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Chocolate just the thing to deal with stress

The sun shines and the birds sing and I should tell you just how thrilled with life I am. Not so! Today my computer told me I had committed a fatal error. Clutch my heart I did just waiting for something to happen.

The sun shines and the birds sing and I should tell you just how thrilled with life I am. Not so! Today my computer told me I had committed a fatal error. Clutch my heart I did just waiting for something to happen.

I called the good people at Cybernet who go above and beyond the call of duty to set me straight. Greg and Norm put their heads together, so to speak, to help me out. So far - no luck. I am still not able to look stuff up but I can talk to all of you.

With the stress of the day I said to myself I should have a wee piece of chocolate. Just the thing to calm me down, lower my blood pressure, help out with depression. Did you know about all the good things that chocolate can do for us?

Now I mean chocolate - not run of the mill candy. The best thing you can buy when searching through the plastic looking Easter candy is a chocolate that is at least 70% pure cocoa. The good kind is very dark chocolate.

If you buy a milk chocolate or white chocolate the milk added reduces the antioxidant value of the chocolate.

If you do eat a little of the good kind every day it has been shown that it will reduce your blood pressure, lighten your mood and lower insulin levels. It does cause the blood vessels to relax and dilate.

Remember we are talking about a little chocolate and the dark kind that is not loaded with too much sugar.

I neglected to mention that chocolate is also considered to be a great aphrodisiac. At my age I don’t think I could afford enough chocolate. Still the benefits outweigh the negatives.

So, when Easter arrives, sit back, enjoy a few pieces of chocolate and savour the benefits. One way I enjoy a nice piece of dark chocolate is to drop a hunk into my evening cup of coffee. It turns into a warm velvet gob in the bottom of my cup. Takes a bit longer to enjoy. A perfect cup of coffee.

I leave you now to call the internet folks once more. What a pest I am. Still if the line is free you could call me at 250-846-5095, or if the computer problem is fixed, how about an e-mail to mallory@bulkley.net?

Have  a great Easter weekend.

Brenda Mallory writes the weekly Spice Of Life column.