Heather Evans Editorial

My November blog post was supposed to be a little bit different to the one I am about to write.

Admittedly, my past couple of blog posts have been a bit downhearted or have taken on serious topics close to my heart. I’ve discussed my negative experiences with outdated children’s literature, my inability to let go of summer and university and, of course, the death of the one and only Michael Bond. I’m okay with the last one though. Bond is still with us through Paddington 2 – I am yet to see it so pls no spoilers – and I don’t think it could have come at a better time. Feeling the cold and dark nights of November, I struggle throughout this month especially as my mood definitely swings towards the sad side of things. Paddington is a bright light that brings people together in laughter and I cannot wait to see it.

However, November is a special month for other reasons than my love for Paddington. There are two reasons for this:

1. It’s Movember. It’s a time to support the boys in their fight against prostate cancer, testicular cancer and mental health issues that lead to the staggering rate of male suicide. By walking the streets wearing their new facial fur, November is the month of the moustache. It’s the month to raise awareness and normalise the conversation of mental health and these cancers face on – quite literally.
2. Costa and all major coffee retailers have released their Christmas ranges. We have all had that notification from our favourite coffee companion on WhatsApp or FaceBook. Oh. My. God. They have arrived. Christmas has arrived. The Gingerbread Latte has arrived. When shall we get a coffee?!?!?

So yeah. We know these two things are characteristic of November.

To show my support of Movember, because I cannot grow facial hair as much as I may try, I was going to go around 4 or 5 coffee shops and say which Christmassy cappuccino gave the best facial froth and rate them out of taste and and tache. Yet, I couldn’t do it.

I couldn’t financially do it.

Let me show you the maths.

Costa’s Christmas Cappuccino, a Salted Caramel beverage, is described as this:

Salted Caramel Cappuccino is our frothy cappuccino with a dash of salted caramel syrup. Finished with a sprinkle of salted caramel fudge crumb.

And here is what it looks like:

The price? Depending on the size you get, the average is around £3.00.

I understand that some people will be like, “Oh, you pay for the experience of it all, look at that Christmas cup” and to not be such a Scrooge – it’s only three quid. Yet, when you really think about it, this is just a regular cappuccino with some syrup in it and a few fudge bits for decoration in a fancy cup. The only difference from some ‘normal’ cappuccino is the fudge bits and the cup. Is that really ‘an experience’?

Also, the expense of one drink is not too bad. But, if I were to go around numerous coffee shops like Caffe Nero, Coffee No.1, Starbucks and try and complete my idea of a light Movember blog post, I might as well take out a mortgage. If I were to go around 5 shops, that would have been around £15. That’s equivalent to 2 hours worth of my wages.

Naturally, I know people do not buy 5 coffees a day. If you do, I am not one to judge as my kettle is constantly on. Yet, you might get 5 coffees a week before work. It really does start to add up and even I, a strong coffee shop lover, didn’t realise how much my caffeine hit really did hit my bank account.

However, the worse thing is that all of the shops I listed are massive businesses. They know how to make each of us feel when it comes to Christmas. We feel like Christmas hasn’t happened until we get our Costa Orange Hot Chocolate or Honeycomb Latte. Every year they make a killin’ on our fascination with what the Christmas cups will look like this year. They don’t need my £3.00. Independent coffee shops do.

As I sit in my local independent coffee shop Henrys, I want to round of this post by saying that I would be lying through my teeth if I were to say that I would never get a Costa again and that I won’t enjoy at least 5 Christmas Costa drinks this season. However, their coffee is expensive and I’m going to make more of an effort to help local businesses.

In regards to Movember, I will be raising awareness in my own way. Actually, I’ve just thought that even by writing my post that I have raised awareness and helped towards normalising the conversation of men’s mental health. For free. Yay.

Check out the Movember Foundation’s website if you wish to donate for such an amazing cause:

Movember Foundation

Until next time, happy drinking!

Love,

Hev xo