Car mug.

MUG: Eleven ounce barrel-style mug. Simple. Functional. Chinese imitation of the Waechtersbach original.

COFFEE: Colombian San Roque from La Colombe Torrefaction in Philadelphia. A truly superior Colombian coffee. A lighter roast than most commercial roasteries (I hear rumors and see evidence that Hipster-kulture™ has picked up on the benefits of lighter roasts), the strong chocolate and citrus overtones stand out (to my simple palate).

NOTES: The mug was free, modified with the addition of a picture of my car via Shutterfly as an inducement.

A well rounded cup of coffee.

MUG: Chinese made ceramic bowl-shaped mug. White exterior glaze, dark green interior. Nice gripping handle, large (but not too large) capacity, good mouth feel. A nice mug.

COFFEE: Back to the Santander Colombian from Central Market Westgate. The La Colombe San Roque Colombian from Der Kuchen Laden and the Huila Finca Guadalupe Colombian from CM Westgate are all gone and unobtainable. :-(

NOTES: The mug's other side is shown below.

How about a piping hot cup'o SCOTUS?

MUG: Chinese barrel mug. Too big (16 ounces), otherwise a good design.

COFFEE: The excellent La Colombe Colombian San Roque.

NOTES: I got this mug at Half Price Books. They have a whole series of mugs and t-shirts emblazoned with book jackets from the 1950s. Back in the mid-1960s, while most of my friends fixated on George Orwell's dystopian book 1984, I was drawn to Aldous Huxley's equally dystopian Brave New World, because its benign horror of a culture immersed in sex and drugs seemed to be closer to what our future as a culture was headed toward.

Well, it's a brave new world, indeed. 'Women's Health Centers' function as chop-shops for human (parts) trafficking. The Supreme Court invents laws that don't exist... just because they can.

I think I need more coffee. Maybe a larger mug is part of the solution. How much does a larger mug cost? $19.84, with tax.

In the Highlands

MUG: English ironstone mug made by Adams in the UK. There is a pleasant country decoration, called 'Lancaster', on the cup.

COFFEE: Colombian Huila Finca Guadalupe, French pressed.

NOTES: I am sitting on a friend's front porch in northeast Dallas, the Lake Highlands neighborhood that I grew up in. I watched these houses being built in the late 1950s (my dad even building some of them), and attended elementary school at the end of the block (White Rock Elementary).


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Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue.

MUG: Hand thrown coffee mug from Marshall Pottery in East Texas. Made in the 1950-60s by Senior Potter Lawrence Houston (it's signed with a stamp).

COFFEE: Colombian, Finca Alta Guadalupe. Roasted to perfection at Central Market Westgate.

NOTE: The cup is old. Got it at a thrift store in Far North Dallas.

The coffee is new. My usual Colombian coffee (Santander) has been less than satisfying recently, and I was excited to find this bean. It rivals the fantastic Colombian San Roque from La Colombe Torrefaction that I got through Der Kuchen Laden in Fredericksburg.

The idea that this mug was made in Marshall is borrowed from my memories. No verification.

The blue is the blue stripe over the grey salt glaze. This is in the German-American 'Westerwald' tradition.

XOXOXO

MUG: 20 ounce latte mug, made in Chine for/by The Old Pottery Company. This massive mug is off-white, with a deep red interior glaze. The exterior is ribbed horizontally, which makes a nice catchment feature for dribbles.

COFFEE: The usual. Colombian Santander 'light' roast from Central Market, roasted by Frank on June 6th.

NOTES: I took on part-time work a couple of years ago for the dual purpose of relieving retirement-induced boredom and financial stress. I went to work for James Avery Craftsman (now known as James Avery Jewelry). I chanced into a wonderful environment, but more importantly, a wonderful team of (by my standards) young people, completely devoid of the sullen, entitled Austin worker so common in retail and restaurant fields in the region.

The drive into Sodom-On-The-Colorado was gruesome (a combination of over-taxed roadways, poorly-designed-by-design highways, and DUI drivers) and began taking an unexpected toll on my well-being. An opportunity came to follow my manager and transfer to another store, one that was closer to home, and in the opposite direction of Waterloo. A third fewer miles and less than half the driving time.

