Category: coffee

Perks of Being Stuck Home

So since the beginning of September, I have had all my e-mail seen within a few hours of when it got sent to me and the Facebook posts I go through like nobody’s business.

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Today is National Coffee Day.My buddies from the city,Belinda and Jen,posted about Wawa giving away free coffee, any size,today.Other places, such as Dunkin’Donuts are selling their coffee for 66 cents to commemorate their anniversary.Krispy Kreme is giving away a glazed donut with their free coffee.It has been hard for me down here, after working in a major city for 30 years.Work had more coffee spots within a block, and down here is cause for withdrawal,with the exception of my Keurig on my kitchen counter.

I got out of the house for 5 minutes and went with Jim to our local Wawa and I got a 24 ounce free coffee.It was also nice because I saw a woman I had worked with last spring in the Acme, and she was so happy about no longer working there. We swapped stories for a quick bit.

Thanks, B and Jenna, for the post.The coffee is going down too easy…lol.

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Yummo

I am a coffee girl.

I also have two golden retriever mixes.

The two joined together to introduce me to something I can only have on rare occasion.

Delaware Valley Golden Retriever Rescue had a fund raiser through a frozen grocer,Schwans. The groceries are delivered to your door and it was a good cause.

Enter Satan…aka Jack Nicklaus Ice Cream.

Coffee and donuts ice cream, to be precise.A rich coffee ice cream with small pieces of cinnamon sugar donuts mixed in. I am glad coffee ice cream isn’t everyone’s cup of tea.

More for me! 

 

Caffenation Station

  
My “sister ” came back from a week away and brought me a spectacular reward for minding the house.

I got a beautiful bracelet and earring set. Even more importantly, she brought me a pound of Jamaican blue mountain coffee! I really got into drinking the coffee in the 80’s, but as the price went up, my pockets were not that deep. Places like Zabars and Balduccis in New York City and the Reading terminal market in Philadelphia had “Jamacian Blue mountain-style”.., but this cup I am savoring right now?

Don’t care what time I am falling asleep tonight…it’s that good!

Coffee

Since moving out from the big city, I am acutely aware of my distance from a Starbucks and a Dunkin’Donuts. It is safe to say that I do miss going for coffee.

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During my Ferry time, I discovered Gevalia K cups actually made a vanilla latte.I was a little dubious at first, but after scoring some on sale, I was a believer.As I type this before my shift today, the Keurig is set up to make my latte to go and, fortunately for me, there is also a Keurig in the office, so I get to have one later too!

My nephew Greg was kind enough to get me the Keurig baskets so you can save money and the environment and use your regular coffee.It is one of the best presents I ever got, but there are those days where nothing but a vanilla latte will do.

This is one of those days.

Must be work

When I left my job of thirty years, you could safely say I was a coffee drinker. Usually, I had at least two cups a day, and there was a Keurig on my desk and at my home.

Fast forward the first four months when I was “retired”, and all of a sudden I was into tea. Not bad.Something different.

Fast forward to the ferry life. They have a Keurig here, and going back to dealing with folks on the phone, well, suffice it to say I am back with coffee. It gives you something to do while you are waiting for folks to make up their minds on the phone…. 

 

Hot Tea

I am a coffee girl.

That is a straight away statement.

As I type this, though, I have a cup of tea with me.

Sometimes, I feel the need to warm my self with some tea at night.It brings me back to my brother and my Mom having a big mug of hot sweet tea to make the world right again. I am typing away and my hip is acting up and this is my kick back before I go take a hot shower.It is funny how the image of the sweet ,hot cup of tea just embraces me with warmth,

Oh, no worries.Coffee will be back in the morning.

Tonight?

Tea time.

Marketing

Do you realize how much stuff we buy due to marketing?

I did a marketing study tonight for one hour. It was for Keuring Kcups.Now, because I am married to Compostman, I, when a Kcup is used, rip the top off and take the coffee out.I add the coffee to the compost.

Now, evidently, Wegmans is trying to introduce a Kcup that is able to be recycled. You push in on the cooled, used Kcup where the recycle logo is on the outside, and evidently it’s easy to rip the top off and yank the filter and coffee out.Uh, ok Wegmans,but I have been emptying the gonna fide Kcups I’ve been using for a while and recycling them. My nephew, Greg Miziorko, gave me the Kcup that is basically a shell that you fill up, use, rinse out and then use over and over. Now, that’s recycling.

