Writer's Block redo - Coffee

This post originally ran in 2013. I have updated it and am now reposting for your reading pleasure. I don't know if it's retirement, isolation, or lack of dedicated effort - but I'm having a hard time coming up with Blog topics that I haven't already covered. Plus we don't really do anything, so a diary blog is out. Here goes on the redo: 

Coffee Jones

Age 12 with Momo, Bubba and Charlie the dog

I think it was my grandma, Zora Clayton Stewart Bullock - aka Momo, who introduced me to coffee. She "babysat" a few times when Mom and Dad were out of town. Momo drank coffee, just like Mom, but at breakfast time she encouraged me to try it. She added lots of milk and sugar. Instead of my usual Cap'n Crunch, I had toasted Wonder Bread, slathered in butter dipped into a marvelous concoction of coffee, milk, and sugar. It was a fun and different treat for when Momo stayed with us! It made me feel so grown up. 

Mom enjoyed coffee too (with her morning cigarettes). Remember those perking coffee pots? We had one -just like everyone did in the 1960s. Those pots made interesting noises, indicating that something important was going on inside! They took forever to brew coffee. If you forgot to put the top on the pot, the coffee perked all the way up to the ceiling! Leslie the kid thought that was really funny. 

In the 1970s Mom when through her "Zen" age. She got a funky coffee press with a filter and a decanter that sat on the stove. It was all very complicated. I don't know if it tasted any better, but she thought she was very sophisticated! Many years later, our daughter Amy got this same system. And she's lefthanded like Mom. So even though I attribute Amy's gentle personality to Laura Goldsmith, Paul's mom, there is some Pat in her. haha. Once drip coffeemakers came out, Mom went to a Mr. Coffee system. You just couldn't beat the convenience - AND that name. A dude was making you something! 

I never became a big coffee drinker in my early years, despite that yummy coffee, milk, sugar concoction. In college, roomie Vicki and I picked up some Folgers instant coffee crystals for late-night studying. It was before the microwave days - so we still had to boil water! I remember when Vic and I took Zoology together. We stayed up so late before a test that we became "slap-happy". I still smile today when I hear the scientific words for the various secretions the body makes as we had to memorize them. We laughed until we cried. Those college years were magical! The coffee wasn't.  

I didn't start drinking coffee again until I got married to a guy who has a real coffee jones. Paul can't help it - it's in his genes. Nature and nurture really. The Goldsmiths are farmers. They drink coffee 24/7. Recently we had a family Zoom and we talked about who drinks coffee. Most still do - some all day. Paul amazes me - he can drink the stuff (black of course) until midnight and still sleep. He'll even drink cold coffee after it's sat in the car all day when we're traveling. We take the thermos everywhere. 

Me? I'd better not sniff caffeine after noon or I'll be buzzed for hours. Sometimes I can get jittery from just one cup! My Creston bestie Deb and I used to get coffee drinks at True Value in Creston. Yes, in that town the coffee place is in a hardware store - they can multi-task, and it's good. We'd go on Sunday afternoon, then I'd lay awake for hours that night. Nancy Drew finally figured it out. It was the caffeine. Duh! I had to go to decaf. 

In 1986 we moved to Creston, the home of Bunn-O-Matic an international coffeemaker company. Since then, we have been spoiled by coffee brewed instantly. I know the real experts look down on this method, but we lived and worked with the Bunn-ites! I toured the factory, which is the largest employer in town. Their employee break area has all of the good beverages - coffee, tea, hot chocolate. Okay, probably not as good as the break area at Coors, but close! We had three Bunn-O-Matic brewers in our 26 years of living in Creston plus a few in West Des Moines. Finally, a couple of years ago, our most recent Bunn gave out and we went with a different brand as we were buying retail. We went with a Cuisinart drip coffeemaker that doesn't require a paper filter. We like it. But I still enjoy checking out restaurant coffeemakers to see if they are Bunn people. 

Paul used to think Folgers was the "best part of waking" - except for another day with me (haha). After moving to the (not so) Big City, he has learned to grind his own beans (since we bought Starbucks beans by mistake one time and I purchased a grinder). We've tried lots of types of beans, but he's a Starbucks fan. Since he grinds it and drinks it black, he gets to pick.

Some people swear they can't function without their morning joe. There are lots of cartoons, memes, dishtowels, and decorations based on coffee. Beyond Starbucks, in Des Moines and everywhere, fancy coffee has never been more popular. I do enjoy a coffee drink like a latte but have to admit I am somewhat intimidated by some of the hot and cold beverages available today. Today's people have taken "special orders don't upset us" to a high level. It turns out we like that. 

