Coffee Weapon

Researchers said on Friday that a couple of cups of coffee every day may help some heart attack patients to avoid further serious problems, provided they have normal blood pressure.

The findings come as a surprise considering the fact that strong coffee can cause palpitations.  However, the discovery underlines the complex nature of coffee’s effect on the body.

Colon cancer not exacerbated by coffee or soda

People who drink coffee and soda are not more at risk of developing colon cancer than those who do not, according to a recent study.

The research, conducted at the Harvard School of Public Health and published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, looked at 13 previous studies on the disease conducted in the US and Europe.

Some of these studies have previously suggested that coffee and tea could increase the risk, and some have claimed it could be lowered. Science Daily points out that tea contains anti-oxidants that could serve to prevent cancer but also has polyamines, which theoretically promote cancer.
The new survey looked at 731,441, followed for up to 20 years, 5,604 of which developed colon cancer. Insight into their eating and drinking habits found that coffee lovers – even those who drank up to 6 cups a day – were not more likely to develop the illness. This also applied to those who drank large amounts of soda.

“Drinking coffee, even more than six cups a day, was not associated with risk of colon cancer,” confirmed researcher Dr. Xuehong Zhang of the Harvard School of Public Health.

word press update to 2.8.1., may have compatibility issues.

Sophie Black wrote an amusing story down under in the Crikey bunker, “Do you love takeaway coffee more than the planet? Try this cup”

It’s about working at the crikey.com.au., which is just funny to begin with. At the crikey, Australian environmental commentators weigh in on policy, greenwashing and news. *Greenwashing? Possibly a term only an Australian enviromentalist would know. Anyways, It’s a review of a reusable plastic coffee cup, thud.. yes that will go over well at an envirmentalist blog.

She writes. “Sure, it’s not very cool to carry your own plastic cup to the counter, but at least it’s a pretty colour. And what’s cool compared to all those extra trees? Try telling the dead Amazon you’re too cool.” Sophie, carrying a tray full of designer coffee cups definatly cool, sorry thumbs up!

The Crikey team all chose a natty colour combination each and then dutifully selected their beverage of choice by penning in the corresponding coffee menu item on the rubber band that encircles the cup (two uses: ensures the cup is not too hot to hold and means you can personalise your cup.

Then they review the cup.
http://blogs.crikey.com.au/rooted/2009/07/13/do-you-love-takeaway-coffee-more-than-the-planet-try-this-cup/

*Greenwashing is a term used to describe the practice of companies disingenuously spinning their products and policies as environmentally friendly, such as by presenting cost cuts as reductions in use of resources. It is a deceptive use of green PR or green marketing. The term green sheen has similarly been used to describe organizations that attempt to show that they are adopting practices beneficial to the environment.

*Crikey – Used to express surprise
“Crikey, it was only a dollar last time I was here!”

It has been ages since my last post. I can only imagine the bizzarre coffee incidents that I have missed since then.. Even the spammers have given up on spamming me. Anyways, I’ve updated my wordpress to 2.8 which seems is a real clunker, as I write this from my dashboard I look down and see that I should now download the latest wordpress clunker as they fixed 790 bugs on the one I have. I think not.. This will have to do for now. My wordpress theme has got to be pre 2.0 or something. I switched it to something really cool but changed it right back. It had what looked like flying coffee across the page but I just couldnt get it to look right. Now I have a new theme I would like to implement but have not figured it out yet so we will see.
Anyways on to some Coffee news. I did a search recently and found to my amusment some coffee incidents have been in the news.

Black & Decker recalls 670000 Spacemaker coffee makers saying the machines could cause burns, this after 10 reports of burns. Nice, Black & Decker finally makes a coffee maker that makes hot coffee and what do they get for it. Makes me wonder if the thing explodes or 10 people tryed to drink directly from the coffee maker. You can find the story about it on the Los Angeles Times I’m sure.

Mercedes-Benz serves up virtual coffee, kinda. If it detects a drowsy driver, the system sounds a warning and lights up a coffee cup icon on the speedometer display.. So if you die from falling asleep at the wheel it would be a good thing to have a hot cup of coffee with you?  Why not just put a bed on the speed display.  Wonder what the warning is on this. Does it ask, “Are we stopping for coffee now.. are we.. are we.. over and over again? Actually that would probably keep you awake better then some light on your dashboard. Ah well, you can read moere at CNET News.

