Cup of Joe?

We all perform certain routines daily without even thinking about it. The other night, I was getting coffee ready for the next morning like a robot. I finally got Hubby trained to push the button to get the brew started in the morning. It’s a system that works for both of us. As I filled the water container and smelled the wonderful aroma of freshly ground coffee, I started to ponder the importance of coffee in our lives.

We always have coffee in our home. It’s the one item we make sure to always have on hand – that and cat food for our outdoor feral cat of nine years. You would never hear me say, “Put coffee on the grocery list – we are out.” I say that for everything else, like eggs, bread, and milk, so we remember the next time we go to the store. We wouldn’t delay even a few hours to buy coffee. If we were ever out, we would high-tail it to the store immediately, but that’s never happened.

So why do so many of us rely so much on this particular beverage, and why is it so popular worldwide? To put it in perspective, there are over 40,000 Starbucks around the world today. You think that’s a lot? China has more than 50,000 coffee shops. I was recently amazed to see firsthand how popular coffee was in Asia. Statistically, Hawaii boasts the highest number of coffee shops per capita, with one shop for every 2,559 residents. So, how did this happen? Coffee is a very old beverage—dating all the way back to the 15th century—in other words, over 5,400 years ago. Like many ancient things, it originated in Ethiopia. One legend says a shepherd noticed how lively his animals became after eating beans from coffee plants and thought he would give it a go. We have no evidence of how he first used those magic beans, so we can only imagine.

Today, most coffee comes from Brazil. It’s not an easy crop to grow since it takes a lot of water, and the beans are difficult to pick. Brazil gets a lot of rainfall, but the environmental sadness is that many jungles must be cleared to satisfy the demand for coffee beans. Coffee beans also have many predators that must be warded off. I guess they like caffeine as well!

Do you ever ask your server for a cup of Joe? Why was coffee ever called Joe? One story is that when U.S. Secretary of the Navy Joseph Daniels banned alcohol on all ships during World War I, the strongest drink the sailors could have was coffee. They would have a cup of Joe in honor of – or disrespect to – Joe Daniels. Another story says that coffee is the most popular drink of the common Joe. Most seniors know what a cup of Joe is, but I doubt Generation Z would have a clue. Why don’t you try it on your grandchildren?

Growing up, Mom always had a pot of coffee brewing as she frequently had friends stop by. One day, three of these farm wives gave each other permanents. Sitting at the kitchen table with their coffee cups and permanent paraphernalia, laughing and joking, and having a great time, they suddenly realized that rather than putting the permanent solution on their hair, they had been dousing it with coffee. That caused quite a commotion – definitely an “I Love Lucy” moment. Yes, it was hair-raising!

Is coffee okay for youngsters? Supposedly, caffeine is harmful to kids below the age of twelve, but it’s not against the law. Then chocolate came to mind. It has caffeine. I would not want to be around a kid denied a bit of chocolate now and then. Who comes up with this stuff?

Coffee cups are said to make good gifts. I don’t agree. I think they are given because the giver couldn’t think of anything else! Have you ever opened your cupboard and been overwhelmed by the hodgepodge of different coffee cups? Which one should you choose? I find it annoying. I have donated numerous coffee cups that have been given to me, only to receive more in the future. AARGH! Over the years, Hubby has given me two coffee mugs. One has the logo I use for my RobertaRaves posts and website, and I thought that was loving. A few years later, he gave me a cup with a flowery inscription describing in detail how much he loved me. I immediately became suspicious. Was he having an affair? What did he do wrong this time? I have yet to find out, but I am still on guard.

Have you ever heard of puzzle mugs? I hadn’t. The puzzle mug, or jug, was a drinking puzzle popular with Western Europeans in the 1700s. They had secret holes and passageways molded into clay mugs, so one had to know where to place one’s fingers when drinking from them. They may not work or even spill the contents if the drinker guessed wrong. They were used in a drinking game at pubs in that era. That seems ridiculous, but remember, there weren’t any computer games then.