I'm still getting used to this new personalized way of life. In the olden days, families like mine had more kids and less time for personalization. Sometimes I feel overwhelmed by the number of choices available. At coffee shops, I usually stick with skinny vanilla lattes. I'm sure there are lots of other delicious possibilities - but what if I choose unwisely? The problem is real y'all! Paul always sticks with black coffee at those places. 

During the pandemic, and just over one year of retirement, it's amazing how much enjoyment I've gotten from my morning cuppa with Cinnamon Dolce creamer. I usually just drink the one cup with a warmup partway through. Caffeine jitters you know. A friend of mine lost her sense of taste/smell after getting Covid-19. Coffee is one thing she really misses. We don't know how much we rely on daily rituals until they're gone. I hope you have something to help get you through each day - a beverage, snack, snuggle, TV show, or exercise. It's all good. Be kind - to you and others. I'm working on that every day. 

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Days Go By - Coffee Memories

I have a routine. As a morning person, I'm usually up by 6:30 a.m. and putz in the kitchen and laundry, tidying up and starting washing any loads of clothes that have accumulated. Then I grab coffee and water and settle in for the Today Show that starts at 7:00 a.m. 

Mr. Efficient, Paul Goldsmith, grinds the coffee beans the night before. We only need to push the button on the drip coffeemaker to start production of the delicious nectar. Paul leaves for his job with the City of West Des Moines (WDM) Forestry Department at 6 a.m. My retiree is currently working four ten-hour days trimming trees, mulching and spraying - all while avoiding people. He says he misses sleeping in, but admits he'd be bored if he didn't have something to do to fill his weeks. Townhouse life doesn't leave many chores to do. The beauty of his job is that it's seasonal, and he can take off whenever he wants to. Sadly, like all of you, we've not traveled like we planned to so far this year. 

Back to coffee. I admit we are novice (we have not continued to evolve past grinding beans and being amazed) coffee snobs. Just above Folgers, really. One can get Starbucks beans at our grocery store, so we usually go with those - creatures of habit. I did go a little off-script recently and ordered Peet's beans for delivery. I'd had that delicious brew on my Homegirl trips around the country. DSM doesn't have Peet's stores. I may need to check Whole Foods for the beans - the Organic French Roast was fabulous. Paul liked it too. There are some local places in the area I could try when I'm feeling more adventuresome and less quarantinesome. 

I have always liked my coffee with creamer. I trace it back to the way I learned to drink coffee as a child. Those were the days of percolators. I loved that noise of the coffee churning through the pot. One time Dad started a pot and forgot to put on the lid - yep, it perked up to the ceiling! When I was in high school, Mom became more sophisticated and got a fancy pour-over outfit that she put on the stove.

Mom could be a bit exotic for her time - later daughter Amy bought this same system! 

When I was young, every once in a while, Mom would let us add milk and sugar (lots) to a bit of coffee and then dip in "buttery buttery toast". It had to be white bread for this breakfast treat. So good! There are so many fab creamers available today. I'm usually a one cup a day person. I try to avoid caffeine later in the day. 

I am surprised that in college we didn't have a coffee-maker. Instead, I remember little hot pot water boilers that would rapidly boil water. Then we'd add Folgers Instant Coffee crystals. I can't imagine now how that mixture tasted anything like coffee, but our goal was to stay up late to write a paper or study. We even purchased caffeine pills called "NoDoz". Hey, that stuff is still available! No Adderall or Energy Drinks back then - to keep us awake when we needed to re-type (yes type - but at least we had a cool electric typewriter my grandparents gave me for graduation) papers when we spilled Pepsi on them.

Pic from the Bunn website

I don't remember what kind of coffee-maker Paul and I had early in our marriage. I wasn't a big coffee drinker, but Paul, due his Goldsmith genes, is a guzzler. His wonderful parents George and Laura had a pot going all day. Paul can drink it all day, will drink it cold (not to be confused with Cold Brew) and with grounds in it. For sure, when we moved to Creston, we couldn't call ourselves natives until we purchased a Bunn-O-Matic, because Creston is the home of the Bunn plant! I've toured it several times, and one summer, Jud was on the refreshment crew there - pushing around cool water for workers during the sweltering Iowa summer. There was no air conditioning in the plant. Those things last forever! We only went through a couple units during a thirty-year timespan. Sadly, when we moved to WDM, we lost our Bunn connection and bought another brand. When I travel, I always check out the beverage area and smile when I see that Bunn name on their coffee/tea units. 

I'd love to hear your coffee stories. Even how much you hate it and what you drink instead. I know people who start the day with a big 'ol Diet Coke! 

Kitchen table - family with grandparents. I learned to drink coffee at this table