THERE are times when I’d linger inside a shop at a mall so I could listen to their muzak which is usually nice.
But there was that day when I entered a café and its muzak was Air Supply. I sat there, wondering if this was the café’s preferred music or the wait staff’s. That query was answered when a friend, who arrived after me, and after I pointed out to her the muzak, then asked a waiter why Air Supply was booming through the café’s sound system. And he replied that it’s his favorite. To save me and my friend from worsening the situation, I said, Oh! Air Supply was Dad’s favorite, too!
And that’s so true. We even memorized their songs’ lyrics.
Still, the waiter got the message when my friend suggested that classical or jazz music would be more appropriate for the café’s ambiance. To which he replied that, yes, that’s their muzak for the café, and they would switch to that once customers start arriving.
Cagayan de Oro has so many cafes now, you need a list so you can try them all. Each of them needs a specialty to stand out.
Once upon a time, there were only a few: Starbucks, The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, Bo’s Coffee, and some other cafes. It’s a given that Starbucks will always have its share of loyal fans, no matter what’s on its menu. It’s the status symbol and not the coffee? Hmmm.
My favorite coffee used to be caramel macchiato. Now, it’s a Spanish latte or vanilla cream latte.
For several weeks, I noticed I was beginning to indulge in high-carb goodies again each time I ate out. And I was always eating the free popcorn at the Director’s Club. And I wondered if I kept going back to Hap Chan for its sweet and sour pork or for its buchi. And I was ordering Buchi if it happened to be on any other resto’s menu.
Of course, I gained weight again while in that high-carb state. Lesson learned. This low-carb-fasting diet is forevermore, and not only for achieving the goal weight.
When the carbs’ side effects worsened, I decided to return to a clean low-carb diet, but with that latte as my one and only remaining sweet indulgence. Plus the croissants at MiMo Café. Yum! Yes, they have to be worth the carbs.
Goodbye, popcorn. Goodbye, Buchi. Goodbye, unworthy carbs. Sigh.
So, where do I go from here? Hmmm. Eat at home as much as possible. There was this male dieter who didn’t eat out or attend parties for a year so he could lose weight. At that time, I thought, how crazy is that? But now, yes, it’s the wiser choice. But not for me. I need my weekly Artist’s Dates, I need to see family and friends, and these bonding moments always have food. As long as I order only the low-carb goodies on the menu, I’ll be fine. Puera buyag.
