COFFEE!

As you might have guessed by the title of my blog, I LOVE coffee! I recently gave coffee up. It was super difficult because I enjoy pretty much everything about coffee - the smell, the taste, the feeling of the warm cup in your hands. But I had a theory that I was drinking too much and it was contributing to my headaches. I went without until I was no longer getting caffeine headaches.

My first cup of coffee in 2 weeks :)

Yesterday, I had my first cup in two weeks. It was AMAZING! I am only drinking half of what I used to and am not making my morning brew as strong so fingers crossed I don't need to give up my addiction anytime soon.

Iced Coffee!

As you might guess from the title of my blog, I really really like a good cup of coffee. I recently discovered a way to make myself a single cup of iced coffee. I pour any leftovers I have in the morning into an ice cube tray. When I want to sit out on a hot evening, I put of few coffee cubes in a mug and wait for it to melt. Hits the spot!

Turkey Day!

This year, was my first Thanksgiving away from my family. Sadly, I had to work yesterday and today. I did, however, get to spend the holiday with a friend and her family down in the cities. On my way down, I stopped at Starbucks and got my first peppermint white mocha of the season. SUPER DELICIOUS! All in all, a very relaxing break from my busy week in the barn!

Weekend Festivities

On Friday, I got the unexpected news that I had Saturday off! I was excited because that meant I had a full weekend. Any time I get two consecutive days off I feel the need to do something productive with the time.

What to do, what to do?

I ended up going down to the cities and meeting up with a friend. We spent Saturday at the Mall of America shopping and eating amazing food. Then in the evening we watched a couple of shows where people track ghosts. Now, I will say that I am a HUGE skeptic but still found the shows interesting from a historical perspective.

The next morning we enjoyed a great brunch at a local cafe. This place is really cool because they try to make smart choices for their customers by using local farm eggs, fair trade coffee and giving back to the community. As you can see I am enjoying the coffee from Brazil. (And for those of you wondering, I am back on coffee. I have, however, significantly reduced my intake - its down to 1 or 2 cups a day!)

All in all, a successful Halloween weekend!

No Coffee?

It has been a whole week.

7 days.

168 hours.

Or approximately 10,080 minutes since I last had coffee.

As you might have guessed by the title of my blog, I am addicted to this stuff. People know not to talk to me about anything important until I have had a sip or two. I started going without my morning fix because of a headache and nausea combo that I couldn't kick. Then, I just kept going as a challenge to myself. See if I could get through the day without.

It takes me a little longer to shake the cobwebs from my mind in the morning but its possible. I also figured out that I am just as much addicted to the act of my morning routine and holding my mug of warm deliciousness as the actual caffeine. That said, I am starting to think that perhaps, its time to end the current experiment. And instead of drinking 6-8 cups a day, pairing it back to 2 or 3. We'll see :)

the little things in life

Lately I have felt the travel itch - I don't know where I want to go just that I want to go somewhere. Unfortunately I cant just pick up and hop on a plane (and trust me I wish I could) so I decided to at least get out of Sandstone for the day.

I drove to just outside of the cities. I started my morning at Panera where I had a great breakfast sandwich, a mocha and some high speed internet. Next it was on to Barnes and Noble. It has been far too long since I wandered around a bookstore. I didn't buy anything but I now have quite the list of books I want to read. Following the bookstore I went to a Starbucks. I was happy to discover that it tis the season of the red cup. I don't know why but I always love when the red cup makes an appearance - maybe because it reminds me of winter and holidays and family.

My last stop of the day was Target. This is probably what I miss the most about not living near a city. I had the best discovery at Target - Pepperidge Farm has come out with their holiday cookies. This means TIM TAMS!!! Earlier this year I discovered the hard way that the tim tam is a seasonal thing. Not this time - this time I bought 4 packs (I did get several strange looks from the cashier but it was worth it).

When I got back to Audubon, I shared the wonderfulness of the tim tam with a couple of my housemates. We choose to make hot chocolate, bite the corners off the tim tam and then use the tim tam as a straw. The cookie turns into this warm delicious mess and lets you feel like your in Europe. Since I cant jump on a plane, the quick run into a city will have to do.....for now :)