Fertilizing Your Garden with Cow Dung, Urine and Brewed Coffee Waste

In her younger years, my mom, had a green thumb.  When we moved in to our first home in Novaliches, Philippines, we had a large lot and she grew a mini forest within.  She grew fruit trees like mango (Indian Mango and Carabo Mango), avocado, bayabas (guava), and guyabano.   She also had flower plants such as roses (red, white, and violet), kalachuchi, and poinsettia. 

Our subdivision was formerly an agricultural land so the soil was really fertile but my mom would still insist on putting fertilizer.  No, we don’t buy the commercial ones.  Our house was adjacent to a carabao gracing field so every now and then, my mom would take us to “harvest” dried carabao dung for her garden. 

Dried carabao dung isn’t smelly so it was just like picking up a lump of soil.  We would pick up sacks of it to bring back to the garden where my mom would ground them up and scatter amongst the plants. 

Other than carabao dung, my mom would also use urine to “water” the plants.  When we were little we had an “arinola” or urine bucket just in case we get the urge to take a leak in the middle of the night and with our bathroom still a far way off our bedroom, it was practical in the physiological as well as the horticultural sense. 

Urine is rich in micronutrients needed by plants; however, it needs to be diluted with water lest you want your plant’s roots to burn.

It has been a long time since we moved out of that house and the one we live in right now does not have a carabao gracing field and I do believe my sibling and I have outgrown our “arinola” days but my mom still cares for plants.  Good thing that I love coffee---Starbucks coffee to be exact!

Coffee bean waste also happens to be a good organic fertilizer.  Waste material of brewed coffee is dried to come out with “sapal”.  You simply mix this with the soil and you have happy and blooming plants after!  Starbucks gives away “sepal” to customers who have a green thumb. 

My New Favorite Starbucks Frappuccino Fix

In this hot summer day hot java ain't really a first option.  So dropping by the nearest Starbucks coffee shop would mean getting myself a Venti Frappuccino Beverage!  

Before, I used to order the Java Chip Frappuccino but one day I saw the barista fixing a green concoction which caught my attention.  As it turn out it was their Green Tea Frappuccino Blended Creme.  I was suppose to try this out in my previous trips but I just kept on ordering the usual Java Chip Frappuccino---old habits, what else can I say!  Anyway, I finally got myself to break from my infatuation with Java Chip and was finally able to try the Green Tea Frappuccino.  

It has less caffeine at 70mg but it sure satisfies my sweet fix!  In a nutshell it tastes like Yema with a slightly fruity taste.  I can't believe I only discovered this just recently!  I guess it's because I was actually ordering for a caffeine fix, something to wake me up during sleepy afternoons in the office.  

The Japanese Tea Ceremony or the Way of the Tea is a ceremonial preparation of green tea which is influenced by Zen Buddhism.  With the influx of work that needs to be done I guess it with be time for me to shift ordering a TRANQUILITY FIX to keep me sane.

Green Tea Frappuccino with Oreo Cheesecake.  I like my frappuccino
with blended whip creme.

Vacationing in Boracay on a Limited Budget

It’s not cheap going to Boracay so you have to know where you can get free grub. So don’t pass up on hotel presentation invites. The come on: a buffet lunch or dinner in exchange for a 90 minute presentation. Well, we got two invites so me and my wife got free buffet lunch and buffet dinner at the Astoria Boracay and the Canyon de Boracay, respectively. Not a bad deal, right?

I’ve heard everything about the hotel pitch countless times already that I was the one leading the presentation just to hasten things up. Unfortunately, his presentation will need to be no less than 90 minutes and his notes fully filled up for him to earn his keep for the night. So we kinda cheated on time a bit and talked more of the other good stuff to be done in Boracay.

My free Starbucks coffee from HSBC also helped get us going with all the sight seeing and walking that we were doing.

Unfortunately, our free accomodations I got from a car show did not pan out.  I'll reserve that for next time.

Are you Getting the Right Caffeine Fix?

My craving for java is stemmed by the need to be awake durng those unholy hours which for me is around 7am when I settle my sweet ass on my office chair and around 2pm in the afternoon when all logic seem to leave my mental processes and I go into crash mode.  Thanks to Standard Chartered I usually get a free large gourmet cup in the morning on my way to work.  In the afternoon, I'd get my caffeine fix at the office pantry or if the state of my wallet permits, from a nearby Starbucks outlet. 

Caffeine is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant which temporarily wards off drowsiness and restore alertness. Caffeine is the world's most widely consumed psychoactive substance which maybe the reason why gourmet coffee shops has become a booming business venture.  Technically, they are legal drug dens.  Of course, coffee is not cocaine, cannabis or LSD.

Anyway, given the end in mind and after reading Starbucks' Nutrition by the Cup brochure, I have come to realize that I'm ordering the wrong drink.  Normally, I 'd vary my order from a Caramel Macchiato or Caffe Mocca but based on the brochure I can only get a maximum of 180mg of caffeine in a venti size order.  Funny thing is I thought that going venti will actually give me extra caffeine---WRONG!  You still get the same two espresso shot whether it's a grande or a venti.  The additional 4oz is milk.  That would just be like additional cream to the standard two packet order.  No wonder the price difference is but a couple of pesos only!  Ingenious strategy to upsize I should say.  So I suggest that unless you want to pay P10 more for additional cream on a Venti Caramel Macchiato go grande instead and just get additional cream packets from the condiments table.

Now, if it's a wake up jolt you want ,order for a brewed coffee where you can get up to 400mg caffeine trip guaranteed to give you four hours of mental alertness.  Naturally, it does not have the same creaminess and flavoring of a Caramel Macchiato but it does gives you the necessary kick to survive the rest of the afternoon. 

Java Trippin' at Starbucks

I took the wife for a coffee fix this afternoon at Starbucks SM Fairview. They had a new store at the third level and got the chance to enjoy a relaxing slow day (the Annex branch was packed when we stopped there). We got the chance to seat on cushioned seats and savor the lingering smell of freshly cut plyboard and paint but no matter---the place was devoid of the buzz and chaos that would make up for a gratifying java experience.

I ordered for a Grande Cocoa Cappucino and a Grande Caramel Frappucino for the wife. "Can I take your name sir?" asks the friendly barrista to which I answer with gusto: "Nonoy." I had to articulate that clearly since most people would always miss it as NOYNOY. Personally, I'd rather be called DICK. Anyway...

"One Grande Cocoa Cappucino and one Grande Caramel Frappucino for Nonoy please," relayed the friendly barrista. I pay up and since I was in a mood for chocolate chip cookies went out to buy Chips Ahoy---perfect for coffee! Yum! Yum! I leave my wife to fetch our drinks and when I come back she told me an interesting story.

Well I know for a fact that doctors have bad handwritings but thanks to pharmacists they are able to make sense of what's written on the prescription pad. Unfortunately, there's no such equivalent for barristas or should I say...well you be the judge. Apparently, my name was misread as HENRY and when my order was up the poor girl was calling for Henry. A few moments pass and no one was laying a claim of the java. Fortunately, the wife had the good sense of approaching the counter and straighten things out. So I check out the cup and low and behold---I read NONOY. Check out the picture below and tell me how you read it.