Despite the title, expect not a sonnet for I no writer of poems, in fact, sometimes my prose is shaky at best and yet, I can save some of my best words, phrases and lines to sing the praises of coffee, the drink that some relegate to only being a morning brew but which those of us who truly love it drink throughout the day. Coffee has the ability to sing a true siren's song the brings us back to her all day long as we work through projects at home and work. It beckons us during times of relaxation and lures us to take breaks from activity to pay attention to its subtle gifts.
Fresh brewed coffee has aromatic subtle notes that dance across our tongues and palates as it teases our olfactory with its ability to titillate us and arouse us while creating a sense of satisfaction we taste and smell as we feel it swirling through our mouths and down our throats. Good coffee needs no accompaniment save perhaps a splash of cream or maybe a dot of sugar to enhance the experience and bring out the fuller body of the brew.
Those of us who drink and enjoy coffee will find our own way to bring out the best of each cup and in doing so will heighten our pleasure while delighting our senses with each cup. So in the spirit of camaraderie I raise a mug to my lips with you and drink in the indulgence known as a well brewed cup of coffee. Enjoy!
Ciao!
Beyond the mausoleum door lies the memory of many well enjoyed cups of coffee past, for example back before it was de rigueur to so in cafes there would be coffee shops around that served their gourmet brew in clear coffee mugs so the treat was not only tasty but visual, you could see the swirl of cream as it spiraled into your coffee. It was possible to enhance the experience by the richness of enhancing all the senses in not only your cup of coffee but that of your companion as the black or cream tinged brew would be enjoyed through shared sight and smell while discussing the subtle smokiness of the brew as you drank it.
There were the cups of coffee you drank while cramming for tests or writing papers, some would even be, gasp, instant or from vending machines as you found your brew wherever you could and as quickly as possible while trying to get through the finer points of higher education so you could move on along your career track. I remember many a pot of Folger's coffee that fueled all night stints producing papers that would propel me through undergraduate and graduate school. In fact, I may owe my degrees to that coffee company for helping my cup serve as a constant companion to alertness as I worked thought out the midnight hours.
We all have cups of coffee in our past shared with friends, usually very close and personal friends as we discussed the painful break up of yet another relationship or the joyous escapades and serendipity of a new love that had entered our lives. Whether discussing the finer points of karma catching up with someone who had hurt us or delighting in the intensity and temptation of a new love, coffee has been our friend with our human, and maybe even animal, companions as we have traversed through changes in relationships with others along the path our our lives' journey.
There have been coffee cups of pain mixed with joy as we have awaited news during surgery, child birth, emergency room visits, while waiting for visiting hours in ICU units and sadly at visitation and after funerals as the circle of life has revolved around friends, family, life and death while we have shared coffee as a uniting factor between those with whom we have played a part in these unfolding dramas we call life.
Many more stories come to mind of past cups of coffee shared and enjoyed as uniting forces when we have celebrated and when sorrow has been part of our daily activity. Despite the many circumstances, there has always been the brew to connect us though the adventure known as the passages of time. We will not see those cups again but like our lost love ones they still linger in our minds as gifts that nurtured body and soul.
Ciao!
Most people would not consider coffee to have a capricious nature, for them, coffee just is, they are sanguine about their brew and believe that every cup will meet their expectations despite possible past instances to the contrary. Coffee must be well roasted, fresh and properly brewed in order to be fully enjoyed. If any of these elements are missing you can end up with bitter swill that is scarcely drinkable despite adding such things as creamer and sugar. It is this very type of situation that leads me to state that coffee has a capricious nature.
It goes back to the soil and climate that the bean is grown in, the harvesting of the coffee at the perfect time, the handling of the tender beans as they make their way to the roaster and then the manner in which the beans are roasted. After that there is the length of time between roasting and the grinding of the bean...if the bean is ground to soon and kept waiting on a shelf for an extended period of time it can lose its flavor and aroma. Fresh roasted and ground coffee are the best for the peak experience in enjoying the cup of coffee.
Once the coffee has been processed properly then there is the brew, if it is too strong, to weak, left to sit or improperly attended the consumer can find oneself dealing with a cup of java that does not meet their expectations in the least. The coffee must be properly brewed to finalize the experience we all hope for as we pour a cup of coffee or have one served to us so that we can fully enjoy the drink and partake in the little moment of nirvana known as a delightful cup of coffee.
Ciao!
Brevity will not be at the soul of this essay for I am addressing a list of alphabetical writing prompts that will be inspiration for my verbose ramblings. I opted for this peculiar exercise because I am keen on actionable inspiration that can keep me in a jocular mood and prevent me from being just a lout as I write.
My writing tends to be restrained at times with minimal input and yet I try to get maximum "bang" with the words I write. I enjoy the task at hand and try to celebrate the written word in my little essays even when they are less than inspired.
Sometimes when I am writing I find inspiration in coarse and despicable characters as I have met many unpleasant souls in my years as a child abuse investigator and yet in my soul of souls I prefer to write luscious erotica featuring trembling nubile damsels consorting with suave, hot heroes who will bring them to the edge of ecstasy while whispering sweet nothings in their ears. Although I can visualize these characters sometimes I cannot bring them to life as I can the louts who represent the underbelly of our peculiar society.
Although I tend to extrapolate with some of my little scribblings I am a rather jocular soul who tries not to quibble with my readers or within my own writings...there should be no reason for my audience to need Xanax upon reading my text nor to feel the need to apply balm or unguent to their psyches when finishing up one of my little tomes. I try to bring out that which is pleasant even though I do at times write about things with are difficult to read even though I try to steer away from that which is barbed.
Although often inspired by youthful hellions on the brink of anarchy I try to opt for graceful young things who are more influenced by the subtleties of their horoscopes and signs of the zodiac rather than coarse influences that can bring them to ruin at the nadir of their actions. This juxtaposition can have my mind quibbling in a figural way as I write because I see the world one way but try to super impose a better society upon the one that I see in my own life and reality.
In closing I will say that this essay of alphabet soup was written for my dear friend Fraidy who keeps me in words so that my works will be verbose and not minimalist because she provides me with inspiration that goes beyond the pale.
Ciao!