Spring Has Sprung!

Most of the eastern part of the United States has had a long, nasty, cold, snowy winter.  I feel very sorry for them.  Here in beautiful Seattle we are enjoying sunshine, 60 degrees, and full-on Spring  weather.  I feel quite smug!  Tulips and daffodils have been blooming almost a month early.  Cherry trees are putting on their full display of delicate blossoms.  The Robins are back and singing at sunrise.  I love it!  My Aussie husband hates it, because the flies are also back.
Apparently flies are a HUGE nuisance in Australia where some will actually bite you.  My Aussie husband goes insane when one gets into our house here, and will not rest until he has tracked it down and made sure that it is an EX fly.  I have tried to point out that here they are quite harmless, but he will not listen to me.  It doesn't matter, he says.  It is a fly and must be dispatched! 

I think I will buy a mega-sized fly swatter for him as an early birthday present...

Australian Coffee invades the US

In the wide world of coffee, I would not expect Australia to be a major influence.  How then to explain Starbucks' recent addition of the Australian "Flat White" to its drink line up?  This is from their press release - "Starbucks today introduced a new core espresso offering with the launch of the Flat White handcrafted espresso beverage, available at participating Starbucks® stores in the US and Canada.  Since originating in Australia in the 1980s, the Flat White became a coffeehouse staple in the UK and is now a budding favorite among coffee aficionados in the United States and Canada."

I'm a little upset about this, as I will no longer feel like a smug world traveler when ordering a coffee in Australia, as I can now get a Flat White anywhere.  I won't even have to translate the coffee options!