I signed up with Hotmail soon after launch in the late 90s- I can't even remember my address now, it might have been "bhouston@hotmail.com" which was a pretty good one I thought.

We moved countries from Japan to the US, and it was invaluable to have an email address that was not tied to an ISP - a real innovation at the time.

Microsoft bought Hotmail while I was living in LA. I was using my work email as my primary email and sometimes didn't log into my Hotmail account for a week or so. Around the time that MS came up with the wonderful "Passport" feature of Hotmail- they decided to delete Hotmail accounts that have not been accessed for more than 14 days. I went over that limit.

We're planning a holiday to Japan now- I have friends there that I've lost because their address was in Hotmail - safe I thought.

I curse you Microsoft and your short-sighted corporate wankery. A pox on your software house.

I really like what a recent Ted Talk had to say about snobbery- and it made me think of my own run-in with it yesterday.

On my way to work I usually get off my bus in central Brisbane, get a coffee and walk the 15 minutes into Fortitude Valley. My brew of choice is a Starbucks Grande filter coffee with just a splash of milk. I get my coffee at Starbucks because it's just about the only place in Brisbane where you can get filter coffee (except McDonalds). Espresso rules Australia- I don't mind it, but I find all the milk of a latte or cappuccino too heavy. Brewed coffee suits me just right.

Anyway, I was feeling a bit peckish, so after getting my coffee, I stopped at this trendy little German bakery near Central Station called "Brot: Wicked European Bread" for a croissant to carry with me.

I put my Starbucks cup on the counter to get my money out and an older lady, who looked like an office worker in her 50s said - "Oh, Starbucks - don't let him set that there, it's the McDonalds of coffee".

The guy behind the counter replied "Yes, I call Starbucks 'The Crematorium'". They both had a good chuckle and I went away without saying anything witty, because I hadn't had my coffee yet.

But now I have the perfect reply to that old hag- I would say "I like women like you, the same way I like my coffee - cheap, bitter and operating in a predatory manner to destroy local coffee shops for greater corporate profits".

That would have showed her.