In my life, I have worked for (at times over-lapping) United Artists, Presidio Enterprises, The University of Texas, Texas Education Agency, three ad agencies, the Episcopal Diocese of Dallas, and The City of Dallas. I have never worked with a team I cared so much for as the team I left behind in the Barton Creek Square James Avery store. The featured mega-mug (along with a leather journal, some chocolates, some chipotle peanuts, and some beef jerky) was part of a gift basket given to me on my last day. I had to shift into 'stoicism mode' to keep from showing a level of emotion that might be seen as 'un-German'.

BIG HUGS: To Caryn, Desirae, Colleen, Shellie, Karen, Rita, Gaby, Debbie, Crystal, Soly, and Jennifer (and to former co-workers Michelle and Veronica), big hugs.

Into the heart of darkness.

MUG: Waechtersbach plain white, hergestellt in Deutschland.

COFFEE: Starbucks Ethiopian 'medium' roast. Very dark by my standards

NOTES: June began with a coffee shortage at Casa Verano. Just as I was contemplating how to arrange a trip to secure some magic beans, a friend who's husband manages a Starbucks offered me a bag of their Ethiopian beans. Drinkable. Black. Better as an iced coffee base, this coffee carried me for two days until I could make the trip to Central Market (a day earlier than hoped). Central Market is only on the 'edge' of darkness.

It's not the dark I find disagreeable, it's the burn. The kindness remains very much appreciated, nonetheless. Far better than any HEB-available emergency coffee.

Hash tag.

MUG: Another 'Fakersbach' mug from Society6.

COFFEE: Guatemalan Antigua from the grocery store (where it was roasted).

NOTES: This mug speaks to me. Said the small man in a box, "Come, come, Mr. Bond, you disappoint me. You get as much fulfillment out of killing as I do, so why don't you admit it?"

Verdant and deadly.

MUG: German-made Waechtersbach mug, acquired at Der Kuchen Laden in Fredericksburg. Uranium green.

COFFEE: An Antigua from the mountains of Guatemala. Medium-light roast. Chock-full-o-flavor.

NOTES: It has been a very green spring in semi-arid Texas. Lots of rainfall, and the ground (both the thin soil of the rocky Texas Hill Country, and deep rich soils of river floodplains in northeast and southeast Texas) are saturated. My family has known the signs for generations, and other than the southern 19th century family homestead in the fertile Trinity River plains, we have have always lived on high ground (above the Red River, above White Rock Creek, and now above the Blanco River). 'Always lived' is a key phrase in a land where the water runs violently swift today in an arroyo that was dry yesterday.

Black in White.

MUG: Spanish-made German Waechtersbach mug. Unadorned. White.  

COFFEE: Colombian Santander, 'light' roasted at Central Market Westgate.  Slow-drip brewed.

NOTES: Simple unadorned pleasure of a quality cup of coffee, both the white mug and the black coffee... although my coffee is usually a dark muddy brown in appearance due to a combination of the lighter coffee roast and higher coffee content I prefer.

According to Wikipedia (where PR departments get to create 'encyclopedia' articles), Colombian coffee cultivation began partly as an act of penance.

The coffee plant had spread to Colombia by 1790. The oldest written testimony of the presence of coffee in Colombia is attributed to a Jesuit priest, José Gumilla. In his book The Orinoco Illustrated (1730), he registered the presence of coffee in the mission of Saint Teresa of Tabajé, near where the Meta river empties into the Orinoco. Further testimony comes from the archbishop-viceroy Caballero y Gongora (1787) who registered the presence of the crop in the north east of the country near Giron (Santander) and Muzo (Boyaca) in a report that he provided to the Spanish authorities. 

The first coffee crops were planted in the eastern part of the country. In 1835 the first commercial production was registered with 2,560 green coffee bags that were exported from the port of Cucuta, near the border with Venezuela. A priest named Francisco Romero is attributed to have been very influential in the propagation of the crop in the northeast region of the country. After hearing the confession of the parishioners of the town of Salazar de la Palmas, he required as penance the cultivation of coffee.

The Joy of Furrin' Coffee.

MUG: Another Society6 mug. Proven design of high function.

COFFEE: Continuing to deplete my supply of Colombian San Roque.

NOTE: In the morning dark, my coffee is to my left, my bible is before me, and my cat is to my right on the Meow Division.

The happy home.

MUG: German-made happy mug. You will be happy.

