2 posts tagged “coffee”
Editors Note: I wrote this in 1994. It's old. (If it's old and I wrote it, does that make me old? Nah.) If I wrote it today, the prose would be better, but I don't think I could capture the sentiment as well. It has kind of an innocence about it that oddly floated to the top of my writing during a very difficult period of my life. I'm posting it because I feel nostalgic in a way, or maybe just because I was thinking about it. I think there's a typo in here somewhere, but I'm too lazy to find it. (If anyone does, please let me know.) Also, yes, Caroline is a real person, though I haven't seen her since 1994. If you know her, please say hello for me. I don't remember her last name, but she was living near Montclair, NJ, and dating a guy named Neil, whose last name I don't remember either. Oh, and back then, most of the personal ads were still print.
I don’t believe in sex for sex sake. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not morally opposed to it — I just DON’T believe it exists. Sex for ego — YES. Sex for pleasure — YES. Sex for control — SURE. Sex out of obligation (or at least perceived obligation), even sex for lack of anything better to do, but it’s ALWAYS for the sake of something. I mean ... what does sex for sex sake mean anyway?
Caroline said, “I carry a lot of useless stuff around in my bag.” I can’t help but think that her bag and my life are somehow intimately connected — we seem so much alike. I love reading the personals. My favorite line being no emotional baggage. Like who do these people think they are anyway, and where do they think they are going to find someone without emotional baggage? Anyone who answers that ad is either an infant or a liar, and that’s not good. I mean, ones illegal (not to mention immoral) the other is just trouble for the taking. And if there is an adult out there with no emotional baggage, where have they been hiding all these years. Oh sure innocence intact, but do they have the life experience to carry on a relationship or even the stomach to handle a strong cup of coffee.
YES COFFEE! I do believe that coffee is the difference between empty sex and love. Now nothing personal here, but coffee drinkers are more capable of loving than non-coffee drinkers. Experiencing coffee is about experiencing the whole person. Coffee means sticking around. It’s no quick smoke, and instant doesn’t count — its too quick. Neither does decaf. Decaf is something used to avoid spending the night — a quick cup, you’re out the door, and it won’t ruin your sleep.
The experience of sex is the experience of sex, but the experience of love is the experience of a whole person. Coffee drinkers experience the whole person. Think about it. What happens between the first kiss and the first cup? You touch. You make love. You’ve got time for pillow talk. You fall asleep. You wake up, and watch your partner sleep, then doze off again. You curl up, roll over, and feel your lover’s breath on the back of your neck as you lie in a half-dream state. The sun rises. You slowly wake up, kiss, cuddle, sit up, get up, put on a robe, put on a pot of coffee, wait for it to brew, and sit around drinking it while pretending that the rest of the world just doesn’t matter.
Come on here folks, write your personal if you wish, but remember this isn’t fairyland. Loosen up, have some fun. Tomorrow’s assignment: kiss someone who isn’t perfect. And don’t give me that look; I’m not saying it has to be a passionate kiss, just an affectionate one. I know we’ve all seen a lot of movies, but perfect people really aren’t out there. Real love is like Caroline’s bag, and if you did find a perfect person, one with a life free of useless stuff — who would want them, and why would they want any of us. Besides, isn’t it simply degrading to be in a relationship with someone to whom you completely inferior, and if love is degrading, is it really love? And what makes you think they’re going to stick around till morning when the coffee brews, no less come back at a later date? This must be a busy person, out there searching for another perfect person, and your just helping them mark time. No thank you. Not for me.
Personally, I’d rather have Caroline’s bag.
17-18 December 1994
©1994 Bill Snyder
I've made fun of your food postings in the past but Laurel and Patty, I post this as a tribute to you. Given the blizzard, I decide to yesterday would be a good day to run errands close to home. Right down the road from the computer store where I went to buy a cable they didn't have in stock, is Isles Buns and Coffee. There I was served this wonderful cinnamon bun with a hot cup of coffee. This was breakfast and lunch. Sadly, my camera phone doesn't do it justice.
