This week’s Quote Quest quote is: “A morning coffee is my favorite way of starting the day, settling the nerves so that they don’t later fray.” – Marcia Carrington
I find myself in the middle of a coffee dilemma just in time for this post.
Current Situation
Coffee in the US isn’t the same as coffee in other parts of the world. After living in Costa Rica, Colombia, Bali, Europe, I struggled to find a coffee grind/blend that I like. I add to my own complications by preferring my coffee very light and semi-sweet, so the blend has to be especially dark and strong to still taste “dark and strong” with 1/4 cup of heavy cream (and a shot or two of Bailey’s) mixed in!
I’ve tried various grocery store blends and still haven’t found what I’m looking for. I am too new to the area to know where to go to find boutique coffee makers and specialty shops (plus- pandemic!) In the meantime, I’ve taken to ordering my favorite Costa Rican coffee (a grocery store blend, not an export variety) from Amazon. It’s a bit more expensive than it is in the grocery store in CR, but it’s just as delicious! It has the added benefit of reminding me of all the wonderful memories I have from my time living in Costa Rica.
Coffee From the Past
I’ve realized that one of the things I miss most these days is coffee shops. The last time I came home to the US, I missed them too, so I can’t totally blame the pandemic. The area I call “home” in the US is not a place with a lot of cool cafes and coffee shops where I can work and enjoy other people’s energy while sipping delicious lattes/cappuccinos.
Being a “digital nomad” means that I became an expert on coffee shops and delicious coffees over the years I was traveling. As soon as I got to a new location, I would search Google maps for the best “co-working” or “work from” cafes. I worked in green plant laden cafes, stark modern Swedish decor cafes, antique laden cafes, old fashioned cafes, fancy cafes, boring cafes, cafes that were beer bars at night, and every place in between.
When I search through my travel photos, mixed in are so many photos of gorgeous coffee drinks in beautiful ambiances. I can almost visit places again in my brain just from the coffee I enjoyed there!
Coffee in Bali? Civet coffee (small rodents who eat the coffee beans, then poop them out before people cure the beans for coffee… it’s expensive and only “ok” tasting.) Coffee in Colombia is roasted more “burnt” than in Costa Rica where the coffee is strong but smooth. The first time I had “cafe con leche” in Spain with my BFF, I thought I had died and gone to heaven! And a shot of espresso in Italy after dinner is almost as good as a shot of espresso in Croatia which is always followed by a shot of a local hooch!
Late Bloomer
Interestingly enough, I never even drank coffee regularly until I was almost 40. As a young person, I did a monthly “coffee house” night at the church and subscribed to the Gevalia coffee club to have yummy coffees to offer my attendees. But I was only a “social coffee drinker” until I met my ex-husband.
I knew he drank coffee every morning, so when he started to spend nights at my place, I purchased a small coffee maker and all the fixings so he could have coffee before he left my place for work in the morning. An unexpected consequence of that was when he made himself a coffee, he made ME a coffee. Every morning. I mean how do you say no to that? It was delicious, and it was so sweet that he made me coffee and brought it to me in bed! (I do have to say, there must be something about me because I have had a series of boyfriends who make me coffee in bed in the mornings… such a spoiled girl!)
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You might enjoy this post: Travel, Privilege, and Solo-Poly
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This week I am linking up:
