Life's Too Short for Bad Coffee

The only relationships that I have been in that lasted longer than the one I share with my spouse are the ones with my family, two girlfriends and coffee. And coffee comes in ahead of one of those girlfriends. Gives you an idea how much I value this substance.

Bearing that in mind, I say with much confidence that starting my morning with something hot and strong isn't enough. If it were, all I'd need is my husband. Trust me on this, before I can thoroughly appreciate him, I must have my coffee. Thankfully, he's been aware of this since my mother warned him on my morning needs on our third date. Didn't scare him off in the least, he proposed on the fourth date anyway.

Speaking of my mom, she started me on this addiction-this one and crossword puzzles. As a mom myself, I realize everything is our fault, but she admits getting me hooked. Unfortunately mom is not a coffee snob. In fact for years she bragged that she fooled everyone by serving instant sanka in her percolator just so she didn't have to clean the grounds in the pot!

Okay, this was the late 1960's, when instant coffee was new and different. But even though I was 10, I knew this stuff was simply not worth drinking. I mean, come on the stuff smells of formaldehyde, EW! What made this time special was that I got to hang out with my mom and her friend and talk. I was a rather sickly kid so I was home from school a lot. I guess since I was sick, allergic to dairy products and home so much, my mom's thought was probably "hey, it's fluid, it's hot and it's decaffeinated-why not?" Besides, I really do not like tea.

I drank it. Then as I aged, I found "real" coffee, with a kick in it. This helped me stay awake through boring college lectures as well as while writing many a term paper. I also realized I was a much nicer person after the caffeine kicked in.

Then I had kids. Kids mean early mornings-at least that's what having mine meant. Bless them, they are still here because I had the good sense (and a mate who saw to it that we had a timer on our Black and Decker space saver)to make sure my coffee was brewed before they let out their first "howdy" squeal of the day.

After a while, coffee growers of the world saw a niche to provide the earth with "gourmet" beans. Some with custom roasts and then came the "flavors". Why didn't someone think of these last two earlier???? My favorite is chocolate raspberry!

Today, I have a fancy "brew machine" that grinds my fresh beans right before it makes my morning pot. Yes, my morning pot-with caffeine. I cut myself off at 11. Fortunately, my "day job" colleagues also love their morning jolt. I think that's one of the reasons we enjoy our co-existence.

Good coffee is similar to having a good romance: if you have a relationship that is hot, smells wonderful and understands your needs-what more could you possibly wish for in life?