After the study I stopped and was figuring out what else falls under the ‘ Due to marketing’ column, and I figure it’s just about everything. I mean, when was the last time you just used plain soap and water on your face Basics are gone…Madison avenue has ruled the stores.

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Too Old for Late Nights

In my mid-50’s, I find it frustrating that I really miss my straight eight hours of sleep.

I know as you get older, they claim you need less sleep. Last night we got in and were in bed by eleven o’clock.The problem there is Jim is wired up worried about taxes getting done this week, and other things, so he came down to bed at 3a.m., which was the end of my sleep.I can drink coffee until the cows come home but cutting me off at the knees at three a.m.,well, I just killed a can of V8 because I am too apprehensive to do red bull**vision of heart palpitations **

Let’s face it:I need to master my sleeping hours a little better.

The Coffee Did It…

We went out to breakfast this morning, and knowing we were going out to a friend”s house tonight to watch the play-offs, I did something foolish.

I had three cups of coffee.

It’s 12:52am and I can’t believe I was that stupid.Usually I am the tired one, looking to go to bed early.I figured, I am going to be around folks, so stay up and socialize.

Hah!

Thank God tomorrow is Sunday, but I know getting up in the morning is going to be rough.

New year’s resolution? You’ve got it…I am a cup a day girl-that’s it!
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Pretty darn cold

..but to anyone in the mid-Atlantic states, New England and possibly the midwest, this is no shock. You, my friend, like me, are in the middle of it.

Waking up at 7am today had the temperature at ten, count them, TEN degrees.Fortunately it’s due to get up to the low thirties: I never thought I’d see the day where that constituted a heat wave. Jim is smart: he is in Undisclosed Location Deux, where the heat is actually installed, but it is his reward for going outside. Me? I am in here while the fur girls are curled up in their beds.

Hope you are around some hot coffee or cocoa this morning: stay warm.

Kids

…and I don’t mean goats….

I came into the office today via my usual, the bus. Same loud teenagers going to school get on and of course, my earphones go in. I was vegging out and one girl gets one the bus, wearing her uniform of a local Catholic high school , carrying…

A VENTI CUP FROM STARBUCKS.

When I was that age bracket,**yes, I am old enough to embrace that phrase now**, I was lucky to have cash to buy a can of Coca-cola.I’ve been to Starbucks and have seen their prices.This girl has a venti cup every day.

Wish I had her parents’ money.

Pumpkin coffee.

Why does some pumpkin coffee taste like they know how to make
and others don’t…oh, because they don’t.

My allegiance would be to Dunkin Donuts pumpkin coffee, especially
in its’ feeble little kcup like I use.When I drink this coffee I
know what I am getting.

I got suckered into buying Green Mountain coffee in pumpkin spice.
“Limited edition flavor”,,,God, I hope so. it’s going to take something
to get it down, or it’s going to be one of those coffees that sit
on your desk ALL DAY!018

Back in the Saddle Again

Oh the glorious memories of a vacation…..sand, puppies, trees, sunshine.

Oh the reality!

Phone calls, phone calls with no return numbers, paperwork redux with the
department,..it feels like I am back on the proverbial snipe hunt.

Jim gets to go down to the house this afternoon, to meet with the builder,
plunber, electrician, contractor, etc. Lucky guy!

At least I got a free iced coffee from Dunkin Donuts because the Philly
football team, the Eagles, won their game.

It’s not all bad.

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Rainy,Overcast…coffee

There’s a Carly Simon line in her song “You’re so vain” that goes…

“I had some dreams, they were clouds in my coffee,clouds in my coffee..”

Well, my dreaming is done, the heat is temporarily broken, it’s rainy,a little
damp and it was actually cold on my bus this morning.

The smoothie phase is done for now. I went right into my desk drawer and got
my Maxwell House out and am having my first coffee in 2 1/2 months. Amazing how
when you are away from it, you don’t think you miss it, but after a while it’s
like reaching for the sweatshirt that has worn in just right and it gives you
that comfort when you pull it on.

Coffee? Glad you are back!

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Just gotta laugh…

So i am in line this morning and the coffee police are behind me.
You know the ones.

“There’s only ONE line.”

Well, I told her there are two, and the guy was in the back waiting on me.

