Coffee

April 13, 2008 - 3:12 pm PDT

I never used to be much of a coffee drinker. In fact, I used to hate the smell and taste of coffee. When you work in a coffee shop and get it for free, and when you’re a poor college student as I was, it’s really difficult to avoid learning to like it. I have come to enjoy drinking coffee (laced with sugar and 1/2&1/2 of course) and really enjoy the smell of it freshly ground.

I’ve come to really enjoy the sense of ritual involved with coffee and tea making, and have collected things in the past few years that adds to that sense of ritual. For the longest time I couldn’t understand the concept of Asian tea ceremonies, and much of the sense of ritual found in Asian cultures (especially Japanese) still baffle me. It often seems excessive and a bit of taking oneself too seriously. I know it’s just a lack of understanding and I’m just from a different culture. However, my own routine of making coffee and tea has developed over time so it’s not completely lost on me.

What really makes the process enjoyable for me are the items involved. Corey and me bought a french press this last year so we could occasionally make a cup or two. We weren’t in the habit of drinking coffee at home, but were frustrated with using a filter and the drip method when we did. There’s just something about the fact that I can make coffee with no electricity at all (well…aside from using the stove to heat the water) that I really enjoy. Then we’ve got this really yummy vanilla sugar that we started a couple of years ago by throwing a few vanilla beans in a container of sugar. Now I just need to start making my coffee stronger and heating the milk for a nice homemade latte (I know it won’t be espresso and without foam but it’s still good).

Another thing, I’m going to have to get good at making coffee at home anyways. I’m leaving my coffee shop job so no more free coffee for me in the near future!

Categorized: General

4 Responses to “Coffee”

Natalie

April 13th, 2008 @ 6:16 pm PDT

You make coffee sound so yummy . I love the smell but only drink it when I need the caffeine. I’m not overly fond of it but I did find a pumpkin spice coffee from Starbucks that I just loved and its the only time I’ve actually bought coffee (it was a holiday flavor).

I’m looking at a possible change in jobs as well.

Nathan

April 13th, 2008 @ 11:09 pm PDT

This is going to sound very Zen… but oftentimes, the purpose of the ceremony IS the ceremony. The tea ceremony sort of “grew out” of the samurai; they began teaching the ceremony as a basic moving meditation to teach patience and respect.

Somewhat in the same vein, the USS Constitution, a sailing ship from early U.S. history, had brass railings added during the Civil War, well after it was decommissioned. It was being used as a training vessel, and the rails were added for the specific purpose of being polished by the midshipman. They’re still there to this day.

corey

April 14th, 2008 @ 12:05 pm PDT

Well the practice of practical meditation is definitely one area that the Japanese have us beat.

Bridget

April 15th, 2008 @ 10:47 pm PDT

Good luck with the after-coffee shop life!

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