Starbucks and Bath Bubbles

     Hello hello. Last time I talked a lot about how I didn’t like myself and how the depression and anxiety has affected that. Tonight I will share with you a couple of the things that help me unwind and feel a bit better about myself.

     I had an interesting day at work today. Interesting is probably the nicest way of describing it. It was a zoo. Everyone today seemed to be on edge and super rushed, whether it be customer or staff. And being the main cashier for the day I got the brunt of everything. Customers being told things by staff that weren’t the case, staff asking me questions while I was with other customers that they could have asked anyone else and still gotten the same answer. I also had to endure long lines of impatient, needy customers, with little to no back up even after paging for it several times. So you can see, for a normally quieter store today was mayhem. On days that Dylan works I normally have to take the bus home, especially on weekends. Today I had to wait an hour after closing for the bus to come. I live in Calgary, and in October it starts to get colder at night. So on top of having a crazy day at work, I got to sit out in the cold at the bust stop for an hour. After reaching the stop I get off at I still have to walk about 10 minutes. Luckily there is a Starbucks on my way. So I ducked in there for a warm drink.

     That is where I will put in my first point. Whether its tea or hot chocolate, apple cider, even just some hot water with lemon, warm drinks will always lift my mood. I’m not sure what it is about them, but the warmness in my stomach always helps. Especially when you’ve been chilled to the bone as I had been tonight. You will notice that I didn’t include any kind of coffee beverages on that list. I am sadly allergic to coffee. It’s not the caffeine, I can drink beverages with caffeine no problem, some teas even have it. It is the coffee bean itself. The allergy seems to affect the women in my family, since my brother and father can both handle it but my mother, grandmother and I all get sick from it. That’s what makes me an avid tea drinker. Anyway, I got my Starbucks and hoofed it the rest of the way home.

     My next almost-always-works method of cheering myself up is a nice hot bubble bath. Which, today, even with the hot drink, was greatly appreciated by my body. Normally I will let myself a bath with really hot water. None of that luke warm crap that some people use to bathe. I like the real hot water that gives you goose-bumps when you get in. I also love the bath to be nice and full. I think I learned that from my Dad. He normally will have a hot bath every night after work to relax his back. He’s German, but while the Germans may be known for having small, efficient bathrooms, he took his trade of being a plumber and always installed big bath tubs. Growing up we always had a nice big bath tub. The place my parents are renting now has a really small tub, which sucks for him because he’s not a short guy. That and the fact that with his size it’s hard to keep the tub full because of the auto draining systems most tubs have to keep them from overflowing. That is always plugged with a cloth in our house. That’s likely where I got my love for full baths from. Thanks Dad, you’ve given me a mechanism for dealing with my stress, just by being you. So, nice hot bath with lots and lots of nice smelling bubbles. Sometimes I’ll spice things up and use a bath bomb. I haven’t found my absolute go to with either, bubble bath or bath bombs. Right now I’m kind of experimenting, but when I do find it I will let you know. Any suggestions in that area would also be greatly appreciated.

     I guess you could say that after a long day at work and a good long, cold trek home, I’m in a pretty good mood. All thanks to Starbucks and some hot water.

I’ll see you all next time.

Sophie-Marie