COFFEE: As I said before... "Colombian San Roque from La Colombe Torrefaction in Philadelphia. A truly superior Colombian coffee. A lighter roast than most commercial roasteries (I hear rumors and see evidence that Hipster-kulture™ has picked up on the benefits of lighter roasts), the strong chocolate and citrus overtones stand out (to my simple palate)."

NOTE: We're back home, and happy to be so. I survived road coffee (German-American motel, Mennonite coffee house, highway restaurant). The only really good coffee we had was a 5₵ cup of the "regular" that Linden consumed at Der Kuchen Laden.

Highly 'Si' likely.

MUG: Spanish-made unadorned white eleven ounce Waechtersbach cylinder mug.

COFFEE: Ethiopian Yirgacheffe via Werka Bauka processors in Ethiopia, via La Colombe roasters in Philadelphia, via Der Kuchen Laden merchants in Fredericksburg, Texas.

NOTES: Say the smart people: "The beans have the fragrance of white nectarine, marshmallow, tangerine, coffee blossom, guava, tomato, cane sugar, mango, long pepper, and macadamia nut. The grounds have the fragrance of spinach, yellow peach, mango, vanilla bean, papaya blossom, iodine, tart cherry, rosemary, and orange peel. The aroma of this coffee is of yellow peach, soil, tart mango, rose hips, tart cherry, orange peel, oolong tea, dried apricot, thyme, bakers chocolate. This is a full body coffee that is rounded with a deep stone fruit complexity that is more to the pineapple structure. This is a high acidity coffee that is juicy and lingering with a delicate desert floral sweetness. The flavors of this coffee are of yellow nectarine, manilla mango, yucca flower, tangerine, black tea, black cardamom, coca nibs, brown sugar, fleur de sel, pineapple."

Personally, I thought it tasted pretty good, especially after a day of generic cafe coffee and canned dark roast. I like Yiracheffe. A lot.

Mooned.

MUG: A Chinese-made diner mug. Hefty. Substantial. Chipped.

COFFEE: Despite having been voted "Best Coffee in Boerne," the Bear Moon Bakery & Cafe serves a canned Italian dark roast coffee from Segafredo, brewed "drip process" says the menu board. Not bad coffee, but if it's the best coffee in Boerne, there's a problem.

NOTE: The Bear Moon Bakery & Cafe is a delightful restaurant in Boerne, Texas on Hauptstrasse at East Theissen streets. Good light meals and hearty breakfasts, plus wonderful pastries. Highly recommended.

Desperate measures.

MUG: Plastic melamine-like mug imitating a stoneware mug. Good for dropping on hard surfaces.

COFFEE: "Don't ask. Don't tell" genereic cafe coffee... probably whatever SYSCO or Ben E. Keith Food Services delivered. It was hot and fresh, and those are major pluses on the road.

NOTE: Staying at the "historic" Leakey Inn, I eschewed using the in-room coffee maker, and instead walked to the closely adjacent Tina's Kitchen for a cup of coffee with the local movers and shakers. I sat on the porch at a barn-wood bar with a row of old tractor seats, all facing Highway 83.

Psalm 88:11-12

MUG: Ubiquitous Chinese novelty mug, patterned after the Waechstersbach barrel mug. Designed by Madeline Audrey, and made and sold by Society6 (who also makes a really cool Joy Division Cat mug). I saw a pillow with this design on the Facebook feed Karl Barth for Dummies, followed the link and got the mug. Today, Holy Saturday, is my first use.

COFFEE: The truly excellent Colombian San Roque. More is on the way.

NOTES: Growing up, Holy Saturday was the day we dyed Easter eggs in preparation for the Easter Sunday egg and candy hunts. Religiously and theologically, it was a bit ill-defined (to me). Some years later, while reading works from the Christian Orthodox tradition (and practicing some Eastern Orthodox prayer methods), I discovered an understanding that was held by the Early Church that opened doors of Faith for me. The Nicene Creed states that Jesus "descended to Hell" but it doesn't say what he did there. Peter mentions Christ "preaching to the dead in Hell."  Jesus' descent into Hell/Hades/Sheol wasn't to condemn the dead, but to save those who would listen to him. For all time. The answer to death (and therefore to everything) is Jesus.

Nobody has to die. Get on the bus. Free rides. Great coffee.

Wine and chocolate: more than a date drug.