Google states that its multimillion-dollar solar array has generated sufficient electricity over the past two years to run 5158 of it’s $1500 coffee makers for one hour. Or 670000 Black and Decker Spacemaker coffee makers for 10 years. Ok that last part isn’t true but come on it’s Google. Google can do anything, right?

Woman Dressed As Man Robs Coffee Shop – A woman who dressed as a man robbed a coffee shop last Saturday night. The robbery occurred at Scooter’s Coffee Shop. Hmm I wonder, what if it was really a man dressed to look like a woman whos dressed to look like a man. That would probably be to ingenious for a person who would rob a coffee shop.  I’m sure those detectives are on it. hehe.. Scooters Coffee Shop. Yea.. KPTV.com

Cops stop commuters’ coffee routines…what gives? – “You can’t take that in there, miss. he said.” Right before he tazed her, making her coffee as hot as a Black & Decker Spacemaker 670000. I thought hard about this one, wondering where it could be that it was so totally unacceptable to bring a large iced coffee. I’m stumped and to lazy to look at the The Hudson Reporter??

Not to be outdone by Black & Decker, laceration hazard prompts Starbucks to recall coffee grinders – Starbucks has received three reports of hand lacerations when the product — sold as Starbucks Barista Blade Grinder and Seattle’s Best Coffee Blade Grinder is used as a fingernail clipper or something like that so look at Seattle Times – Melissa Allison – for all the gory facts.

So that seems like enough for now – So many coffee incidents so little time..

Kevin

A 75-year-old woman was arrested at a Clearwater McDonald’s drive-thru because police said she wouldn’t pull her car forward. Authorities said Jean Merola, a grandmother of eight, was arrested for disorderly conduct after she refused an officer’s orders to move her car while she waited for the coffee and fries she ordered at the drive-through window. Merola said the McDonald’s employees told her to wait there for her food.

Merola was handcuffed behind her back and put in the cruiser. Another officer arrived and took her to the Pinellas County Jail .

Merola said she was searched, photographed and fingerprinted.

“I was under arrest because I was in a wrong parking place. I says well, they told me to park here,” Merola said.

A SWEDISH businessmen concluded his Shanghai trip with “huge disappointment” after he was lured by two young women to a downtown coffee shop and charged nearly US$676 for beverages.

The man told the newspaper he was stuck with a 4,966-yuan bill after he met two Chinese women while strolling around Nanjing Road Pedestrian Mall on November 27.

They initially ordered three cups of coffee, which, according to the foreign businessman, cost about 40 yuan each. There was no alcohol available on the menu, the man said.

Soon after the coffee arrived, one of the women ordered a whiskey despite the man’s refusal, the report said. While he took a phone call, the women quickly ordered 11 more whiskeys and drank them in about 10 minutes, the Swedish businessman told the newspaper.
He decided to end the conversation and was handed a bill of 491 yuan, the report said. He decided to pay with a credit card and then the bill changed to 4,966 yuan, the report said.
Manabe employees insisted that each whiskey was 400 yuan and the two women had ordered 12, the report said.
The young women claimed they were students and could not afford the bill, the report said.
Feeling pinched, the foreigner was forced to sign the huge bill as he had no idea how to call police and report his location, the report said.
Full story here

Doctors have long argued about the health effects of coffee, but its reputation seems likely to receive a boost thanks to a flavoured condom that aims to encourage safer sex in Ethiopia.

This is very true and you can read more about it here  Guardian Unlimited

Hi there.. I know that I have some readers and I would love to hear from you about your strange instances involving coffee. Did something happen to you and you remember you had or were consuming coffee at the time?

Heres a great idea. Give all the 8 year old kiddies some steaming hot coffee at school. Start them out young and right coffee drinkers I say..

The Oshkosh (WA) school district is still investigating a case where a student threw a coffee cup at a staff member’s head Monday, sending the school employee to the hospital.

“It happens more frequently than we’d like,” she said. “It’s part of the job, especially when dealing with kids with disabilities. Some kids really don’t know what they are doing.”

According to Oshkosh police, a fourth-grader got upset and threw a coffee cup at a staff member’s head at about noon Monday.

More here

This caught my eye recently:

A crazy combination of events has led me to give up caffeine. Let’s call this Dopey Experiment No. 897.

She may have failed to mention she has a 3 pack a day cigarette habit. Read more about this here.

Denise Snodell: Coffee vs. sleep — the ZZZs have it