#110 - Heaven on Earth - Pistachio Gelato

It's not always easy to change habits. Sometimes you discover things when something else is taken away.

Driving down the California coast has become my "contemplative" time during Covid. It's an amazing ride from Half Moon Bay down to Santa Cruz with hiking trails, surfers, side roads in the redwoods and (surprisingly) not too many cars on the weekend.  There are even a few places along the way where I might find a friend playing music at a local coffee shop.

On one of drives, the Half Moon Bay coffee shop (Cafe Society) had a long, long line.  I calculated the line was 20 minutes and a drive to Princeton was 10. So, I drove to Mezza Luna Cafe. Instead of being upset about the drive, I focused on the fantastic spinach pastry I'd treat myself to at Mezza Luna.

When I arrived there was no line for coffee (good) and no spinach pastry (bad).  So I got a scoop of green pistachio gelato instead.  It was early in the morning but no one seemed to bat an eye at my decision behind the counter.  The espresso and pistachio ice cream was really good.  REALLY GOOD.  The rest of my day went pretty well, too.

When I headed to coffee the next day, I decided to make a right turn to Mezza Luna on HWY 1 and enjoy the same espresso / pistachio ice cream routine....  and yes, I had another emotionally cheery day.  Wondering if I could hit 3 days in a row of happiness, I did it again on day 3 with the same great results.  At this point, I'm calling my friends and wondering if this is some kind of magic potion I've never heard about before.  I was afraid to NOT do this on day 4.  The habit had begun... but how long would it last for?

I don't know about you, but I'm always in quest of a way to wake up feeling great to face the challenges of the day, week or year ahead.  It doesn't always happen.  I sometimes wonder why one day's circumstances aren't much different than the day before yet I can wake up feeling emotionally up or down when not much has changed in the world.  So, I research this kind of thing as  hobby..  sleep, vitamins, weather, music, activities and how these all interact to bring happiness in our lives.

Turns out pistachios have a lot of micronutrients, B vitamins and other things that I might have been unconsciously looking for.  This isn't a recommendation for anyone to rush out and buy a bag of pistachios.  I'm curious if any of you have found a new positive habit to start 2022?

This is a really great podcast on how habits are formed from a neuroscience point of view.  Andrew Huberman is a neuroscientist who has a lab at Stanford University.  The podcast is long but you can watch it in small chunks if you're interested... or listen with it in the background (which is what I do).  He's got some interesting ideas on how long it takes to change old habits into new ones.

Andrew Huberman - https://youtu.be/Wcs2PFz5q6g

Have a great week!

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