Starbucks: Free 1-lb bag coffee when you fill a passport.

Remember those summer reading programs they would do at the library, where you got a sticker for every book you read, and once you filled up your card, you would get some semi-lame prize like a personal pan pizza from Pizza Hut? Well, this new promotion from Starbucks kind of reminds me of that. Starting now through March 14, you can get your International Journey Coffee Passport at any Starbucks, and every week you can sample a different exotic blend ($1.50 for 12 oz) and get the corresponding sticker. When you get all eight stickers and fill your passport, you can redeem it for a 1-lb bag of the coffee of your choice.

So, let's think about this. $1.50 x 8 = $12. Bag of Starbucks coffee = about $10, depending on the blend. So if you normally buy a coffee a week at Starbucks anyway, then you're getting a free bag on top of that, and if you normally brew your own at home to save money, you're effectively getting 8 free brewed coffees with your regular bag-of-beans purchase. Not a bad deal, assuming you're willing to go through the sticker-collecting rigamarole and commit to completing all 8 weekly flavors. But are you?