June Newsletter

Greetings members, aaah I’m sorry @.@; I can’t believe it’s so late and I haven’t updated! Blame it on summer, blame it on tablets, but don’t blame it on love. (Insider joke for those who listen to Maria Mena.) Any who, this month’s challenge and article are really pretty interesting, and delicious, so please visit them! A must for COFFEE ENTHUSIASTS.


I’d like to remind all you wonderful people that we still want lots of stuff from you for the newsletter. Send us your advertisements, charity/event awareness, world/local news, or any tidbits you want. would also like to ask for suggestions for wonderful Portuguese artists you know personally or admire. Just a reminder that , being the amazing person that they are, is able to help us have Portuguese members who aren’t fluent English speakers! I’m excited >w<-.


Call for Admins: closed; Right now there’s not too much work to do around here, but I hope someday to have multiple people helping me out!

No critique this month b/c I’d like you to focus on something else.

I’ve got an idea, perhaps an evil one, I’d like to get a tally of all the members who have Gaia accounts. Why? Gaia forums are ideal for interactive tutorial workshops! Plus, creating an account is free and easy.

Besides responses about whos who I’d also like some volunteers to teach various program and technique tutorials. I’ll try my best to get experts from outside the club—suggestions and help will be greatly appreciated!—but if not we’ll just have to put a few subjects off for a bit.

Featured artist:

For her really out of this world gallery. Every piece in her gallery looks a little different and it keeps you searching through it wanting more.

Monthly Challenge:

Now-a-days it seems like everyone and their grandma has at least heard of Starbucks Coffee. With a shop on just about every corner it’s easy for us caffeine junkies to keep coming back despite the high prices. But, are those prices worth it? Their green logo has become one of the most recognized symbols on the planet, but that’s not the only green thing about their stores, did you know:

· SB introduced C.A.F.E. (Coffee and Farmer Equity) Practices in 2004?
C.A.F.E. is a set of environmentally and morally conscious rules/guidelines for producing, processing, and buying coffee. Meaning that the land and the farmers get the best deal possible.

Starbucks makes more than half of it’s total purchases from farmers who are approved under these guidelines.
· They are the largest purchaser/roaster/distributor of Fair Trade Certified Coffee in North America?
· SB invests in local farms/towns near coffee growing sites they buy from?
· …donated 36.1 million to charity in 2006…
· …use semi-recycled, biodegradable paper cups, saving an estimated 78,000 trees?
· …20% of the energy consumed in Starbucks stores in US and Canada is from wind power.
Pretty impressive huh? For more information take a walk down to your local SB and pick up their pamphlet labeled: Social Responsibility along with your quarter shot double twist extra cream half soy milk half skim milk latté.

Media Suggestions:

This time we have two:

Don’t Mess with Zohan, not because it’s a good movie, not because it’s a beautiful movie, but because it helps project the message of “ peace in the middle east” to a wide range of…um…hm…taste.

Sex and the City, for lovely cinema, humor, and a really amazingly poetic scene I can’t tell you about thanks to this darn spoiler warning device…


Manga/Anime:

Kekkaishi, it’s awesome. Very awesome.

For out mission statement, rules, and other miscellaneous information see the first journal: [link]