“Oh no, only one line.”

So then my guy came out and wouldn’t you know the bitch jumps ahead of the poor
woman behind me.

We could only shake our heads and laugh at Ms. Coffee Police.

Manners, people, manners….it’s not hard to do. You know you have them in your back pocket.

Enough Said.

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It’s all gravy

As usual for a Saturday morning at Undisclosed , I have my coffee by my side and am watching Guy Fieri cooking on the Food network. He is making chicken fried steak complete with gravy. …yummo!

We have guests this weekend, so it’s kind of early and they are still sleeping as is Jim. I have to admit….quiet is such a rarity in my life anymore- I adore it.

My fur kids have their two fur cousins visit, too, so dog play has them exhausted. I laugh because as soon as I typed that, Zusher raised up her head as to say,”Sleeping? I’m not sleeping.. I’m keeping you company!”

Always good having friends visit.The cherry on the top? Having a little time to kick back and enjoy the weekend.

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Quiet Sunday

It’s a quiet Sunday.

I have been up and down, as Jim has fallen prey to the GI big going around. The girls and I are good, so we have. Been providing him with nursing care. Ginger ale, pretzel rods, jello and chicken soup are the menu of the day.

We went to a work Christmas party for Jim last night at his friend Box Bagwell’s house. I enjoyed it as much as he did: it was a great party.

Here’s hoping for a good week for us all.

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Take sominex tonite and sleep…

…is how the old commercial went.

Not Me..

I had too much weekend and after two cups of coffee, I am deeply desperate to keep my eyes open. The odd thing is I had straight hours of “good” sleep and still feel like I could use two more.

I know…**greedy witch**

Here’s hoping for a good week for all of us.

Oops

I was going to post last night, but I feebly wrist/wrestled with sleep.

Sleep won.

I had three good cups of coffee on Monday at work and a diet coke. When did this excess caffeine decide to bother me? Eleven at night Monday night.

Symptom? Itching…

I think I slept for fifteen minutes on the hour between eleven at night and four in the morning.

Watch out, world…I am rested today! Lol ;D

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Friday five

1. Today I am grateful for traffic, to give Jim and I quality time together.

2.Iced coffee gives me a chance to sit back and go “aaaaah.”

3. I am grateful for Zush and Kasia…they got me through a horrible week.

4.For any alias I seem to draw up for Shingleman, Jim is always there for me.

5. I am blessed with choice, considerate friends, two of who are celebrating birthdays this weekend.Happy birthday Lois and Jen!

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Friday Five

We are back to grateful Fridays….

I am so grateful for my girls Zush and Kasia: I saw on Facebook this morning that one of my fellow dog moms lost her greyhound, who was Zushs’ age. She passed in her sleep. Makes me savor the time I have with both my girls.

The reason I am at work today is I am giving blood. Nineteen years ago I beat my first cancer: hopefully donating my blood might help someone else deal with whatever issue they have.

I am so grateful to have my life, as twisted as it might be at times, and my buddies. There are folks I know that have NO ONE.

Iced coffee can not get enough thanks in my book: this has been the stepping  stone for my mornings in this heat.

Again, I am truly grateful to you, reader.Thanks for being there.

Tired

It was a little difficult, but I am fortunate enough to have this to complain about…I am beat.

We left Undisclosed location at 9pm, and even then got in shore traffic. I know: I am lucky to have the Undisclosed to come up from. As I get a wee bit older, crawling into bed at11:30 means it’s rough getting up in the morning! A double cup of coffee today was of little help. I think pollen and allergies had something to do with it, but when you have to take medicine ,well, it’s what you have to do.

Hopefully an early night tonight will help me play catch up.** fingers crossed**

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Jury Express

I think it’s almost over.

The endless cups of hurried coffee, more lawyers than you want to meet up in your lifetime, heartburn from hurried breakfasts….

The witnesses are getting whittled down. I can honestly say I’ll be glad when this jury stint is done. I have enjoyed and laughed with fellow jurors, but you know what?

It’s time to get back to as close to normal as it’s going to get.

** I hope **

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You say potato, I say po-tah-toe….

So if you have been following the epic saga of ” Shingleman”, you’ll remember our hero, “Shingleman” has been sleeping sporadically, at best, due to the nerve pain.

 

Enter….

