I have a problem with French Roast.

I take that back; I don’t have a problem with French Roast. Maybe I have a problem with Starbucks’ French Roast. It’s actually too burnt (as even their mild blends seem to have an overdone quality to them). I love roasty. I love toasty! I love dark, and smooth; but baby, this Starbucks ain’t it. It tastes like charcoal.

The offending coffee

So naturally it’s one of the two selections available to me at work. Actually, I’m sure that even the version at Starbucks has to be better than this. It’s probably just user error; or more likely that the machine is deficient when it comes to actually extracting the flavor from the bean. They don’t have someone swirling the mixture in the basket to ensure that each ground gets the ever lovin’ attention it deserves from the water.

The offending brewing machine

And offending accompaniments/cover-up agents

It’s more likely that the majority of the coffee drinkers on my floor are more interested in the caffeine effects than the actual flavor of the coffee. Plus, I see the amounts of creamer we go through. My coworkers are only hiding the obvious – the coffee tastes awful.

The real answer probably resides with me. I think I need to be brewing my own coffee – and no, I don’t mean heading back to the old brew machine and letting it make the coffee. I need to bring in a press pot. Unfortunately, I don’t have anything that’s a good size for “a couple of cups at work”. But that can be fixed.

Time Lost in Chaos

Well, this past month and a half went a little differently than planned. So differently that I freaked out and again abandoned the things that have made me happiest, or even just the things that keep things running smoothly. Though the signs had probably been in the air for some time (above and beyond his chronic health issues) Jason's health took a nosedive this past month and we've spent 3-4 weeks in the hospital in the last month+. Fun times. 


It's so easy to forget to take of myself in all this. Whether it's guilt for enjoying something my husband cannot (I feel this guilt regularly), or guilt for just needing some alone time, it's easier to just ignore myself to make sure he's feeling better... even if it means a fight later.


On the upshot, one of the hospitals we've been in has some really great food, so good they even named their food court-styled area Windows on the Wasatch (the windows literally face the Wasatch Range). One of my favorite stations is the "Greens" area, where one of the servers mixes together your choice of greens, one protein, six veggies, a cheese, etc, and dressing for a delicious, though perhaps oversized salad.

One such salad... delicious!

They also have an excellent assortment of items to choose from, providing you can navigate around the sodium and caloric contents of the more junky food available.

Orzo and greens salad with feta, strawberries, and watermelon from a couple of days ago.
Sure makes a bad day better.

This veggie pizza was pretty delicious, as well. I think I got this early on in his stay.

All-in-all, though most items weren't photo-worthy (nor did I want photographic evidence of some of my worse choices... foot-long corndog anyone?), the food here was pretty decent. I'm still craving something a bit better from home, which I'll be able to get starting tonight. I'll also have to start tinkering around with new things to eat, things that will be both pleasing and healthful for Jason... (will be keeping an eye on Heidi's Blog for some healthy food tidbits!)

Time to get back to my regularly scheduled LIVING!