for any time at all, you know that I do not like coffee. I don’t mind not liking coffee but I do mind when I am with a friend who gets coffee when we go out. She sits there with her cool-looking coffee cup with the little band around it and I sit there with my glass of water. It’s just not the same.
Well, life has changed. Recently, a woman at work was headed out to a coffee shop and she asked if she could bring me something. When I thanked her and said I didn’t drink coffee she said, “Well, I’ll bring you something else.”
She brought me a chai tea latte and I LOVED it! I mean really and truly. And now I can order that when someone wants to go out for coffee and I can be one of the cool kids!
I took this picture and sent it to Sarah so that she could be impressed with how modern her mom had become with a fancy coffee cup at her desk. (Sarah and Gage are big time coffee aficionados.)
Steve has a blood type that allows him to be a power red donor, which means that he can help up to six people with each donation. When he made an appointment for last week, he noticed that the location was at the airport; however, he figured it would probably be somewhere near the entrance and it wouldn’t be a big deal to get to it.
As it turns out, it was a little bit big deal-ish.
He had to go all the way through security, taking off his shoes, belt, etc the whole bit. Unfortunately, the multi-tool gadget he had just bought for his key ring was confiscated in the process. He paid $6 for it and they said it would cost $25 to mail it back to him. He decided the math didn’t quite work so he left it with them. (I wonder if the TSA people get to keep all the stuff they confiscate? Does anyone know where it goes?)
He was a little late for the appointment (not knowing it was going to be so complicated to get there) so ended up jogging through the terminal–probably one of the few people jogging through the airport with no luggage and no plane to catch.
After he had given blood, he was rewarded with a Chik-fil-A sandwich, a USB drive, a $5 gift card, and a t-shirt. And then? He got to have his photo taken with Buddy, the Dancing Blood Drop. Never let it be said that Steve doesn’t live an exciting life.
Delta sponsored the blood drive and one of the higher-ups in the organization on on-site. She saw the photo-taking session (Steve was hamming it with the blood drop–what a surprise!) and said she was going to use that photo in the Delta newsletter.
So. Steve lost his special multi-tool. Paid $18 for parking. Spent several hours in the process.
But he’ll be a Delta star. And he helped save six lives in the process.
Many years ago, we were talking with some friends about marital sleeping habits. One guy told us that when his wife turned over in bed at night, the entire bed shook. He coined the phrase “hover flip” to describe the process.
Well, after Steve and I finished laughing, we took that phrase into our lives and have never looked back. You see, I am also a card-carrying, dyed-in-the-wool hover-flipper. (Whew. It feels good to be able to share that with you.)
The problem has gotten worse this past year because we had to change mattresses when we downsized to a queen bed frame after our move. (Sarah and Gage gave us one they weren’t using until we could get a permanent one.)
As it turns out, the mattress is a little on the softer side which means that when we lie down, we sink down further than we were used to on our former, firmer king mattress.
Which is all fine and dandy except that when it comes time for me to turn over, I am not only confronted with the task of my usual hover flip, I also have to first launch myself up from the depths of the fluffiness before I can even start the procedure. You know it’s never a good thing when someone has to use the word “launch” to describe their nighttime turning-over maneuver. (If you were to ask Steve to describe it he would say that as I reenter the earth’s atmosphere I am doing the speed of sound.)
My husband is a patient man but when he is startled awake throughout the night by the small earthquake inhabiting his bed, it’s not a good thing. And so for that reason, as well as the fact that our backs hurt when we wake up, we have decided that it is time to shop for a new mattress.
Which is right up there next to trying on swimsuits on my list of things I do not enjoy doing.
Picture, if you will, the two of us strolling into the store, meeting the over-eager salesperson, and being led to the mattress of our choice. We take off our shoes, Steve takes his wallet and keys from his pocket (to more fully experience a true sleeping experience) and we stretch out side by side on the bed.
Now imagine complete silence for about thirty seconds as we both ponder the comfort level of the mattress before Steve says in his carrying-through-the-store, enthusiastic baritone, “Okay, Honey. Do your hover flip.”
I hover-flipped my way across South Charlotte Friday night and it was just a grand ol’ time.
When we were finished with the mattress ordeal (we have yet to make a decision), we were greatly in need of sustenance. There was a Japanese/Thai restaurant called Moon next door to the mattress store and we decided that it sounded like a nice change of pace.
We split an entrée and an appetizer . . .
and still had enough food for an extra meal at home. Absolutely fabulous food if you live in Charlotte and want to try it.
