Caffeination Pontification

So, after yesterdays "last straw" shitty coffee experience, I conducted some field research at Dunkins this AM. I asked them what exactly constitutes " a sugar"? Like - when I order milk and "2 sugars", how much sugar am I supposed to be getting? Turns out, its roughly a teaspoon. They even showed me the teaspoon. Problem being, the teaspoon measurement is completely mood dependent on the person holding the spoon. I've found a new use for my Massachusetts prescriptive authority. Mood stabilizers for all DD employees.

So, as I fumed about the spoonful of sugar all the way to work, I decided to figure out how much money i've been giving DD for their crappy unregulated coffee in my lifetime. I started as a DD addict my junior year in high school when my dear friend Mary and I would go every day after school. I don't know why we thought we needed coffee to get us through the late afternoon at that age, but regardless, we'd go everyday. Then i'd go home and bounce off the walls all night, driving my parents crazy i'm sure. How did I even have money to buy all that coffee? I can't really count my 4 years at UVM, because we didn't frequent DD. We would drink coffee from the campus store called "Alices" (what a great memory!). They had self serve coffee - so obvi, the sugar was right. HOWEVER, the UVM years are easily cancelled out by 5 years as a staff nurse, a bonus for working nights while getting a masters degree, a fully caffeinated pregnancy, and a short stint on the Sheehan/Zahner orthopedic service, where I was required to stay up well past 24 hrs far too often. Heres how it jives out:

2yrs(HS)+5yrs(RN)+3yrs(NP)+1(twins)+2(ortho) = 13 years as a DD patron.

13yrs * 52 weeks * average 5 coffees * $2.18 = $7368.40 YIKES!

Lets apply this to real life. A Latte Factor of $7368.40 =

-a year of car payments
-a re do of my 12 day Hawaiian honeymoon.
-a down payment on a house
-the 1 ct each diamond earings I constantly talk about
-half my entire NP degree!
-probably enough food for a small starving country

This is scary! Sadly, we all know where i'll be at 8am tomorrow morning...just another girl trying to get a coffee with milk and 2 sugars. DD - I hope we're still "in a relationship". xoxo

Lori's Favorite Things 2009

I'm not Oprah. But you might not be a teacher, an army wife, or a "real life angel". So i'm just inviting EVERYONE to "Lori's Favorite Things 2009"!!! As I find more faves, I'll update this - but this is a good start for some online retail therapy!

MONOGRAM CAR DECALS - I'm not a bumper sticker fan. In fact, the only thing i'd ever put on Jackie (yes - the car had the name long before the blog) is a UVM sticker. However, she's leased...so she must remain naked. Anyways, I found these super cute stickers today, and I'm tempted to try my luck since Jackie and I are spending one more year together.

PANDORA CHARM BRACELETS - Really fun to create, relatively inexpensive to give and looks great next to my Tiffs! Really, its a gift that keeps on giving, since you know what you can give to this person for approximately 15 more Christmases!

GLAMOUR PUP - My dog Fenway is a lazy beast. He's a 100 lb house cat, but I like him to look handsome for a busy day of laying under the dining room table and refusing to exercise. Four Preppy Paws has been helping me do this since 2004.

KNOW A GIRL WHO HAS EVERYTHING? - I'll bet she doesn't have a Lilly Pulitzer patterned handmade coffee koozie. Obvi.

THE LADIES (AND BRUCE) - this doesn't need any discussion.

INFUSED VODKA - This looks like a really fun project. If I can find the time before the holidays, i'm going to try it and i'll let you know how it goes. Remember...its the thought that counts...but I think your thought will count more if you start with the Goose.

Put on your pearls, girls!

So here this goes - another creative outlet that I will likely peter out on, procrastinate with, find other things to do before...and probably eventually stop doing all together! Maybe with the help of some blogger friends, this might work out for me. Does anyone remember my scrapbook passion, my bracelet venture or my pipe dreams of a new career in interior design? You do...and you know who you are! There's no denying I can be imaginative - I just have to stick with it.

Its hard to commit to something new when you're house hunting, working full time and raising 8 month old twins. So I will pledge to make this blog a shrine to my idol...Jackie! We can all be as glamorous as her, even if its only in our own minds. And most of the time, that just has to do. I think this blog will be fun stories about "shameless self-glamour promotion", links to darling accessories and products, and just plain old pink and green fun! So dust off the pearls and a pill box hat if you're feeling crazy - follow along and lets Channel Jackie!