In line at the methadone clinic

   "THE FIRST ONE IS FREE"

Yes, this is my addiction and drug of choice. I line up at the drive-through most mornings for my fix - just like at the methadone clinic. I don't get the whipped cream or drizzle - not because of calorie concerns - that would be like ordering a big mac and a diet coke - what difference does it make. I just don't want to adulterate the perfect mix of espresso and chocolate and take away the bittersweet bite of the plain drink. When made correctly it is very HOT - the perfect temperature, actually. It is disappointing when it is not made correctly - but when everything is just right it is perfection in a cup. Not to mention the caffeine which stimulates the dopamine receptors in the pleasure center in the brain. 

THE MAN IN THE ARENA

      Excerpt from the speech "Citizenship In A Republic", delivered at the Sorbonne, in Paris, France on 23 April, 1910

It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.

Spring

Daffodowndilly

by A.A. Milne

She wore her yellow sun-bonnet,
She wore her greenest gown;
She turned to the south wind
And curtsied up and down.
She turned to the sunlight
And shook her yellow head,
And whispered to her neighbour:
"Winter is dead." 

It was 18 last night, but I know Spring will come. I can't wait to see the daffodils. I learned from Paul Rogers - the garden expert on the radio- that all daffodils are narcissi.

I also like "I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud." There is a field of dafffodils at Tower Hill Botanic Garden that reminds me of that poem.