“Coffee isn’t just a source of pleasure for me: it is something I rely on to get me through the day.”
Ronan Keating
I cannot imagine a day without drinking coffee. Its rich aroma wakes me up in the morning. It gives me that little nudge to get out of my comfortable bed and start my day.
It has been my constant companion, seeing me through a Navy career, raising two kids and finishing my education. Caffeine is a drug that I use guilt-free, and coffee offers it in abundance. And now that I am retired, living a peaceful, carefree lifestyle, I am able to enjoy it all the more!
A Man’s Drink?
Some of my earliest memories are of my father, drinking coffee with breakfast and supper.
The poor man worked around the clock to make ends meet. In addition to his full-time day job he played drums in a band, sometimes five nights a week. He scraped by with an average of three to four hours of sleep per night.
I do not remember my mother ever drinking coffee. She preferred tea, which my sisters and I also drank, leading me to erroneously think coffee is for men, tea is for women!
In the Navy
I never knew of sleep deprivation until I joined the Navy and started raising kids!
Shift work, long hours, and no days off for weeks at a time caused me to drink copious amounts of black coffee while on duty.
Any parent of young children knows a good night of sleep is a rare circumstance.
Add in night courses and boom! Coffee!
Healthy? Or Unhealthy?
Here’s where it gets tricky. For every news article touting the health benefits of coffee, there is one saying why coffee is bad for you.
I mainly choose to ignore all the hype, good and bad. There are far more destructive addictions one can have. That’s my rationale.
- I drink my coffee black, with a tablespoon of organic coconut oil
- I do not add sugar, syrup, chocolate, milk, whipped cream or any of the other high calorie unhealthy additives.
There’s nothing like waking up on the scenic St. Lawrence River and enjoying a cup of fresh-brewed Joe in my favorite cup. For this I am most grateful. I hope you are enjoying these November “Thankful Thursday” posts. It is my pleasure to share little bits of happiness, in a world with so much turmoil.
Thank you for reading! – Barb, the River Blogger (Btrb)
Feel free to reblog anything I post. I welcome all comments and discussion.
The River Blogger 
I started drinking coffee my senior year of high school when two friends got me started. One went in the Navy, one became a Marine, and I turned down the Air Force and chose college instead. They taught me to drink it black, and that’s the best way. Love a cup in the morning sitting outside.
Guess what: I’ve never drunk a cup of coffee IN MY LIFE. I’m 56; I used to drink tea (grew up in England) but gave it up in my early twenties when I gave up dairy milk. So I’ve drunk a lot of peppermint tea, and dandelion ‘coffee’… but my son and partner both love the ritual of hand-grinding their beans fresh for their morning coffee, so I get the ritual compulsion and appreciation 🙂 G
Coffee is an essential food group. Our Navy would never have won great victories without its ” Seven Deadly Grades” of coffee. but of course now a days you and I drink a better grade of coffee than when we served.
Most definitely! Lol! A far cry from the Navy swill!
I don’t drink coffee. But I do drink a diet coke each morning. I call it my little cup of happiness. It gets me going.
Hmmm coffee ☕️ 😋
❤️☕️
I’m mostly a tea drinker. I’ll have a latte once in a while, but just regular coffee? No. I blame church for that. When I was old enough that the ladies didn’t shoo me away from the coffee urn, I tried a cup – it was horrible. The next week I tried tea and loved it. Little did I know as a teen that all churches make horrible coffee. Likely if I’d started drinking it from a nice coffee shop, I might drink more it if today.
I actually drink a lot of tea, too!
Coffee? Awesome drink. My wife has a Wholefood Shop and offers many coffee choices. She brings beans home and I put them in the grinder just before making a cup. Have a Gaggia and espresso is first up. Then cafetière/French press afterwards through the day. Coconut oil? She brought me some coconut sugar once. Kind of changed the taste somewhat. But straight up black and nothing more added is the way I prefer. Great read again and lovely ambient and atmospheric explanatory words for your story. All the best.
Love my morning coffee & the morning newspaper. It starts my day.
Too true. Retirement allows a longer time to relax whilst doing so too. All the best.
I miss having a daily paper to read. We get the Ogdensburg Journal on Thursdays. But it comes in the mail around 10:00.
I bet your house smells fantastic with all the fresh brewing going on! Thank you for the kind words!
The aroma of coffee being ground is a great wake up call. Drinking Musetti Espresso Paradiso at the moment. With Christmas arriving? Maybe a few seasonal flavoured packs from the local coffee/tea speciality shop. Thanks for your reply and all the best.