Since the mattress places were near my job, Steve had driven his car across town to meet me after I got off work. After dinner, we headed home in two cars. At one point, I pulled up behind him at a stoplight and thought, “I have been following this man around for forty-one years and would follow him anywhere.”
Because any man who will put up with forty-one years of hover-flipping is definitely a keeper.
What about you?
Are you a hover-flipper? Or is there something else you are prone to doing?
Do you have a mattress you love? We’d love to hear about it. Mattress-buying is not easy!
Are you a fan of Thai food? What’s your favorite dish? Mine is crab rangoon.
Are you a blood-donator? Is there a particular person you think of while you give it? Our person is Sarah.
Thank you Steve, and everyone else that donates blood. I’m a blood banker, and we are currently in a national blood shortage. These shortages are pretty typical every summer. I unfortunately can’t donate at the moment, but hopefully I’ll be able to at some point in the future. I appreciate doners so very much!!
Amy,
Thanks for all that you do to contribute to the blood collection process. Such important work! And yes, we ALL need to give as often as we can. It’s so amazing that we can actually save lives by doing that; what a great feeling!
Mattresses…I’m single, but pretty sure I’m a hover flipper since I’d wake myself up turning in my old worn out mattress. When I visited my friend in NC last year, after my 1st night in guestroom I needed to know what mattress she had in there! It was quite firm as I didn’t sink, but didn’t compress my pressure points. I’d never slept so well and woke up not in pain. The brand is, of all things, Ghost Bed and a year later I’m still just as happy. Check them out online…I got mine on sale that way.
Guerrina,
I’ve never heard of a Ghost Bed! So glad you found something you love and that is so comfortable–plus on sale!
Mattress shopping is definitely not for the faint of heart.
Stearns and Foster is our most favorite matress. It is pricey but I will never have anything else. I do not drink coffee either, but love the smell of coffee and love Spiced Chai Latte. If Sara and Gage love coffee, we just came back from the Iowa State Fair, and came accross Crappy Coffee. It is the best coffee my husband has had. They are found on face book. They give a portion of each bag sold to a drug abuse program here in Iowa. Which made me think that would be a great present for them and helping out those in need.
I was a blood donor, until I was diagnoised with cancer last year. I have to wait at least a year to see if I can donate again. I hope you are having a great day. Hugs from Iowa,
Marjie,
How wonderful that a coffee company gives a portion of their sales to a drug abuse program. I looked it up on FB and the brand looks like it has a lot of loyal fans.
I know you’re looking forward to the time you can donate again; it’s such a good feeling to do that.
I did give blood once, and the second time they looked up medicines that people take.(asked me if I took any medicine) and unfortunately the one I take, would not allow me to give blood. I cried because it was something I really wanted to do. That was several years ago and it has not changed. What a great promotion for Delta – to have Steve doing a promo for them. We love thai food. There is a restaurant called Spice and for about 10 years now we have ordered G4 from this restaurant. Curry, chicken, and coconut milk, med. spicy. We share this meal (as we do 95% of our meals out), but there are times that I want it all to myself it is that good. Coffee, I have regular in the morning, but decaf in the afternoon. Yep, that old caffeine keeps me awake at night. We have a Caribou coffee here (I prefer this to Starbucks) and they have a turtle coffee (hot or iced) – oh, so good. Actually you cannot taste the coffee, but you can sure taste the chocolate!
Mattresses – ugh. When we were first married he needed a very firm bed – now it has changed. I don’t care for the mattress we have which is softer than I like, but since we just got it about 3 years ago, probably will be a while before we change it again. I too am flipper. They say you should not sleep on your tummy, but that is where I am most comfortable, and since it is not recommended, I flip! Enjoy your Chai!!!
Sharyn,
I think the turtle coffee sounds pretty good–especially if you can’t taste the coffee!
Sorry you can’t give blood but I think it’s great you did your best and tried. I know there are many other things you do to help people!
Neither of us is much of a hover-flipper, and once I’m asleep I don’t feel Tim flip, move or anything. I’m not a fan of Thai food; and I’ve donated blood twice and almost passed out the 2nd time, so I’m hesitant to donate again.
I hope you find the elusive perfect mattress (and please share when you do)!! I’ve yet to find one that I consider “the one”, but maybe one day.
Have a great week!!
Sue Ellen,
“Elusive perfect mattress” is a perfect way to describe our search. Hoping that we (and you!) will find the right one. Happy day to you!
