My two fellas weren’t home this afternoon, and since there was a little bit of a chill in the air what with the non-stop rain that shows no sign of letting up in this lifetime, I decided to grab the laptop and stick my legs under the covers so that I could stay warm while I checked the email and the Twitter and the internet whathaveyous.

And y’all. OH my word. I woke up TWO HOURS LATER with no idea who I was or where I was or what I had done to deserve THE BLISSFUL, UNINTERRUPTED SLEEP OF ANGELS. Now granted, I’m sure I’ll now be awake until 4 in the morning and therefore have to spend the rest of the week straightening out my sleeping schedule, but it was totally worth it because did I mention the BLISSFUL, UNINTERRUPTED SLEEP OF ANGELS?

Divine.

(That reminds me. Every once in awhile when I’m tucking in Alex for the night, he’ll look up at me and say, “Mama, I LOOOOOVE to sleep!”)

(And it makes me so happy.)

Anyway, there were two things today (other than All The Sleep) that just delighted me to no end, and I will now share them in order of occurence because all that rest has my brain feeling very logical and structured.

Well.

Before my nap I was clicking around on the Entertainment Weekly site, and I saw a link to the video for Kris Allen’s new single.

Remember Kris Allen? The one I sort of adored during this past season of “American Idol”? HE’S DARLIN’.

Well, listen to this goodness:

Isn’t that the most fun? Except for the annoying ad at the end?

Then.

Later this afternoon my husband and I were talking about a whole bunch of nothing (IMAGINE THAT), and he said, “Hey. Tell Daphne that I saw a billboard today that says, THE McRIB IS BACK.”

It cracked me up that he remembered that my friend Daphne has a fierce and undying devotion to the McRib sandwich, but it didn’t really surprise me since Daph’s fondness for McRibs is just one of the many things that we love about her. She has been a fan of McRibs since college, and I even tried a McRib with her one time in the spirit of sharing in her joy. Unfortunately, the McRib did not win me over. Even still, I wholeheartedly support Daph in her pursuit of her favorite McDonald’s specialty item (IS THAT AN OXYMORON?), and at least once a year I will call her and say, “HAVE YOU SEEN THE SIGNS?”

Anyway, all of our McRib-related focus today has made me think about foods I enjoy that other people might not find to be quite as delicious. I’m not talking about, you know, STEAK, because just about any meat-eating person would tell you that steak = GOOOOD. I was thinking more along the lines of stuff you might find at a fast food restaurant.

For the longest time I couldn’t think of a thing, but then I remembered that every once in awhile – maybe once every two years – I HAVE TO HAVE some fried fish from Captain D’s. Or as we like to call it: The Cap’n.

And I guess that’s not really a strange preference, but it just feels sort of unusual to me because it’s not something I want all the time. I mean, I’m up for Popeye’s or Sonic pretty much whenever, but a two-piece meal from The Cap’n – well, that is a spesh-ul occasion.

I’m also a sucker for a Zensation Zalad (yes. I totally used the Zs.) from Zaxby’s. They’re uzually available in the zummertime.

Any unique fast food preferences with y’all? Feel free to share. After all, I’ll probably be awake and probably doing laundry until 3:30 or 4, so I’ll have all the time in the world to read about how you too love the McRib. Or how you like to stack an iced chocolate Krispy Kreme donut between two original glazed donuts so that you can make a little donut sandwich in the privacy of your home.

There’s no condemnation here, my friends. After all, I believe I just admitted to a fondness for The Cap’n.

Hope y’all have had a great Tuesday!

Dear Internet,

Are your kids / nieces / nephews / godchildren / siblings CUCKOO SLAP-DAB CRAZY over these little dealios?

Because in our house? And at our school? And in our town?

The kids – boys and girls alike – are CUCKOO SLAP-DAB CRAZY over the animal bracelets.

Beats anything I’ve ever seen, this fascination with GLORIFIED RUBBER BANDS.

That is all.

Love,
Me

p.s. CUCKOO.

Tuesday afternoon Alex hopped in the car after school and announced that he wanted to go to the bookstore. Since his love of reading brings me untold volumes of happy, I told him we could absolutely stop at the bookstore – but Mama needed to make a quick detour first.

Three words: pumpkin spice latte.

