When Good Things Happen to Bad Habits

I love coffee. It's sick, really. Sometimes I go to bed at night, looking forward to waking up the next morning and having my coffee. Sometimes I plan my coffee excursions days or weeks in advance. We went camping last summer and the first food item I put on our packing list was coffee. Very often my social time with friends is to go somewhere to have a coffee. I like it hot, warm, or cold, usually with milk, rarely with sugar.

So I was especially gratified to read recently that coffee has been found to offer many health benefits. Apparently, it contains antioxidants and can help protect you from Parkinson's, diabetes, cancer, heart disease and more. I can't help but think it's just another way for us to justify our addictions, but I'll take what I can get!

Health Benefits of Coffee (WebMD)

Drinking Coffee Has Health Benefits (ABC News)

Lucky for me, Chelsea has no shortage of places to get good coffee. I don't know how or why a city the size of ours can support so many, but I for one am happy about it.

The interesting thing is that it almost seems as if we couldn't afford to lose any of them, because they each offer something unique. Where can you buy a good cup of coffee in Chelsea?

• Zou Zou's (love it for the French cafe ambiance and great food)


• Gourmet Chocolate Cafe (love it for the chocolate of course! Also, the kid's corner)


• Pierce's Pastries (love it for the small town charm and doughnuts)


• Divine Java (love it for the comfy chairs, plenty of magazines to read)


• Bear Claw Coffee (love it for the drive-thru)

and surprisingly...

• TreeHouse (love it for the kids playing while I sit and relax)


• Tree of Life Studio (love it for being such a very cool place to be)

And for coffee by the pound to make at home, I like to buy it from The Mission Marketplace. They sell fairly traded items, including coffee. Which means that my money is going to help a real family in another part of the world.

Aside from the stains, the breath, the $4 lattes. Ask me about my coffee habit now, and I'll tell you that it is purely for medicinal purposes.