I remember the ubiquitous green metal thermos jugs filled with coffee that worker bees and others took to their jobs daily. We still have one stashed away in the garage. I can’t seem to get rid of it. Looking at it fills me with a sense of warmth [pun]. Now, Hubby uses his Yeti mug, filled with a cold sports drink in the summer and warm bone broth in the winter.

Coffee can cause discord in the work environment. I can think of a few incidents I experienced with our office coffee club. All coffee drinkers paid into a fund to enjoy a cup or two or more throughout the day. Who is going to be responsible for the fund? Who’s going to buy the coffee? Who is going to clean the coffee pot? Most of all, who’s going to make the coffee? Those were the causes of occasional workplace discontent. One guy in our office went to buy our coffee and returned with a very expensive filter instead. He was elated we would no longer have to buy paper filters. But no coffee! Need I say more? Then there was the guy who came back with a mere half pound of coffee, using all our coffee money to buy the most expensive brand. A half pound of coffee doesn’t last long for a group, especially when it is supposedly the best.

One time, I tried to do a good deed. Remember, no good deed goes unpunished! I took the office coffee pot home to clean it really well! I used bleach. As a result, some wouldn’t drink from it because they thought the bleach permeated the glass! I said, “So what?” I have lived in parts of the world where I had to bleach many foods, so my family would not get the you know whats.

One of my favorite coffee stories is the trick we played on Hubby’s visiting sisters. They were both avid coffee drinkers and such huge Starbucks fans they refused to go to any other coffee shop. While planning their visit, Hubby and I frantically searched for a nearby Starbucks before they arrived and finally gave up. We decided the sisters could get their cups of coffee from the Starbucks outlet in our local grocery store. When they heard about that plan, they complained bitterly and insisted the baristas in the grocery store Starbucks weren’t any good.

So Hubby – who has trouble accepting baloney when he hears it – came up with an idea. I helped him make a convincing black eye with my eye shadow. When he picked them up at the airport, Hubby put on a facade of hiding his face. Eventually, they noticed his black eye and asked what had happened.

Hubby reluctantly told them he was at our local grocery store and got into a heated argument with the Starbucks barista about whether the baristas there were as good as the real Starbucks baristas. He said it got pretty ugly, and this feisty little blonde barista punched him smack in the face. The sisters were devastated when they heard his sad tale and saw the ugly black eye their baby brother got for standing up for them. We played the elaborate ruse out until they grew sad and started tearing up. When Hubby wiped his black eye off, we all had a good laugh.

Some chain restaurants have great coffee, and others not so much. Some people swear by Dunkin Donut’s coffee. Others tout McDonalds or Wendy’s. What do you think? By the way, are there any other beverages besides coffee, water, and perhaps iced tea where you get free refills? Certainly not for milk or orange juice – and from years of personal experience, I know there are no free refills for wine.

How many people come to your home and don’t like the way you make coffee? Hubby and I make strong coffee and then add milk, kind of like the Spanish cafe con leche. My Minnesotan relatives prefer bland coffee—very weak and sometimes flavored. Of course, they aren’t the only ones. I sometimes see our guests discreetly add hot water to the coffee we’ve served them.

There are so many ways to drink coffee today. I know some, but not all. We recently got a frother, so we can easily have lattes, frappes, or cappuccinos. It works really well for a $20 investment. Others prefer to get their coffee in the form of coffee-flavored desserts—coffee ice cream and coffee cake! Be careful of chocolate-covered coffee beans. I got into them once, ate and ate, and became higher than a kite. Don’t think you are eating a harmless bit of chocolate candy!

A bit of trivia. Johanne Sebastian Bach, the composer, loved coffee. Supposedly, he drank 30 cups a day. No wonder he wrote such lively classical music – he was the original energizer bunny! He even wrote a classical piece called Coffee Cantata, a comic opera about a woman with a bad habit of indulging in too much coffee.

The Bach aria ends with the following words:

Coffee, I have to have coffee,
and if someone wants to pamper me,
ah, then bring me coffee as a gift.

After this post, I will bake cookies and brew a pot of Joe! The house will smell so inviting.

Are you a coffee drinker? Do you overindulge? What do you think is the best coffee? Your comments are appreciated!