Coffee Talk

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Let's catch up over coffee! I've got some good stuff brewing. I picked up this bag of Allegro Girls Gotta Run Coffee at Whole Foods last week. Girls Gotta Run is a foundation started in 2007 with a mission to empower girls in Ethiopia through education and athletics. GGR starts working with girls after age 12 to keep them in school by providing them with scholarships, trains them in athletics, teaches them life skills, and assists their mothers in building a business. This year, the first class of girls graduated from the scholarship program--100% of them are going to college.

Allegro Coffee has been involved with the program since 2015 and this year has pledged $10,000 from its sales of Girls Gotta Run coffee. International Womens' Day is Sunday, March 8--what an amazing way for Allegro to empower these young women! This is a cup of coffee you can feel good about drinking.

Plus, the coffee is really good! I'll have a little half and half in mine, if you please...

If we were having coffee... I'd talk about the Coronavirus aka COVID-19. Yep, it's on everyone's minds and you can't escape hearing about it. I wish I could. The news is catastrophizing the whole situation. People are panicking, hoarding hand sanitizer and masks. Events are being cancelled right and left. Come on, man! We don't do this for the flu and that has been ridiculously rampant this winter. And yes, people die from the flu.

Guys, remember what I do for a living. If you don't know, I'm a pediatric nurse practitioner in a group practice. When I walk in a room to see a patient, I don't know what's wrong with them, save for a description of symptoms. Fever and cough pretty much describes 90% of what I've been seeing this winter. I am not approaching my job any differently than I ever have. If the patient has a cough, they are asked to wear a mask. I wash my hands before I touch the patient. I wash my hands after I examine the patient. Obviously, I don't touch my face at all. I clean my stethoscope between patients. I've dodged the flu for all of my career and I don't plan on starting with this thing now. Let's all be smart about it. And stay calm.

Or lice...or scabies...

If we were having coffee... I'd tell you that I went back to my former rheumatologist. At our last coffee date, I shared that the new rheum moved out of state. It was a sign! I'm so glad I went back. We talked about what happened with that prolonged flare last year and about me getting a second opinion. It was all so good. She hugged me, lol! Her personality is similar to mine and it's a better fit. She is pleased with how well I'm doing. I left feeling much more settled. Whew!

If we were having coffee... I'd share my excitement about heading to Florida next week to see my parents and run that trail race in the Everglades. I am a little sad about going alone, though. Both boys have plans with their friends this year for spring break trips--my youngest is going on a rugby trip with the team from UW and my oldest is going to Texas with his high school friends. I'm so glad I got that week with them last year! My husband considered going with me but he doesn't want to kennel Cocoa...

Me: Trying to make the bed
Cocoa: Can't a dog get some sleep around here? The pouty lip...
It's a ruff life

If we were having coffee... Speaking of crazy Cocoa, I don't know if I've shared how much she loves fruits and veggies. When I'm making smoothies, I have to toss her a few pieces of mango, some blueberries, apples--pretty much anything goes. When I'm making my salads, she begs for cherry tomatoes and cucumbers. This past week, my husband made a bone-in ribeye for himself and my son. He gave Cocoa the bone and she was pretty excited about it, carrying it around and licking it. She didn't eat much meat off it though, and it wasn't long before we had to take it away. She's not much of a meat eater. Except for bacon. She loves bacon. Me too. Who doesn't love bacon?

If we were having coffee... I'd catch you up on the books I've read since my last post:

• Know My Name by Chanel Miller: Wow, what an intense read. One of the best memoirs I've ever read, Chanel tells her story of waking up in the hospital after a brutal sexual attack at a college party--an event she has no memory of. She attempts to put the pieces back together. It's a great read--so well written--and a testament to her courage. 
• American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins: This fictional story about a women and her son attempting to escape to the US after their family was murdered by a drug cartel in Mexico has become very controversial. Had it been written by a Hispanic author, would the controversy erupted? I found it to be a good read, a work of fiction. And that is all. 
• The Most Fun We Ever Had by Clare Lombardo: This is an epic saga of a family raising 4 girls in a suburb outside Chicago. It was crazy good. It was also very long. I really enjoyed it, though.
• The Holdout by Graham Moore: Oooh, this was a fun read-- a wild, twisty courtroom, suspense-filled whodunit. Could.Not.Put.It.Down. I have no doubt that you will probably be able to watch it on Netflix sometime in the future. 

So what would you tell me over coffee? Are you staying calm over the Coronovirus or are you nervous? Any trips planned for spring break? Does your dog like fruits and veggies? Are you Team Bacon? What books are you reading? Do you follow me on Goodreads?

I'm linking up with Deborah and Coco for the Ultimate Coffee Date and with Fridays with Fairytales and Fitness.