I am addicted to coffee. There, I said it. I need that caffeine in the mornings to function. We always brew it at home though.
We replaced out mattress and box springs with a Loom and Leaf mattress(online order) and a platform bed. My hover flipper husband no longer wakes me up. It’s not a mattress in a box, but a full size regular mattress delivered by furniture delivery guys. We love it!
I donated blood for years until once at a blood drive at my office I passed out. My company required me to go to the hospital in an ambulance where the doctor told me I should have eaten first, without even doing an examination. Cost me $600 for the ride.
Good luck mattress shopping.
Hope,
And I just love the name “Loom and Leaf!” So artsy sounding. Glad you’ve found a mattress you love.
Six hundred dollars to be told you should have eaten first? Wow! It’s amazing how much difference a little bit of food makes but you don’t want to have to spend that much money to find out!
I too am not a coffee fan. I do like an iced chai tea latte but something about it doesn’t always agree with me. I have switched to a dragon drink at Starbucks – coconut milk with dragon fruit and some other “stuff”. I am not a fan of matcha though. Tried it once when they were out of chai and didn’t like it.
I think my mattress is a Sealy. I’ve had it about 7.5 years and think I might need to replace it in the near future as I too have woken up some mornings with a sore back. It’s just me in bed so not sure if I do the flip or not. 🙂
I used to give blood regularly but stopped when I left the KC area in 1993. My veins are hard to hit and have a tendency to roll. I gave 5 gallons before quitting as the hospital I worked at at the time had regular blood drives. My church also has regular drives but I don’t participate. When they take blood for labwork, they usually use a pediatric needle but a lot of times I end up with a huge bruise.
Phyllis,
Five gallons is a LOT of blood. Thank you for making such a difference!
A dragon drink sounds like a cool thing to order; I’ve never heard of dragon fruit. Always learn something new from my readers!
I had never heard of it either until the receptionist at my parents’ nursing home had one of the drinks and I asked her what it was. Funny story, one time they served fruit at their nursing home that included dragon fruit. My dad told me it was foreign fruit. 🙂
We are firm believers in our Tempurpedic. My poor husband has experienced nearly 38 years of hover flipper flopping. We also purchased a couple knock off Tempurpedics for our guest rooms and were disappointed in each with the exception of the Bob o pedic from Bob’s furniture. I haven’t seen a Bob’s since moving to NC. I have heard good things about the Costco version but have never tried one.
Kristy,
Tempurpedic is certainly a well-known name; glad you’ve found something you’ve liked for 38 years! Interesting to know that the knock offs are not up to par.
Oh Becky, this fellow hoover-flipper is having a good chuckle. I don’t have any mattress recommendation, but I might be asking you for one, in months to come.
Enjoyed Thai food once, but need a pal to dine with, since it’s not my hubby’s food of choice. We will keep that in mind.
Yay, you enjoy Chai tea!!!
Yay, for Steve’s perseverance to donate blood. Hope we get to see Delta’s photo of him. (I have not donated often, but cheer those who do.)
Blessings on you and your week, 😊
Cheryl D.
Cheryl,
I just realized the similarity in the words “Chai” and “Thai.” We can be Chai and Thai friends!
Sending hugs to my fellow hover flipper.
Highly recommend Sleep Number. We are on our second one. We both can adjust our sides and it is a dream to sleep on
Robin,
That brand has been around a long time; good to hear from someone that has had so many years of experience and satisfaction with it. Steve and I have been talking about checking those out.
Fellow coffee hater here. A few months ago I decided to try iced chai latte for the first time, and now I’m hooked! It’s worse than crack cocaine, I can’t get enough of it! I’ve even started buying the chai concentrate at the store and drinking it at home. It’s addictive!
Melissa,
Chai concentrate. Didn’t know they had that. Will have to give it a whirl so I can be cool at home, too! 🙂
Mattress shopping is the worst! I remember in college I walked into a mattress store and said “show me the cheapest twin mattress you have.” The sales person raised one eyebrow as they realized their commission was going to be all of $2.75 on the sale. Oh to be 19 years old and be able to sleep on a pile of newspapers without waking up with a sore back!
I second the recommendation for Trader Joes chai concentrate (the liquid one, not the powder one). I get the chai concentrate and the black tea concentrate and mix them together in milk because I find just the chai concentrate in milk is too sweet for me. Enjoy!
Robin,
I know, right? Kids and young adults can just flop down on any ol’ service and sleep fabulously. It would be a lot cheaper to find a mattress if that were the case with us sixty-ish folks!
