…my nose in a bookFood, research, yoga and music. . . is there anything else?

With the start of the school year, I have realized that vending machines suck!

Simply, there is nothing good to buy from a vending machine, especially if you are looking for a beverage. Even the water is made by a soft drink manufacturer.

I have been up on campus, and have found coffee shops a plenty, numerous vending machines with pop and sugary caffeinated water and various collections of overly sugared “juices”.  All I wanted was a cup of hot herbal tea, or even black tea for goodness sakes.  I wandered over to the coffee shop, ordered a tea and then promptly was told that the fee for my lovely precious tea would be $2.28! For the record, I can buy a fabulous box of 15 sachets of organic fair trade tea for $5 at Choices Market.  So, my cup of tea in a non-biodegradable plastic-ey cup (I had forgotten my travel mug – oops!) cost me just about the same as 7 tea bags for consumption at home.  Does that seem fair to anyone?

Yes, I could have brought my own tea bag and travel mug, but the fact of the matter is that the tea cost more than the fresh brewed coffee.  Oh how I wish I could have just plugged a two0nie ($2 coin) into the giant gleaming vending machine in the hallway and pressed the Diet Coke button.  Alas, my stomach does not agree with the sugary drinks anymore, nor the aspartame filled beverages.  I wouldn’t even be thinking about having a soda-pop, as my last sip of one was over 8 months ago (which was simply a sip), yet I recently was reminded of how much I love Coca-Cola.

In a wonderful blog post about Coca-Cola v.s. Pepsi preferences at www.worldwidewatercooler.com, I was reminded of my younger days when I would chug back soft drink after soft drink (sometimes up to 20 cans a day), enjoying the caffeine and bubbly taste over a pile of ice in a frosty glass.  Ever since then, I have been thinking and dreaming of those bubbly soft drinks, and more importantly of Diet Coke in a can.  I refuse to go back to drinking that stuff, as all it does is cause trouble for my stomach (the bubbles help, but the aspartame is counter-intuitive), but it sure it tempting.

Once the overpriced coffee shops are closed, I am left searching the halls for a late night beverage to sip on.  I watch as so many people sit there plugging dollar after dollar into the vending machines, soda pop, chips and chocolate bars, looking for that quick food fix in between classes, not even considering that the cafeteria has a plentiful selection of pre-cut vegetables with dip for almost the same price as a chocolate bar and a bottle of water.

Sigh! It will be an interesting project for me, to discover what quick snacks and beverages I can pack, that will still be tasty and healthy, while not leaking into my laptop bag during my commute. I will of course keep you posted.

Ciao,

Deanna

The best coffee I’ve ever had at Floyd’s Diner in Victoria BC, on Yates and Quadra. Really awesome food, eclectic staff, and one of my all time favorite breakfast places.