Do You Find Coffee To Be a Soothing, Comforting Elixir?
Judith Warner says her attachment to coffee is about the smell, taste, and the gesture. I drink very little coffee (I can't get past the bitterness), though I do love coffee-flavored desserts and chocolate. Yet somehow I know what she's talking about, and I agree with her wholeheartedly.
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7 Comments:
I drink a cup of coffee every morning. I wouldn't say it's a soothing, comforting elixir. Comforting is chicken noodle soup.
Coffee with cream helps me wake up. Sure it smells great and tastes good. For me, it's all about caffeine.
paris221966 at 6:04PM on 02/02/08
I began drinking coffee when I was about two or three (courtesy of our then next-door neighbours, who gave it to me ad libitum, allowing me to sugar it to my toddler tastes). This was in Italy, so it was espresso, no milk. I suspect that the emotional element invoked by strong coffee is central to my appreciation, since I cannot manage to drink it with milk--I dislike even the scent--and I'm not particularly fond of it as a flavouring.
My family moved often, and much (tangible and otherwise), was lost in the constant migration; I often felt disconnected from everything and everyone else. However, coffee--as a scent, usually, since my parents forbade me to drink it until my teens--was a constant presence.
I like the flavour of coffee--I'm afraid I usually still do sugar it like a two-year old--and drinking it is somehow reassuring (if not generally calming); it evokes continuity, a connection to others, a sort of punctuation of daily life. If I'm not feeling 100%, coffee almost always makes me feel physically or psychologically better.
mongoose at 5:13AM on 02/03/08
coffee is my new hobby..with the online availability of artisian beans from around the world...my daily pot has become a witches brew of different beans mixed in different quantities and with much sucess
I might add.... my home is now a destination stop for a lot of my friends looking for a great tasting unique cup of joe..my freezer door is home to at least nine different beans at any given time and i determine my need for which kind by my feelings on any given day...some say its silly but its become another aspect of my kitchen skills to me
Kenzo at 9:01AM on 02/03/08
Good coffee makes me feel good, but if I'm feeling sick or run down coffee just makes it worse. I drink coffee during weekday mornings to wake up. I don't think I would call it comforting....
Chau at 10:18AM on 02/03/08
Two cups of Bustelo in the morning. That's it, except the occasional tall glass of iced. If I'm going to be spending extra money on anything artisanal, it's going to be cheese, which I find infinitely more comforting than coffee.
Barbara Hanson at 10:57AM on 02/03/08
I like my one cup in the morning -- it's partially the caffeine (though less than it used to be -- I used to drink a large cup in the morning and a small one in the afternoon, now it's one small cup in the morning and that's it), but it's mostly the ritual. And I love the taste (milk, no sugar please). I find the smell of good coffee in the morning very soothing, and that combined with the pick-me-up factor and the taste make it sooooo goooood.
CookiePie at 10:53AM on 02/04/08
Coffee is what you make during the cold, dark days of winter to sip all day. It is what you share at the kitchen table late at night or early in the morning during a crisis when there is nothing to say or do. It is the feel of a brisk summer morning, the consistency of weekly Sunday brunches with my husband. For me, coffee is associated with friends, family, holidays, vacations--the sense of being able to spend indulgent time. On vacation, we seek out coffee shops, not just for the drink, but to spend an hour or two with the locals, read the paper or books we've brought. Coffee is an event. Coffee isn't just a beverage, it is a comforting ritual.
Longj at 12:00PM on 02/04/08