famous for. as Commissioner of Operations, Services and Enterprises (a mouthful, for sure, but simply the elected student representation on the governing boards of the Associated Students businesses on campus), i learned the hard way about the perils of competition from corporate coffee, instilling a profound distaste for starbucks and their ilk. in a city bereft of choice in the caffeinated arena, i've been setting aside my youthful principles to partake of seattle's bitter dram. much to my horror, i sank so low as to purchase 12 oz bags of starbucks coffee from the supermarket.

the plight of the aforementioned video palace has cast this lapse into stark relief. tonight i'm going to get a membership there. and tomorrow morning, i'll sip on a steaming cup of joe, brewed from the finest beans offered by intelligentsia coffee. am i tilting at windmills? probably, but the exercise will do my poor heart good.