After all, I’ve had the PSL on my mind for the last week, and a trip to the bookstore seemed like a perfect excuse to try one. Plus, I figured that if I only got a tall, the mid-afternoon caffeine would probably wear off before bedtime.

I am very logical and think-y, you see.

So I made my way to the nearest Starbucks, pulled up to the drive-thru and ordered a tall PSL. And you’d better know that I got the whipped cream, because what, what could possibly be the point of having the whipped cream option and saying no thank you, MY WORD.

When I was getting my debit card out of my wallet, I remembered that I still had a Starbucks gift card with some money on it. Granted, it was probably all of 54 cents, but EVERY LITTLE BIT HELPS, people. I drove up to the window, and as I started to hand over my cards, I realized that I knew the girl who was working at the drive-thru.

We chatted for a few seconds, and then I said, “Hey – do you mind checking to see what’s left of this gift card?”

She grinned and said, “Don’t worry about that today.”

And I was all, “Huh?” and she was all, *smiles,* and I was all, “What?”

AND THEN SHE HANDED ME MY COFFEE AND TOLD ME IT WAS FREE.

And then I thought, “THE INTERNET WILL NOT BELIEVE THIS.”

I mean, what are the odds? That I would try my very first PSL and then not have to pay for it?

You can imagine my delight.

After I thanked my friend approximately 22 times, I drove off and took my first sip. It was nothing like what I expected. My fear was that it would be syrupy sweet, but it wasn’t at all. I was surprised by the amount of nutmeggishness (totally a word), but I didn’t think that was necessarily a negative even though I’m not typically a nutmeg fan. So I took another sip, thought about it for a minute, and then I said (out loud – just like Alex cared), “Hmmmm. That. is. interesting.”

And it was, y’all. It was interesting and tasty and delightful. I don’t think I could drink one every single day – I like my coffee a little more straightforward as a general rule – but it was a deee-licious coffee treat. I was tickled by how much I enjoyed it.

So there you have it: I’m officially on the PSL bandwagon.

Up next: peppermint mocha.

The excitement just never stops, does it?

Seriously, y’all. I have never known a beverage with more expectations attached to it than the pumpkin spice latte. I’ve actually been a little scared to go to Starbucks and try one the last couple of days because I was afraid that the PSL couldn’t take the pressure.

However, I did think about taking my laptop into my neighborhood Starbucks, showing the barista all of your comments and saying, “DO YOU SEE WHAT THE PSL HAS STARTED?”

And then: “May I have a small sample, please?”

But then I remembered that doing that would require me to discuss my blog with a stranger. So, you know, NO.

Anyway, the PSL is on my to-do list. Maybe Thursday, maybe Friday. I don’t want to overthink it (of course, I will overthink it because I overthink EVERYTHING), but I don’t want the PSL for a morning beverage because if I get one and don’t like it, then my morning coffee experience will be RURNT, I tell you. RURNT. And I know I could get a decaf in the afternoon, but I don’t really like decaf anything. Go jittery or go home is what I always say.

So, given my issues with the caffeine and the not sleeping (she types as she sips a diet Coke at 9:43 in the PM) the PSL is going to have to be a mid-morning or post-lunch treat. And you can rest assured that as soon as I try one and gather my thoughts, I’ll proceed immediately to the blog and share all of my PSL-related reactions in a not-even-a-little-bit-organized fashion. You deserve no less.

By the way: I was ASTOUNDED by the intricacy of your Starbucks orders. Especially you tea-loving people. I had no idea there were so many tea possibilities. And the Dirty Chai? How did you even know such a thing existed? Is there a class? A Starbucks 101 seminar offered online?

Another thing that astounded me: I had no idea you could get raspberry anything with coffee. But OH, now that I know? I feel empowered. Raspberry and chocolate is one of my very favorite flavor combinations, so there is definitely a raspberry mocha in my future. I for one could not be more delighted.

