Mr. Coffee

Every morning at my house is roughly the same. I wake up to the sounds of Lyla yelling, "I need go potty!" I get up and get her taken care of. I head for the kitchen and I'm immediately given my first food order of the day by Sasha, followed quickly by Lyla. I get them some food and some milk to the sounds of Curious George in the background. Once they are all squared away it's time for my hot double date with Don Francisco and Mr. Coffee! This is a crucial date that I couldn't fathom cancelling! I love my coffee, but I don't "Girl with the dragon tattoo" love it. That it to say I'm not drinking coffee all day and night like a fiend. In fact, I believe in the caffeine. I never understand the folks who can or want to drink coffee at night. I used to do that if I were heading to a dance club or rave (yeah I know, but I was young). Seriously, for me, unless I'm planning to dance all night, I don't want coffee at all in the afternoon or evening. I wouldn't want a bunch of caffeine at night. I like sleeping way to much.

I've had many love affairs with many different brands and flavors of coffee, but I think I've met Mr. Right. I love Don Francisco......his Hawaiian Hazelnuts in particular. I've said before that I don't like experimenting with new foods in the kitchen. The main reason for that is a fear of failure. Failure in the coffee department is bad news. Coffee isn't cheap and I don't want to be stuck drinking rancid coffee for a few weeks if I chose a yucky brand or flavor. Someway, somehow the subject of delicious coffee was raised when I was cutting an 11 year old boys hair one day. This kid is wise beyond his years. He told me his mother has been seeing Don Francisco for quite sometime and despite the fact that he's never drank the coffee, he told me that the aroma was wonderful and he went so far as to recommend it based on smell alone. I'm no dummy and I know that if an upstanding 11 year old is going to mention a brand of coffee, then it must be good. Not many pre-teen boys are pretentious enough to try to sell you on that crazy strong (I'm so cool because I hang out at the coffee shop all day, which now makes me an expert of the beans) nasty coffee. Boy oh boy was he right (thanks Riggs). It's been a match made in heaven.

If I'm lucky, I'll remember to get the coffee maker all set up and ready to go the night before. My Mr. Coffee is old and has NO timers or technology what so ever. I'm glad for this because I don't think I'd trust that. What if the power went out for a minute during the night and next thing you know your coffee is brewing, without you even knowing it, at two in the morning? I can't deal with that possibility. So if I want my coffee making to be easy, I have to get the machine set up before I go to bed, so that I only have to hit the button in the morning to start the brewing. This is not as simple as it sounds. The entire time that I'm prepping it, I have to say out loud, "Don't turn it on! Don't start it!". Filter in place, "Don't start it!". Three heaping tablespoons Don Francisco, "It's night Stefanie, don't hit the button!" Rinse the pot, fill it with water and pour it into the machine, "Seriously, don't hit the button." Now it's the moment of truth when my brain can potentially ruin me. I put the coffee pot in its little nook, and if all goes well, I will now walk away without flipping the "On" switch. I've gotten better, but I can't tell you how many times I go to bed and just as I'm falling asleep, I smell my delicious coffee brewing at 11:00 P.M. Oh it's infuriating!