April 2012
Coffee Isn't a Matter of Life and Death. It's Much More Important Than That.
Suzy Bailey has stock in a coffee plantation in Colombia. Either that or she's the advance pusher for Starbuck's. The woman makes coffee that will stand up in the cup and slap you with the spoon. It's great stuff, but Ducky and I can't take more than a cup unless we need to stay awake all night for a project. Gibbs, on the other hand, slugs it down like it's water. (Ducky occasionally asks Gibbs if he would like a transfusion to add some blood to his caffeine system and usually gets a smirk in return for his efforts.)
I was getting ready for a long road trip. Slept all day, got up just before dinner and was guzzling coffee in the hope it would keep me up until I got to the hotel in Connecticut. MysticCon had no big name guests, but a huge dealers' room and over 1,000 attendees made it worth a shot. My rule of thumb is if it's under a ten hour drive, don't arrive the night before and pay an extra night at the hotel; just show up opening day, unpack and set up, and by bedtime be unconscious and sleep like the dead.
Gibbs eyed my cup as I poured another 2/3 mug. "I know, compared to your stuff, this is just quadruple espresso. Yours is more like a crankcase of 30,000-mile oil. Or paint stripper."
He barely raised an eyebrow. "Just wondering why you pour it if you don't like it."
"If I didn't like it, I wouldn't drink it," I retorted.
He made a show of watching me pour sugar and French Vanilla creamer into the mug. "If you like it, why are you covering up the taste?"
"Enhancing. Not covering up."
He snorted and took a hit of his straight-no-chaser coffee. "That's not coffee. That's just a caffeine milkshake."
Thanks to my sister-in-law for this one. She doesn't remember saying it, but I remember having it said to me! And I remember one Thanksgiving after she and my brother had been married a good ten years. They had dessert and coffee and went home. When they came over at Christmas, they declined coffee—and admitted that they had stayed awake all night the last time. Dad liked his coffee on the strong side. Understatement!
Note: This chapter was posted months ago. Today I tried to upload chapter 103. It said it was chapter 103, but decided to overwrite 102. I had to then delete 102 and have been trying to fix the mess.
I hate computers.