 

Yes…Dunkin’ Donuts…Yesterday, being Monday, was “use your punch card for a free iced tea or coffee” day. Coming in from the train in the morning, I stopped and got an iced coffee. Didn’t have any coffee but that. Then lunchtime came. HAH! I have another card, I said to myself (yes, I often have conversations with myself…lol) hey, you have another card: get one with lunch. Keep in mind that I was eating lunch around 1:30 pm yesterday…AND…I am over 50….yup, you know where this is going.

I didn’t fall asleep until 1 in the morning and then promptly got up at….TWO! Finally fell back to sleep at three, and got up for the day at 5:15 a.m…..”Shingleman” actually slept a few hours : I know because I heard the snoring.

It’s going to be a LONG day.

Happy St. Valentine’s Day

It’s Valentine’s day!

Zush and Kasia had a good morning walk with their Mom. Kasia is out front standing guard and Zush is hanging with Mom until she leaves for work. I am savoring a good cup of coffee, and getting ready to leave.

If you are your own valentine, or have someone as a valentine- no matter what, savor the day! I even got my valentine some chocolate.( not that Jim will eat it around me)….

Enjoy the day!

…and if you happen to have a birthday today, like my friend Duch, more so the better.

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Undisclosed emotions at undisclosed location

 

 

What a ten day stretch.

 

I find it incredible that  the most outstanding emotion that I am encountering is exhaustion to the point of sleep. I need the sleep and realize that, and a not fighting it, although it is such a beautiful day, it is truly a shame to waste it.

I am going through a mug of cappuccino and planning to enjoy every minute of my time, as the lesson that I am walking with today is life is too freaking short. You are here and a heartbeat later you can be gone.

 

Thanks to you, readers and friends, for your support and understanding during this time: your words have warmed my being. I originally started writing this blog as an outlet for caregiving. Maybe, now, it’s just an outlet for life, period.

 

 

Hugs,

M.

 

 

 

 

Warmth? Not today..

When the winds were whipping around this past week, hot coffee was especially welcome. Nothing like a little heat to warm the soul.

This morning, as of 9:18am, it’s forty out. Yup. 4-0…in January…so I am having a Kcup of pumpkin coffee, and taking my time to savor it. Big difference between holding the coffee as a heat source and just enjoying it.

Am thankful for a 40 degree morning, and a fabulous cup of coffee. Hopefully your morning is going just as well.

Cheers!

Hiking Boys and their fur children

The picture is of my Jim and our friend Tim- we were hiking at Boiling Springs, PA and the boys , along with our Zusher, age 10 and their Brinley, age 12, took a breather.

We are back after spending New Years with our friends in Carlisle,PA. Juls and Tim live on, what Jim and I affectionately call, March Mountain. Outside of a spectacular house and beautiful grounds, it was so heartwarming to see the pups having a wonderful time. Our Kasia girl was running with their papillion, Lily and smiling all the time. Their grounds are so expansive that the girls could just run and run without stopping. They were wiped out at night, so that was a good thing.

Now we’re back to reality, with my keurig just chugging along trying to keep me awake.

This will be a rough one: I’d sooner be home under the blankets…lol

These boots are made for walkin’….

Behold…my right foot.

For those of you who “know” me, you know I have been through the whole knee saga and would say, “Mar? A heel? What’s up with that?”

Well, I figure it’s time.

I am hopefully going to see my other “Juls” over New Year’s Day and in Carlisle PA., it’s known to be a little frosty. So I looked in my closet last night and said it’s time.I haven’t worked a heel on a shoe for about five years-not that I was ever a big fan of a heel. In fact, the Naturalizer heel was as high as I went. If only I didn’t have a belly in the way  when I put them on, but, that’s another story that I am working on…on that note, a shout out to my friend Joanne, who knew my coffee was a little lonely this morning- the baked goods were fabulous!

So, I am going to work these boots into the new year,hoping to start the year in an upright position.

Here’s hoping you do the same.,

What’s your flavor this morning?

Today’s Keurig flavor is Butter Toffee.

It just feels like it. I have dabbled in the Folger’s vanilla biscotti, and some Dunkin’ k-cups, but trying for the butter toffee seems the way to go this morning. Back in the day, my friend Denise and I would go to Starbucks, BK( before keurig) and she would get a toffee latte with toffee syrup. I really didn’t want to go there, because it was too sweet. I found  the Kcup butter toffee  a nice alternative. I have a ton of things to get done and figure with the  butter toffee kick, I’ll be good to go.

