After the death of my sunflowers, it seems like my bonsai is next…

This poor thing was given to me as a gift. When I got it, it was housed in a box, the soil was covered in glued stones, and there were many leaves — it seemed vibrant and healthy. I soaked it in a sink-full of water right away for about 30 minutes. A few days later when I wanted to soak it again, I lightly brushed the tree with my arm and a whole bunch of leaves fell off which naturally, freaked me out. All the leaves were dry and brittle and only a few healthy leaves remained. I immediately went online to find a cure for the little fellow. A lot of the sites suggested I remove the stones (which I did) to allow the roots to breathe. The above picture depicts what my bonsai presently looks like. It looks worse than when I first got it. I lightly scraped the bark to see if there is some green colour underneath to see if there’s still life in the tree and that it’s not completely toast. I brought my bonsai to work because there is more light, but I don’t place it in direct sunlight. The heater is on at full blast at work so I try to keep it away from that. I also keep it close to myself so it receives adequate carbon dioxide.

If anyone is going through the same thing, please let me know! I also don’t know what type of bonsai tree mine is because as you can see, there aren’t too many defining characteristics other than that it looks DEAD! Help.

Updates to come.

[click on the pictures to enlarge the images]

The very first seeds that I planted around November 24 are sadly dying!

I’m guessing it is because of improper drainage. I didn’t put stones at the bottom of the pot to help with the drainage and above is the result of my laziness. It’d be nice if these came back to life but as you can see it seems hopeless.

I planted new seeds on December 8. After five days, I started to see some little fellas peeking through.

These are pictures of them the following day. These buggers grow fast!

I recently added fertilizer spikes for indoor plants. Because it is winter and the heat is constantly on which can dry out the soil, I try to water them once a day, if not twice. Just a little sprinkle is all you need considering the size of the pot. There are about 2 or 3 seeds per pot.

More updates soon!

STARBUCKS SKINNY VANILLA BEAN LATTE, grande
Milk: skim Calories: 130 Fat (total/saturated/trans): 0 – 0 – 0 Sodium: 170 mg

Starbucks is definitely not my first choice for lattes or coffee. This drink tastes like it has been watered down. And how is it that every cup I have bought has always been lukewarm. Yuck. Just plain yuck. Starbucks is my last resort (especially when I’m in the U.S.). Yay on the nutritional values though.
click here for Starbucks nutrition information

TIM HORTON’S FRENCH VANILLA CAPPUCCINO, medium
Calories: 250 Milk: unknown Fat (total/saturated/trans): 8 – 7 – 0.1 Sodium: 240 mg

DAMNNNNNN Y’ALL, these values are off the charts. Thumbs down on the nutritional value, but great if you want something cheap and sweet. Although you can not avoid trans fat in animal based foods such as cheese and milk, trans fat is EVIL. It has no (positive) nutritional effect on your body, other than that it contributes to heart disease (for more information on this repulsive thing, click here). The trans fat from this drink is probably from the powdered milk combined with the drink mix. I know it’s only 0.1 grams, but it’s still better to avoid it. Unless you are eating cheese or drinking milk, ban trans fat as much as possible. This includes candy bars, chips, and all that bad stuff. That is why they call it JUNK food. Moving along – 

TIM HORTON’S ICED COFFEE, SMALL
Calories: 110 Milk: who knows Fat (total/saturated/trans): 6 – 3.5 – 0.2 Sodium: 55 mg

For those who love Iced Cappucinos but hate the ice brick that remains when you’ve drank all the good stuff on those hot days, this is the perfect little thing.
click here for Tim Horton’s nutrition information

CARAMEL FLAVOURED ICED COFFEE, small
Calories: 340 Milk: unknown Fat (total/saturated/trans): 6 – 3.5 – .02 Sodium: 75 mg

I am not surprised at the caloric value of this SMALL iced coffee. This beverage tastes really bad, almost how your mom’s lipstick smells. It’s just disgusting. Before they introduced Tim Horton’s Iced Coffees, I’d get these with an extra pump of sweetener and it STILL tasted like sweaty gym socks. Never again will I order this. Nor should you. And just so you know, a McDonald’s cheeseburger is 40 CALORIES LESS than this drink. Awful.
click here for McDonald’s nutrition information

SKINNY VANILLA BEAN LATTE, small
Calories: 180 Milk: Skim Fat (total/saturated/trans): 3 – 3 – 0 Sodium: 190 mg

My FAVORITE palce to get a latte. Creamy, ALWAYS hot, and zero trans fat. Because you can taste the espresso through the Vanilla sweetner, you actually feel like you’re drinking a cup of coffee as opposed to sweetened milk like in the Starbucks latte. Perfect all around. I long for this when I’m outside of Canada.
click here for Second Cup nutritional information

CARAMEL LATTE, small
Calories: 280 Milk: 2% Fat (total/saturated/trans): info n/a – 2.5 – info n/a Sodium: 300mg

This latte is a little strong for my liking but that can be remedied with half a packet of sweetener. This is the first place I run to if I’m in the U.S.; otherwise I’m off to Starbucks.
click here for The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf nutritional information (hot beverages)

CARAMEL LATTEBENE, small
Calories: 230 Milk: skim Fat (total/saturated/trans): 2 – 2 – 0 Sodium: 250 mg

Very similar in taste to Coffee Bean’s caramel latte. Gotta add in that half packet of sweetener. Maybe buy a pack of mints too.
click here for Timothy’s World Coffee nutrition information

MOCHACCINO, regular
Calories: 190 Milk: 2% Fat (total/saturated/trans): 7 – 4.5 – 0.2 Sodium: 95 mg

I only get this when all my other options are out of the way, but it’s perfect. I would still prefer Second Cup over William’s because of the creamy factor. It’s perfect because I don’t have to add sweetener or extra syrup. The regular size is tiny though.
click here for William’s Coffee Pub nutrition information

A medium cup of coffee at Tim’s is half the size of a regular or small at a specialty coffee shop. With that in mind, a Tim’s French Vanilla is quite possibly the worst cappuccino to consume nutritionally.

Ask for 2% milk as a substitute for cream, or skim or low-fat milk as a substitute for 2% milk to keep the calories down.

Soy milk is a great substitute for those who are lactose sensitve or lactose intolerant, but it doesn’t taste as good as it would with milk. It may cost a few extra cents as well.

Coffee can become more of toxin to your body when too much is consumed. So drink a lot of water.

if you need a fix