The Thrill is Gone (Well, the Coffee Is)

That's right, folks. I have to cut down on (read: basically give up) my coffee intake. I was running on 4-5 cups a day, probably, and now I have to abandon one of my life's great loves. (Other great life loves include dolphins, wine, glitter, and Scrabble.) In a nutshell, my doctor said I need to try eliminating caffeine for a while and see how that goes. So far, it's really not that bad, physically. The caffeine headaches have been surprisingly mild, and I'm not as groggy as I'd thought I'd be. I'm getting by on green tea, but I just miss the ritual of it -- my favorite mug, delicious black coffee, pairing perfectly with a ridiculously fatty breakfast pastry (Seriously, did you a know a scone from Starbucks has 500 calories!?), just the whole experience.

To help me mourn the loss of my great companion, here are some picture of really, really cool coffee art:

 

In happier news, the sun is finally shining in Massachusetts. Blue skies! Sunshine! I felt like Dorothy entering Oz the first time and seeing everything in color -- THAT'S how melodramatic two weeks of rain and gray skies will make you.

Other good news: Apparently, I'm great at cooking chicken. We've done baked chicken breasts a couple times in the past couple of weeks, and I'm overcoming my fear of poultry. Last night I made my first pesto (DOMESTIC!) and marinated the chicken in it. Delish. The thing I'm not good at: timing. I cooked that frickin' chicken for an absurdly long time, and after an hour I started taking the temperature every 20 minutes or so to see if it was done. We eventually just ate it -- and not sick yet! That's the mature, adult way, isn't it? To expose yourself to serious health risks just because you're hungry? C'est la vie. (I have to brush up on my Français to prepare for the Montreal trip!)

For my parents, aliases Chad and Kathy, who've been asking to see pictures of the house, I'll get those up soon because the decorating is (basically) done! I even have a selection of fresh herbs ready to pot. Yes, yes, so fancy, I know, but what else do you do in the country besides garden? And ward off insects? And watch Seinfeld? So far, not much, but will keep you posted. À bientôt!