"All you really need is love, but a little chocolate now and then won't hurt!" -Lucy Van Pelt in Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz.
A gift is not just a gift. Too little and too generic equals a thoughtless act. An extravagant and expensive gift cannot only seem an over-the-top inducement, but a warranty for favours.
All year long, we are faced with a dilemma on what gifts to give - birthdays, thank-you-presents, get wells, hostess gifts, holidays and most of all Valentine's day. Do we give only to our "significant someone" or everyone we love? Afterall, it is the day of hearts - L.O.V.E!
That's where chocolates come in. Give me one person who despises chocolates and I'll give you a hundred chocoholics. From time immemorial, chocolates have been ligting our spirits, stimulating our senses and exciting our passion. And now, recent studies have even suggested that cocoa or dark chocolate contain helpful ingredients good for our health, setting off the "Chocolate diet" that highlights two ounces of dark chocolate per day (100 calories). That's a diet i would love to undertake!
Rush to the store and get these precious pieces of heaven; experiment with it on your significant someone. Hand your lover a box of fine chocolates, light a candle, put on some soft samba music, start the chocolate tasting and see where the mood takes you! It may be the best experiment you have undertaken.
"The best way to degust a piece of chocolate is to put it on your tongue, close your eyes and let it slowly melt in your mouth," says expert Stephane Dabazach of Gallothai's Duc de Praslin, a man with a passion for chocolate. " Chocolate," he adds, "is a sensual experience involving sight, touch, sound, smell and taste. The evenness of the deep dark brown colour, the snap as you break it, the delicate aromas accompanied by the sycophantic melting in the mouth arouses the tastebuds, as the sweetness and bitterness explodes into a silky consistency that brings pleasure."
Chocolate, like wine, has some intricacies to ensure its utmost enjoyment: store it in the fridge in the middle section - too cold will make the cocoa butter rise to the surface; eat it at room temperature to ensure the maximum taste sensation; only indulge in the best chocolate you can get your hands on, for the real pleasure of it; and eat it in moderation - dark chocolates for health benefits and a creamy praline as a rewarding treat.
Casanova referred to chocolate as the "elixir of love" and is said to have enjoyed a mug of cocoa drink before embarking on one of his conquests.
The advanced Mayans took sips for fertility and the Aztecs were convinced that chocolate was an intoxicating aphrodisiac. King Montezuma, who kept a harem, consumed fifty cups of chocolate per day.
It was hard to pinpoint at that time why the brown potion worked. Recently however, studies have shown the presence of phenylethylamine, called the "love molecule" in chocolate, which causes a high and a state of being in love.
Some behavioural effects include greater confidence, unexplained joy, diminishing fatigue and a general sense of well-being. Sounds familiar?
Chocolate also contains serotonin, triggering feelings of pleasure; while testosterone levels of ladies have been shown to increase after eating chocolate. How's that for a mojo!
An age old joke says: a man found a bottle on the beach, opened it and out popped a genie, granting him three wishes. Then man wished for a million dollars, and poof! Wads of dollars came falling from the skies. Then he wished for a convertible, and poof! A Porsche appeared.
And then, he wished he could be irresistible to all women... poof! He turned into a box of chocolate. Need i say more?
-June Sauer
chanced upon this article in bangkok.
think it's super duper nice. ^^
anw, lots happened in bangkok. i can never stop talking about it.
travelling with coach was goddam fun. (:
rachael is still in a holiday mood.
oh, and h2 told me, i scored 25/26 for phy! (((((:
and, copycats shoo lah hor. ):