What’s you’re flavor this morning?

oh, and BTW, the damn poll won’t let me put the r in your……lol

Three cup morning..

..or at least it feels that way. Not a good start to the day when you are looking on your desk for your coffee mug and it’s not there..so where could it be? I retraced my steps from yesterday before I left and found it right where I left it- at the sink, where I had washed it out. Says a lot for my senior moment in that I couldn’t marry the function of TAKING the clean mug, carrying it in my hand, and walking it back to my desk. Oh yeah, it was close to quitting time, so I guess that explains it. Now if I could just remember to back track for one or two other things, hey, I might be good.

So despite a wonderful Denim and Company polar fleece I have on today, pardon me while I dive head first into this first cup of coffee. May you enjoy your and have a good weekend!

P.S. Did I mention,” Thanks for reading.” ?

Close to a pin drop

Yes,it’s that quiet, with the exception of the heater in the background.

I am a morning person-always was, always will be, I assume. Any class I had before noon, I was great in.**mental note to my Mother-yes I do remember that self praise stinks**.Correspondingly, my job hours are early. Yet, when I hit the weekend, I tend to ,pardon the expression, lollygag in bed. Then, when I wake up,the morning is usually shot and thus, the weekend follows suit.

This morning, I am up.It is 6:15 am as I type this. Got up, took daily med,put dogs out in the side yard, paid homage to my Keurig for a wonderful cup of pumpkin spice coffee, the husband sleeps, the heater sizzles, and it is so-o-o-o quiet.I love it. I do admit I toyed with the idea of putting a book on tape on to put myself to sleep and then decided that I would get up and seize my day. God knows, there is enough stuff to do during it, so why not get it started. The best thing about this is the quiet.

I really don’t consider myself Chatty Cathy, although there are times that I know my buds are reading this and saying, uh, sure…Silhouettes of the trees as dawn breaks behind them and I hear the corresponding quiet that accompanies them. Even the heater has decided to quiet down to get on my good side.

“This is the day that the Lord has made-let us rejoice and be glad in it.”

You bet I am.

Ah, the joy of almond toast.

Long before the days of biscotti, Stella Doro cookie company made anise toast, anise sponge, and almond toast, which would all now qualify as biscotti.

I have been long fortunate to work with folks who are excellent bakers and biscotti are a strong part of their repertoire. I happened to be in a Wal-Mart this past weekend and saw the almond toast and figured, why not? Someone else does the baking, and I get to enjoy it. I could never figure out why biscotti were so expensive, especially as I figure I paid around three dollars for a pack of the toast from Stella Doro.This morning I am having a few, complete with some Keurig coffee and I am in heaven.

Nothing like being addicted to carbs this time of the year.

Wednesday is cancelled for lack of interest..

..boy do I wish!

Didn’t watch the weather last night**mental note to self-watching the weather may NOT be hazardous to your health** so had to pinch a rain coat/jacket from my Mom’s closet to make sure I got into the office relatively undrenched..lol. There is something bittersweet about having to raid my mother’s closet for a jacket that I know she will no longer have to wear. Plus, add the fact that I am 5’6″ and my mother is a whopping 5 foot, and yet amazingly, the arms fit me. Figure that one out. So I trenched off to start the day in not the most light-hearted of moods.

Then, to come into this government agency where I call home for 8 hours a day where it is dreary as all get out, most of us just are thisclose to going completely off the track and payday is the only saving grace…no, wait, ..I had a hot K cup of coconut coffee to push my mind’s button to ON.

Well….Thursday is around the corner….

Calling all Keurig-holics

If you remember my past posts about my Keurig and my Kcups, I was wondering if there was some way we could compile a way of tracking who is getting the best deal on Kcups, with your own Folgers in the metal kcup notwithstanding.

To the best of my knowledge, Bed, bath and Beyond are offering free shipping but it has to be on selected varieties. Other companies offer free shipping with a forty-five dollar order.If you get on FB, you’ll see sporadic ads from companies like Big Kat, but usually they have a high purchase amount needed for free shipping.

I’m tired of hitting Wal-Mart on a hit or miss. Let me know if you know of any good deals on Kcups and I promise I’ll share them here.