Java Town

A few days ago I went to my local Smith’s Marketplace (a local version of a Super Target) to do some shopping. Upon entering the same doors I have entered for the last 4 years, I found the place torn apart. Yet another store in Salt Lake getting a face lift. You can’t go anywhere these days without being in the middle of a construction site. As I walked through the glass doors, I found myself staring at a Starbucks store where cash registers once stood. “Goodness....another Starbucks?” I thought to myself.

Here in the land of supposed "no caffeine" are more coffee shops than anywhere else I have lived. Within 5 miles of my house are 8....now 9 Starbucks and countless independent coffee shops. In fact, there are independent coffee shops within feet of Starbucks shops and both seem to survive the competition very well. All you have to do is breathe the air around here to get a caffeine buzz.

It was one of the many unexpected finds in making Salt Lake my home again. A small part of my blog is to attempt to dispel some of the stereotypes often thought about Utah. Obviously some of the ideas about Utah and Utah life stem from some truth, that I will not deny, but there is also a changing face to Utah, and specifically to Salt Lake. It is a welcome change for me and those like me. I do enjoy a hot cup of coffee, a latte, or a cappuccino every so often. As an adult, coffee is an indulgence that I have come to appreciate and relish. The smell of fresh coffee brewing or the roasting of beans is rather heavenly. I enjoy the company of a coffee shop, and the conversation that ensues over a cup of java. Cafes are great places to also snuggle up to a good book or study (which I do more often of these days). Coffee is just as much social event as is it is a drink for me. Larry and I can spend hours in a cafe just sipping our drinks while talking about everything under the sun. I guess one could say it is a medium for great discussions.

It was good news then, when this week I read a study that drinking coffee is not bad for you, in fact it may extend one's life. A study that looked at more than 120,000 individuals for over a 20 year period produced findings that there are no harmful effects of drinking coffee, and in fact in women there are actual benefits to drinking coffee. Drinking 2 to 3 cups a day will actually reduce heart disease by 25%! Good news for those of us that enjoy a little java pick me up.

I guess Salt Lake isn't just embracing a new culture, but embracing being healthier as well. Drink up!!