Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Coffee or Tea, Sir?


My previous post, My Last Post for 2008, uploaded a few hours ago, was supposed to have been my last for this year.

However, a comment by a visitor and fellow-blogger,Ben, prompted me to post this one. He was referring to my plan to stop taking coffee come tomorrow. He said and I quote: "Why no more coffee? Can't be that bad for you, is it?" (Obviously he is a coffee fan.)

Well, you see brother, it's not just the coffee. With it goes the sugar and that's exactly what I'm trying to avoid. I'm a diabetic brother.

But that's not the only reason. I have with me a newspaper cutting with the heading: "What Can You Do To Prevent Bad Breath?" In it is listed 8 Dos & Don'ts - one of them being: Drink plenty of fluids and avoid coffee.

That's not the end of the story. I know that at least one church, the Seventh Day Adventist Church (SDA), forbids or at least does not encourage its members to drink coffee. The reason? Strictly health. Coffee has caffeine. It is for the same reason that SDA followers do not smoke. I am not a SDA church member but the point is: If a church deems it fit to include it in their Don'ts list, just imagine the harm that it may bring.

People at Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Starbucks, SF Coffee, etc may not like this. But this does not mean that I will not patronise them anymore. I will, especially Coffee Bean. The reason? They still serve tea. I can take tea without sugar but not coffee.

I have another press cutting which says: "Tea is good for the brain, slows down cell degeneration and keeps the mind sharp into old age, scientists in Singapore say after 4-year study."

When I'm at Coffee Bean and the others, of course I will take the opportunity to taste the mostly imported brands of tea. But when I'm at home, I drink Sabah Tea to support our local product. Or if I run out of Sabah Tea, then it would be Peninsular Malaysia-grown tea like Teh Boh or Lipton's. Charity begins at home.

Before I conclude, just a couple of jokes on coffee and tea. In the good old days of MAS and before the birth of Air Asia, coffee and tea were served even on domestic flights. Joke 1 - Air hostess: How would you like your tea served? Passenger: In a cup! Joke 2: Coffee or tea, sir? Passenger: Milo!

By the way, I'm at home and it's now 10.30pm, one-and-a-half hours away from 2009. My family members and in-laws are having Bar-B-Q. Once again, Happy and Prosperous New Year!

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