I’ll have to have Gage bring me chai concentrate. Good to know I should use the liquid, not the powder.
Oh Becky, that made me cry, both in a happy way and a sad way. You know I lost my husband of 41 years unexpectedly last month, saying that you would follow YOUR husband of 41 years anywhere and had, brought a smile to my face…..we lived in 8 houses, 4 states, and were getting ready to move again…..I would have followed him anywhere so hold your loved ones near and tell them you love them everyday.
Dale,
So glad you to see your name pop up here after all you’ve been through in the recent weeks. I didn’t realize we had both been married 41 years; sounds like you and your dear husand have had some adventures over the years and had more adventures to embark on with another move coming up.
I know you will find your own way but these first steps down the road of widowhood have to be so very difficult. Many, many hugs.
Oh my gosh! I’m absolutely NOT going to tell Mike the “hover flipper” term because he will FOREVER tell me I’m a hover flipper, even though I try my hardest not to be! We found that when we switched to a memory foam mattress AND a platform bed, that my hover flipping became less problematic for him. Hahaha
We bought our mattress from Wayfair for about $300, and it’s basically a knock-off TempurPedic. It’s SO comfortable that we both really look forward to coming home from vacation to sleep on our own mattress. 🙂
That’s a really cool coffee… uh, tea cup you have there! 🙂
I used to be a blood donor, but then the “mad cow” deferral got in my way. But apparently, the Red Cross (among other blood banks) has removed that restriction, so I would like to start donating again. 🙂
I adore Thai food – we have a really good restaurant halfway between our daughter/son-in-law’s house and ours, so that’s handy!
Stefanie,
I agree, you need to keep the hover flipper term on the down low! Mike does not need to know that there is an official name for your condition. 🙂
You did good to find a mattress you love for $300! And I agree, there’s nothing better than sleeping in your own bed–especially when the mattress is fab.
Yep. I’m enjoying being one of the cool kids!
I happen to like coffee, but can’t have the caffine. I have found many other options and they usually have a decaf tea also available. If you are ever at a Starbucks, try a frappaccino with no coffee. It is like a frozen shake and tasty. Your Chai Latte sounds wonderful. I have found a decaf Chai tea. My granddaughter made some delicious Chai cookies and they used the tea out of the packet.
We have a firm mattress, but it is in need of replacement soon. It is still firm and I still do a launch so to say. I have to lift up and plop down when I turn as just turning over hurts my back. The firm mattress usually keeps my husband from feeling my lift and plop manuver. Have you ever watched the German Waterbed commercial on You Tube? It make me laugh everytime. Here is one version https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mvRPeBDnEr8
I love Thai food. I love the curry and anything with coconut milk in it.
I started donating blood when my dad needed a major surgery, but discovered I wasn’t his blood type. He was a universal donor, but he could only take his blood type. I gave a few times, but then almost passed out twice and they recommended I not try again. If a specific need arose, I would try again.
That video is hilarious!
Greta,
Indeed!
I started donating platelets after Sarah needed many right before her wedding! I really enjoy that I can help people that way! I actually donated last Monday and I have another appointment in a few weeks!
Sarah,
How fabulous that you have started donating platelets and what a wonderful inspiration you had. 🙂 Thank you so much for what you do and the people you help!
Chai tea is one of my favorites!! Matcha lattes are also really good if the coffee shop you visit has that! There is also a london fog, which is earl grey tea in latte form… I am with you on no coffee, but tea is one of my very favorite things… and I enjoy trying new varieties whenever I can! In fact, Trader joes has a chai tea concentrate that you can buy (very reasonably priced as well) and add any type of milk for a hot or iced latte… and in the fall, I get the Pumpkin spice creamer, and make my chai pumpkin spice!! So good!
My husband and I were mattress shopping not that long ago, and I will tell you, it is daunting.. we ended up getting the tempurpedic, although it was expensive, because it seemed to be the one that would last longer, and had so many great reviews… we have not been disappointed… and I am Steve and Rodney is you in the turning over dept 🙂
Hope you have a fabulous week!
Tiffany,
Who knew mattresses could be so expensive? Steve actually looked at a tempurpedic today and really liked it but it was pricy! Glad to know you’ve liked yours; maybe we can find a sale.
You’re the second reader who mentioned Trader Joe’s chair tea concentrate so I am definitely going to need to give that a try. And Chai pumpkin spice sounds great. Now if we can just get some cool, fall weather so we can drink some!