It's Not Just For Waking Up



COFFEE... it is mystical and magical.  It is my fuel, it is what I run on (well, not run).  But this is an obsession which, I admit, I tend to take for granted.  Perhaps it is because my craving is satisfied every morning within five minutes of waking up, thereby, having no build up.  It usually goes something like this... I wake up in the morning, I have my first cup of coffee.  Any anxiety or impulse is usually satisfied within the first five minutes of my day... usually.  However, if I'm not greeted by Cup o' Joe (and this is where the mysticism and magic come in) then the sky turns black as night and a storm of hellfire erupts, awakening a grumpy and not-fun-to-be-around Michael from his dead-like sleep; but WITH coffee, it's blue skies and butterflies.

Actually, I think I need to rewind a bit because, although an addictive obsession, that is not why I love my Java.  We have more of what I would consider, a relationship.  I appreciate Java for all he is and all he can be.  Whether he feels like being cappuccino that day or mocha, even if he wants to be an americano, I still love him, as long as he's creamed and sugared.  And I am not bias.  I do not care what color he is or if he comes from Colombia, Africa or Hawaii.  Love is in the eye of the beholder and I be holding my cup of coffee any chance I get.

But I know I am not alone with my coffee-loving obsession. In fact, I consider myself a novice compared to other coffee folk I've met along the way, and I have met a few having worked in the coffee industry for a brief time which included a coffeehouse tour of Italy.  We (Americans I mean) only like coffee compared to the Italians.  They LOVE coffee.  To them, it is an art, a fine wine, a part of life that does not just get them through the day, but they drink coffee as a 'part' of their day.  And even though I have been re-Americanized from my coffee tour experience throughout Italy, I still do take time, every now and then, to really appreciate the delicacies of coffee, thereby honoring this sensational beverage with its own post.

So for all you coffee drinkers out there, when you have a moment to take the time and really appreciate the hot drink that's you think is just meant to get you through the day, I highly suggest you do.  Of course, don't appreciate a cup of Folgers or Yuban, but a cup o' Joe that was made by a skilled barista or even your own hands if it was made with love.

By the way, the picture posted is one I took during the coffee tour.  Ciao!