• coffee life,  fountain pens,  journal

    Curiosity

    A chai latte, blank pages and fountain pen full of ink

    The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing.

    Albert Einstein

    I like the Arboretum coffee shop because it is quiet. Its ambiance seems to be more directed towards students who study and reminds me of the Lory Student Center on campus. They do play music, but it’s very low in volume and easy listening music. It is also an enjoyable two mile bicycle ride for me along Spring Creek Trail. Even though I am not a college student, I still consider myself to be a student of life. Hopefully, I will always have curiosity, inviting me to keep asking the questions.

  • coffee life,  street photography,  sunrises

    Morning Starburst

    It was 37 degrees when I left the condo this morning. Cold mornings like today make for chilly rides. In spite of the cold I do enjoy the short ride. And, the Earl Gray tea at Mugs hits the spot. This image is taken outside the front door of the coffee shop just after the sun has risen. The older buildings are a part of CSU campus. 

    Morning Starburst

    I’m getting accustomed to using the bicycle as my primary mode of transportation now. I used the bicycle to meet my oldest daughter for lunch today, about a ten mile round trip. Again, I took the bike trail so I’m not dealing with traffic. They have built tunnels under the major north south bound roads so I needed to only cross one busy road, which has a crosswalk light. These trails also keep me connected with nature, where I get to experience the beauty of our fall season.

  • coffee life,  coffee shops,  fountain pens,  journal,  silence

    This morning…

    tired after a night of wrestling for sleep
    I settled into silence, prayer, and meditation

    ignoring the cold, I mounted my red steed for
    an invigorating bicycle ride to the arboretum

    then placed a latte made with love by Allie
    on a tabernacle at an east facing window

    with beams of sunlight enkindling blank pages
    I sought words hidden within a favorite fountain pen

    mws
  • coffee life,  Humor,  musings

    The Craft

    The craft of enhancing the morning drip coffee is an amazing thing to watch. The craft is a very important ritual for people as they bring perfection to their cup of coffee. (Of course this only applies to those who do not drink their coffee black.)

    Jeff pouring his coffee

    I watch the scientist in them add just the correct amount of sugar, cream, and honey. Then it must be precisely stirred, clockwise or counterclockwise or both and how many turns. Once that perfect chemical formula is attained, by observation or tasting, they add a sleeve to the cup and top it off with a lid. Interestingly some master this craft when not yet fully awake, or talking on their phone or chatting with their friend, who’s waiting their turn at their craft. Amusingly, some seem to even be mumbling, as if talking themselves through the process, or maybe offering up a pray. I often wonder, once they exit the door, do they remember any of the craft they have just been involved in? And, did they know I was watching?

  • coffee life,  quotes,  shadows

    A Divine Masterpiece

    Meg’s shadow at the coffee shop

    Behind each face there is a unique world that no one else can see. This is the mystery of individuality. The shape of each soul is different. No one else feels your life the way you do. No one else sees or hears the world as you do. The creation of the individual is a divine masterpiece.

    John O’Donohue
  • coffee life,  gratitude

    Full of Gratitude…

    I had my oral surgery today. I’m happy to say I’ve had almost no pain and eating soft foods has been a breeze. I remember almost none of the procedure. As usual with IV’s it took three stabs to get a vein. Just after that its a blank. When Larry and I got home he said something about them taking me to the car in a wheelchair. I don’t remember that at all! It’s been a long time since I had a blackout from my drinking days. 😂 They also prescribed me 4 small pills for pain called oxycodone to take every 6 hours. I’m following those instructions and will take the last one in the morning then be done with them. Oh, and since I did not have to have the sinus perforation closure done, the cost was about half. From the x rays, it looked like they may have been a sinus perforation to repair but once the tooth was removed all was good. 

    Old Town Mocha latte at Mugs taken a couple weeks ago

    This oral surgery experience is so different from the one I had over thirty years ago. I have to admit that because of that past experience, I experienced a couple days of anxiety. However, when I got up this morning and went through my routines, I had a calm about me. I will be taking antibiotics (Amoxicillin) three times a day for the next ten days. No coffee for a few days but I can still go to my coffee shops. It may be iced tea for a while. I’m full of gratitude this evening! Hope you had a good day!!!!!

  • coffee life,  fountain pens,  journal

    Words for this Blog

    I find this coffee life I live to be an interesting way of observing people. Arriving just as they open is usually the quiet time, it’s easier to journal or read before the busyness that moves in an hour later and people watching increases. The din rises with conversations and laughter. I watch friends meet and exchange hugs. I watch as people stand in front of the brewed coffees and have to make that early morning decision of dark or light roast coffee. I hear the blender crunch away as someone’s smoothie is being made. The bicycle rack begins to fill up. I jot down notes of what I see in my journal, knowing they may be words for this blog.

    In the morning I will have a broken tooth surgically removed. I will probably be in some pain so don’t expect me respond to comments or read your blog until Saturday. Prayers and vibes to the universe are welcomed!

  • coffee life,  quotes

    Extraordinary Freedom

    The range of the human mind, the scale and depth of the metaphors the mind is capable of manufacturing as it grapples with the universe, stand in stunning contrast to the belief that there is only one reality, which is man’s, or worse, that only one culture among the many on earth possesses the truth. To allow mystery, which is to say to yourself, “There could be more, there could be things we don’t understand,” is not to damn knowledge. It is to take a wider view. It is to permit yourself an extraordinary freedom: someone else does not have to be wrong in order that you may be right.

    Barry Lopez

    I’m about to push publish as I sit on my porch watching flashes of lightning and listening to thunder. We are receiving the gift of a refreshing and much needed rain. I watch and listen with a feeling of gratitude as it’s been hot and dry here. Hope you are enjoying your Friday! I started my day with the above Americano. And, Mr Barry López is spot on!