I was having lunch when I overheard two female patrons, one American and one Irish, having a spat. Now, other people's arguments in public fall into two broad categories, for the onlooker: Uncomfortable, and Entertaining.
I hadn't realised a chain coffee shop could even claim a religion, let alone offend anyone with it. I had assumed this emphatic lady's rationale for avoiding Starbucks would be something similar to mine -- a few too many troubling experiences with the rancid concoction they insist on calling hot chocolate. But paganism? Oh, this was good.
"Haven't you ever noticed their logo?" America continued, oblivious to my flabbergated self. "It's a..." her voice dropped to a whisper. "A Siren!"
On the way home, I passed a Starbucks, and examined that green circle more closely. Siren, I didn't get. No wings, for a start. But, I thought, she could definitely be a mermaid.