It Tastes So Good, I Want To Cry

This post is going to be a combination of several updates and some of witty observations on life. No, there is no outright Christmas theme to today's post, however the subject of my post is visiting for Christmas.



So here's the background. I've been dealing with significant hearing loss since July. I've now gotten the diagnosis: Meniere's Disease. Sounds scary, eh? Basically, it's like how glacoma in the eyes work...I have an excess of fluid built up in my inner ear, which causes pressure on my nerve endings and causes hearing loss and a continual sense of dizziness. Hence, the hearing loss and accompanying ringing associated with it. What fun. There is no known cause and no cure. However, I'm taking medication to help. Another thing I have to do is cut out caffeine and salt. Doesn't sound bad but....no caffeine means no coffee, no diet Coke, no iced tea, no chocolate. And did you know that salt is added to just about everything? So basically I'm down to eating dirt and drinking air. I guess I was looking for a weight loss program and now I have it.



Now here's the other part of this story. As you may or may not know, I have an older brother. He's over 5 years older than me and by the time I got cool enough to carry on a conversation, he was grown and moved out. My brother ended up marrying my husband's sister (brother/sister married a brother/sister) and they are here visiting for Christmas. They live in Denver. They also brought their son, my nephew Christian with them. He'll be living with my parents as he goes to school.



My brother and I share a love for coffee. In Denver, Starbucks are on every corner. Here, not so much. But I must say that Strangebrew Coffeehouse does a pretty good job. This is a habit that can be quite expensive. When I was growing up in Key West, we didn't have any Starbucks. There were coffee shops, but there was nothing but window service. You walk up to the window, the old Cuban men hanging around outside would move out of your way, and you order the most wonderful drink ever: cafe con leche. Basically, this is Cuban expresso with steamed milk. If you ever get a chance to try it, you should. It's great.



My brother figured out pretty quick that if he bought his own Expresso maker, he'd save lots of money making con leche instead of frequenting the local Starbucks for a $5 cup of coffee. So he ended up buying a $300 expresso machine and now he brings it with him when he comes to visit. When we visit him, I certainly get my fill. He'll make it every day. Needless to say, I'm totally wired out of my system. This trip is no different. As I walked up to my parents' house for dinner, I noticed that my brother's shiny red, expresso maker was sitting on the table on the porch. Will I be enjoying any coffee this holiday? The answer sadly, is no. This was a part of Christmas that I looked forward to....drinking cafe con leche, staying up late, and waking up late. Guess that won't be happening to me this year.



So--I'm hoping that Ben and Jerry create some ice cream that is cafe con lech flavored, because I think that'll be the only way I'll get to experience the taste again. Maybe if I had my brother make me a teacup sized cafe con leche with more milk than coffee, I'd be okay. If you see my bug-eyed and deaf during the Christmas break, you'll know the coffee is what did me in.