Costly Addiction

A few weeks ago, I turned 29. *tear, sniff* To ease that pain, a friend invited me to breakfast at a local 'health foods coffee shop/ eatery'. I had never eaten there or even ventured inside to take a peak. When we got inside, I asked, "What do you normally get?" Beth, my friend, said, "I get a chagel, which is egg and cheese on a whole wheat bagel and a chai latte." I thought about it and asked, "Does the chai taste like coffee?" With which she promptly answered, "No, not at all."

Me being an inexperienced, naive and uneducated in the world of fine coffee ordering and drinking, (I've said before I drink my creamer with a splash of coffee.) I didn't know that chai was tea, but that embarrassing story is for another day.

She ordered and I just dittoed the same thing. A few minutes later, the infamous chai latte with spices arrived at the table in a beautiful and rather large mug, "Mmm, this looks yummy. I hope I like it b/c this probably was not a dollar." I take a sip, yes I burned my tongue, "Yum this is very good!" I was so excited that I didn't have to pretend to like it in order for her not to feel she wasted her money.

That day has changed everything.

I wake up in the morning, pining for a chai latte. I go to bed at night, pining for a chai latte. Chloe yells at me and I think of chais. Cooper poops all over and I see chais all over the room in their fancy mugs.

A few days after my birthday, the day of new beginnings and new addictions, I went back to the place where it all changed. The place where 'yum' turned into "I gotta have it." When I ordered, the sweet and upsaling woman asked, "Would you like vanilla in that?"
"WHAT VANILLA? OH MY!! HAVE I DIED AND HEAVEN IS A COFFEE SHOP?!" I thought.
"You bet, hit me with the works!" I sat in the car and waited ever so patiently as the miracle worker prepared my new drug with vanilla. (The vanilla is extra. I didn't know that at the time. See how she did that. She added a new drug to make the already existing drug better. Berry Berry sneaky)

So now the inner battle begins. Or actually the battle of the pocketbook.

In order NOT to spend all the money we have in savings and in our checking account (which isn't a plethora of cash) I have asked my husband permission to visit the latte heaven once a week. I will go on the days Chloe goes to school. That way I will get to drink my chai latte with vanilla, in peace.

Now I'm trying to figure out how to make a chai with vanilla at home. I don't own a frother or a fancy coffee maker with that steam launching stick or a tea steeper thing. I don't even know if I am spelling it all correctly.

I guess I'll go have a cup of creamer until next Wednesday.