farewell to the latte...

I don't contribute much to the blogging world and think perhaps I probably should have just gotten a twitter account.  Have I written anything that has impacted anyone?  Changed the world?  Spread some love?  Or have I just contributed to all the NOISE out there with my verbal diarrhea?

I guess today I'm hoping I can share some information that might be of value to you.  I've finished my massive detox and managed to shed 25+ pounds AND have kept it off!  I even convinced a few of you to join me in this journey towards health and hopefully have been an encouragement to those of you who had 10, 20, 50+ pounds to shed. 

My initial goal was to lose weight and through the homeopathic 'cure' and then re-set my metabolism so that I could eat a pie or brick of ice-cream and still stay thin.  Life doesn't work like this.  What happened instead is that I became a quasi health fanatic who realized that I know nothing.  It's hard to re-train your brain once you've accepted the cultural norms and thought it was actually good to be normal.  When it comes to your health and diet (diet referring to the foods eaten, as by a particular person or group, not weight loss diet), eating what is considered normal is NOT healthy and will adversely affect your quality of life today and in the future.  


My friend Autumn, a brilliant artist and nutrition guru, has given me a LOT of information.  Today's lesson is all about Milk.  Since I've stolen her words and spiced them up with some of my ramblings, I give Autumn credit for anything that makes sense below - and anything wacky?  I probably added that in...

So what does this have to do with lattes?  And why do I have to give them up???  Say farewell???  I keep being told that it's not fat that makes us fat, it's sugars and carbs. RIGHT!!?!  Milk has carbs.  Carbs from sugar.  The lower fat percentage, the higher the sugar/carb content.  So I thought that if I made it a breve latte (whole milk and half and half) I would be doing myself a favor.  Less sugar, right? Wrong.  With over 400 calories a pop, who can have these everyday along with the 2000+ calories we typically consume?  Not me!  

When we substitute our fat free milk for full fat, we can't do it on a 1 to 1 ratio.  Milk is full of simple carbs which are the enemy (complex carbs are from whole grains and veggies, NOT the enemy.  A gallon of whole milk is labeled 12g of carbs, 11g of which are from sugar.  Same goes for the 2% and skim milk.  All milk has a LOT of carbs. 12g carbs is as much as a lollypop.  So, you may drink milk, but you may also be setting yourself up for a weight gain.


However - half and half has only 1g carbs and heavy cream has 0g carbs. Half and half and heavy cream are our friends.  But yes, those are high in calories.  If you count calories, or even if you don't -  let's say you enjoy lattes.  Don't make a latte with heavy cream.  Instead, make whipped cream with stevia and vanilla and pour your 2 shots of espresso through it.  Toss in about 3enormous spoonfuls of whipped cream  - nearly filling the glass, and then the hot espresso melts it a bit and - it is delish!

Or, stir a lot of half and half into your coffee - or stir in heavy cream, using as much as needed (2 or 3 Tbsp) to get the color - the light brown milky creaminess that you want, but you don't swap out milk for cream in equal amounts.

You could froth milk and only use the froth to top it off - but if you make whipped cream, you can make it in advance and keep it in the fridge to top off your coffee drinks...sprinkle on a bit of cinnamon and unsweetened cocoa and you're off to the races!

It's not going to happen overnight, but I'm on a journey to give up the latte's... Maybe' I'll have to change the name of the blog to hanners?  whipped cream and espressos? 

Customer Service WOWZERS... and a mouse.

A lot of the time I can't be arsed to pick up the phone and make a call.  Sheer laziness leaves me in the dark, though I have an important question.

Instead of writing a poem about a mouse, I decided to pick up the phone and call Emirates Airline and see about my flight home, January 1, 2011.  I was originally scheduled to be on the 10:40am flight, but who really wants to get up and drive to the airport that early on New Years Day??? I don't want to.  The evening flight was full when I booked.  BUT tonight, rather than writing a poem about a mouse, I picked up the phone and spent 15 minutes listening to the Emirates elevator music.  Much to my wondering ears did I hear, but a seat was to be found on the biggest airplane here!!! How many people can say they flew on this giant airbus?  OK, ok, quite a few can as it's a HUGE plane, but have you?!??!  I'm now confirmed on the evening flight AND I have a window seat.  Not emergency exit row - I made that mistake on the flight home for Christmas and my seat was a good 15 degrees cooler than any other seat on the plane. NOT ideal for a cold girl like me... After securing a spot, I hung up and called Starbucks.

Now I've had my card registered with starbucks for a loooooooong time. And please believe, things were NOT adding up when I looked online and only had 6 stars on my account.  SIX??? it takes 30 to get a gold card and tons of benefits, how come I only had 6???? I called the hotline and was immediately connected to my current hero who took one look at my account and bumped me to GOLD.  Just like that.  In 3-6 weeks my gold card will be arriving and I'll receive all the benefits that a Starbucks Gold Card can offer!!! SWEET!  Sometimes it does pay to pick up the phone and dial that free 800 number...

But what's this about a mouse???

Twas the night before this morning, and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, 'til that stupid freakin' mouse.... whuuaaat?

I'm scared of mice.  Ever since the Rat's of Nimh, I've been scared of mice, rats, rodents.  They might look nice and friendly on the cover, but there are evil, malicious rats in the film.  Do NOT show to children or they will be scarred for life. I'm not getting younger and I'm still scared to death.  I love my parents house, but it's nearly 200 years old and a warm shelter for mice.  At 5am I sprang to my bed 'cause there arose such a clatter - no wait, I dug deeper under the covers because I heard it plotting my demise.  Squeak squeak squeak thrash clutter bang.  A mouse had found it's way into MY CLOSET!  I did NOT sign up for a roommate, I requested a single room, not dorm style.  For over 2 hours, I lay awake listening to this little villain plot an uprising.  I mean, I couldn't go back to sleep - not sure my fate should I doze off.  My mother saved me two hours later.  I heard her in the kitchen and ran in to ask for help and to get sympathy.  I ran to the bathroom (I'd been holding it for awhile) and when I came out, my mom was chuckling at my fear.  She had investigated and the murderous mouse was thrashing about and squealing in fear, stuck in a trap.

The mouse is now gone and I hope I will sleep, though nightmares of war might persist as I fear mice nibbling at my feet.

Moral of the Story:  Invest in airmiles, latte's, and night lights.

countdown until COFFEE

If you're my friend, you know that I love coffee.   You know that Starbucks is my happy place and latte's provide comfort for me.  When I go to sleep tonight, I will have completed 48 days without coffee.  The goal is 50 days. My espresso machine misses me.