MUG: One of my surviving original Waechtersbach mugs (purchased at the original Container Store on Mockingbird Lane in Dallas in 1979). I've said all that needs to be said about this particular mug's perfection. PMS MUD (essentially Pantone Matching System color 406) is also my favorite color.  

COFFEE: Colombian San Roque from La Colombe Torrefaction in Philadelphia. A truly superior Colombian coffee. A lighter roast than most commercial roasteries (I hear rumors and see evidence that Hipster-kulture™ has picked up on the benefits of lighter roasts), the strong chocolate and citrus overtones stand out (to my simple palate).

From the Roaster (via the Merchant): "Producers in the San Roque Association process and dry their own coffees and deliver them to quality analyst, Duver Rojas, who tastes the coffees delivered every day and pays incentives for the best coffees. Of 100 families in the association, this lot represents only ten producers who embraced these best practices. Their hard work on the steep hillsides unfolding below the San Roque Monastery and above the Magdalena River created this coffee of refined sweetness."

NOTES: A sample package from Der Kuchen Laden in Fredericksburg, Texas, no doubt meant to lure me back to Deutsche Disneyland Texas. Just might work.

It's been too long.

The death of science, and the birth of something not good.

 

MUG: Yeti Rambler. Made in China. Marketed out of Austin. Strongly made.

COFFEE: Colombian Santander. The usual, except when it's not. Strongly made.

NOTES: There's a problem here. It's more than a misunderstanding, and it's not simply ignorance. There is good dose of arrogance, however. Do you see it?

Yeti is a manufacturer of rigorously designed ice chests and accessories, including thermal drinking cups like this one (this is their 'small' size model). They really do apply some of the best available technology to create containers that will retain temperatures for long periods of time, hot or cold. Stainless steel, double-walled travel cups are no big deal, and this one far out performs the other name-brand ones I have. Far outperforms. I filled two vessels this morning (6:15 a.m.) with 200° F degree water. Within an hour, the contents of one cup had cooled to 152° F. The Yeti had cooled to 180°. Eight hours later, vessel #1 had cooled to room temperature (65°), while the contents of the Yeti were 112°. That's impressive performance. But...

"KEEPS YOUR DRINK AS COLD AS SCIENCE ALLOWS" is the marketing motto on the cup. Since when did Science have consciousness? 'Science' is a methodology at its basic level, a reservoir of knowledge at its highest level. At its basic level, it is a rigorous method of investigation, designed to leave nothing to 'chance' or prejudice. At it's highest level, it's an ever-changing amorphous, non-sentient, entity. It doesn't "allow" anything. It enables, at best, through discovery and application.

But in our culture, 'Science' has been deified by many, led by anti-theists (atheists), but mimicked by the gullible. In the popular culture, it's easy to see the word "science" used as a name, as "Science." This entity Science replaces (or co-exists in competition with) the notion of a god/s, with a Creator God, and with Yaweh (reducing Yaweh to a mere god, or replacing 'Him' with a new god). As a believer in the Creator God Yaweh, and as a believer in the investigative truth of science, this alarms me, because it's a dangerous disservice to both.

The outcome promises to be a great steaming pile of 'not good' for all involved. The heat will be retained at all costs.

Collect the whole set!

MUG: I recently acquired yet another 1980s Waechstersbach novelty mug from the Art Institute of Chicago. All the usual physical accolades about this mug apply.

COFFEE: Guatemalan Antigua. Organic, Free-Trade, freshly medium-light roasted.

NOTES: I previously have purchased white, blue, and grey versions of this 'Famous Artists' mug, all made in Spain. This one is different. The glaze is the fantastic molten-lava red that you just have to see in person. Similar to the radioactive (literally) red glaze that Fiestaware used years ago, but with a two-tone element that looks like hot flowing lava and the slightly cooler, darker surface.  In addition, this mug is unique in that was not not made in Spain, but in Germany, "W GERMANY" to be exact (which also dates the mug to no later than the mid 1980s).

Of personal interest, Raoul Dufy was one of my mother's favorite artists, while Marcel Duchamp is one of mine. Both signatures are visible above (and examples of their work can be seen at the Art Institute of Chicago).

Freeze Relief

MUG: Waechstersbach (Germany) winter motif mug. I love the glaze-resist decoration method, and the deep royal blue color.

COFFEE: Guatemalan Antigua from Central Market.

NOTES: Late February freezing cold spell. Off work conveniently. Fire in the fireplace. Appropriate occasion for the mug.