All that to say: your comments about coffee were not only a treat to read – they are a resource. I went back through them again today just to get some drink ideas. You, internet, have helped me to solidify my Starbucks goals for the remainder of 2009 and the first quarter of 2010. I am forever grateful.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to watch Top Chef restaurant wars and maybe even a House Hunters. And OH! I ALMOST FORGOT THIS, MY WORD! Ree from The Pioneer Woman is in the November issue of Southern Living – there’s an absolutely beautiful feature story on her and her family and her recipes. I got my issue in the mail last week, and I saw a big stack of them on display at the grocery store a couple of days ago. If you read Ree’s blog – or even if you don’t – you’ll get such a kick out of seeing her in the pages of SL. Yay, Ree!

Even better: go get you a PSL and a SL. They’ll make for a perfect afternoon.

See y’all tomorrow!

Now by and large I’m pretty old school when it comes to my coffee. I make it at home most days, but if I’m at Starbucks, I usually order a grande Pike Place, and then I’ll doctor it myself with some Equal and some half and half. I like that ordering a plain cup of coffee means that I can get out of the Starbucks for only one American dollar and some change, but if I’m feeling wild and crazy I’ll order a Cafe’ Latte or a Cafe’ Americano – even though I cringe a little bit when my coffee costs more than three dollars and THEY DON’T EVEN GIVE ME A BISCUIT.

Well.

Earlier this afternoon I was checking the Twitter, and my friend Fran mentioned that she was craving a pumpkin spice latte from Starbucks. Since I was with my friend Leigh when she ordered a pumpkin spice latte this past weekend, Fran’s comment (I know that I’m supposed to say “tweet” – but I just. can’t.) made me Officially Curious. Because I’ve never had a pumpkin spice latte, you see. And I wondered if I was missing out on some sort of coffee phenomenon.

Well.

I replied (TWEETED. WHATEVER.) to Fran and confessed the absence of the pumpkin spice latte in my life (by the way, the name of that drink gets SUPER tiresome when you’ve typed it for the fourth time), and Shannon, who’s a friend of my friend Annie (feel free to re-read that last part – interweb connections can be very, well, webby), chimed in and told me that I have not lived until I’ve tried the pumpkin spice latte.

Now I don’t know about y’all, but reading that I haven’t lived until I’ve tried something makes me feel a certain sense of urgency. An urgency that’s coupled with an unmistakable pumpkin-y craving.

I didn’t go by Starbucks after Pumpkin Spice Latte Alert ’09 because I have finally started to figure out that when I drink coffee in the afternoons, I – get a load of this – HAVE TROUBLE SLEEPING AT NIGHT, HAVE YOU EVER HEARD OF SUCH A THING. But I still spent almost all of my supper-cooking time thinking about the PSL (I WILL NOT TYPE THOSE WORDS AGAIN) and how specific our coffee preferences have become. I mean, when I was growing up and we were in a restaurant and my mama wanted a cup of coffee, do you know what she ordered?

A CUP OF COFFEE.

There was no tall-nonfat-caramel-macchiato-extra-whip-double-shot-extra-hot business. And there was certainly no trace of, you know, PUMPKIN. It was just coffee. If you were lucky the waitress would throw some of those little cream containers at you when she walked past your table.

Anyway, while I was cooking supper I also started to think about how much coffee-related minutiae I have stored in my brain, and oh my word, it’s A LOT. For example, I know that my husband is a venti Pike Place, three Equals and nonfat milk. Sister is a venti Pike OR Cafe’ Americano with just a splash of half and half. Melanie is a grande non-fat mocha latte no whip. Janie is a grande skinny vanilla latte. Approximately fourteen of my friends pledged undying devotion to the salted caramel hot chocolate last winter. And I could go on with lo, even more examples, but I’ll stop right now since I know this information is ABSOLUTELY RIVETING.

So, internet, given the fact that I haven’t tried the pumpkin spice latte (okay. I caved. I typed it again.), and given the fact that it might very well be time for me to broaden my specialty coffee drink horizons, I’m going to ask you a question of critical international importance:

What is your very favorite drink to order in a coffee shop?

(And it doesn’t have to be at Starbucks. I know that some of you are incredibly fond of your Tim Hortons coffee. Some of you love the coffee from Dunkin Donuts. Some of you favor a local place. Some of you prefer hot tea. So please know that all coffee shop vendors and their respective beverage options are welcome here.)

(I just felt like I needed to clarify.)

(What with my annoying tendency to overexplain and all.)

Love,
Pumpkin Spice Latte-less in Alabama
aka
Me