I drink a lot of tea and coffee, thus mugs are one of the items that tend to join me in my frequent travels; but I wasn’t always a mug user.
Thanks to this handy instructional video, though I was able to master the delicate art of mug use and ownership:
It’s just one of those days; we all have them– you wake up and the world feels grey and unwelcoming. You scuff around and feel sorry for yourself and maybe mope a little. Well today, I’m having one of those days.
BUT instead of moping about like a fool when I feel like this, I rally my inner troops and forge ahead. This generally involves a longer visit to the closet– pulling out especially fun shoes and a colorful jacket, a bigger than usual cup of coffee, a longer lunch break and a tightening of the circle of dearest friends. When the world feels unwelcoming, I find it best to simply become the ultimate hostess– welcome the unwelcoming and just outshine the grey.
One of my longest standing friends from childhood, loved the Beatles when we were kids; countless weekend hours swam by to the soundtrack of the fab four and today my mind has drifted back to those days:
Watching this clip from the movie Help!, the semi-sad lyrics of the song mixed with the subtle silliness of Paul and George perks me up and makes me smile.
How about you, dear readers? How do you perk yourself up when you’re feeling down?
My father and I both share a love of coffee. It has been part of the morning ritual for as long as I can remember; before I even drank coffee, it was part of my life. Today, few mornings pass without at least one cup of coffee.
When I traveled to Alaska in 1996, I delighted in the local coffee culture from town to town, discovering that Seattle’s penchant for the brown elixir extended up the northern coast. Each little town seemed to have a homey, independent café and perhaps a smaller walk-up style coffee hut complete with perfect espresso drinks and interesting syrup options– mango latte, anyone? One town, Seward, I think, even had converted a tugboat into a coffee hut; too cool. The highlight though of my Alaskan coffee tour, was the discovery of Raven’s Brew Coffee. Drawn in by their raven-themed artwork, they converted a customer for life with their delicious brews.
Years later, I spent lengthy stints in Seattle, arguably one of, if not THE coffee capitol of the world or at least the United States. Coffee there is an artform, but we all know that; I still lament the untimely death of Coffee Messiah. Vancouver, Canada earned a spot on my coffee radar when I tasted some of the best espresso I’ve had in my life at Café Artigiano.
My years spent in Sweden revealed another haven dedicated to its coffee, one that even had its own verb for taking a coffee break– att fika (as I mentioned earlier). I still laugh to myself when recalling American colleagues visited me at grad school who couldn’t drink the Swedish coffee– it was just too strong for them! This inability to handle the strength of Scandinavian coffee was beyond me, but charming nonetheless.
This morning, I finally tried Starbucks’ new Via product– instant, microground ready-brew coffee. And I can happily report, much to my own surprise that Starbucks Via makes a decent cup of coffee. As handy as could be and a close match to their other brewed coffees– reasonably strong and smooth; not too shabby Starbucks. Finally I can enjoy decent quality coffee anywhere I travel and not just the colder climes of Scandinavia and the Pacific northwest.
Tell me, readers, what is your favorite hot beverage? Where in the world do YOU go for good coffee or tea??
Images: Ravens Brew Coffee and Starbucks Girl
One thing I will admit to missing about Sweden is the concept of Fika. Here it is, barely three o’clock and I’m craving an afternoon pick-me-up of a magical warm cup of coffee. Winter was bearable with a warm mug of the life giving black elixir and a tasty, fresh baked good shared over laughs with a friend or colleague. This was honestly my favorite part of the social side of life in Sweden. It is a cultural ritual, comparable to the traditional English tea; and it is a ritual of which I am glad to take part.
I always appreciated the popularity and availability of fikabröd that featured cardamom as a chief flavor or ingredient. Many coffee shops, at least in Göteborg, would even include a shaker of ground cardamom alongside the sugar and cream in lieu of (or sometimes in addition to) cinnamon or nutmeg to add a little zing to your coffee, cappuccino or respective fika beverage.
Cardamom Cake
Personally, I could go for an espresso-based hot drink and a hearty cardmom-flavored baked good right about now. Sound good to you too? Cardmom cake is available for purchase online in my Etsy boutique if all this talk of coffee and cardamom has you as hungry as I am.
Honestly, an afternoon in a cozy café with a snow storm outside and a tall mug of coffee sounds perfect about now. Think I need to go home and bake something tonight…
Images: Me
I think I drank enough coffee today that I managed to counteract any caffeine-related effects.. now I’m just a zombie.. or that could be from lifting furniture bigger and/or heavier than me.. who knows.. *munches on brains*
