When it Comes to Coffee, We're like Tracy & Hepburn

I started this morning with an "off" cup of coffee, and it was because I had gone through only half the process of cleaning out the coffee maker with vinegar and water the night before.  So, I revisited the directions. The problem was, there was some waiting involved.  During this wait time, I was salivating, anticipating the coffee.  When it was finally brewed, I sighed the relief of an addict and savored it as somehow, transporting me to paradise.

As I experienced this, I started to get philosophical about coffee.  Coming from a Norwegian/Swedish background, I knew I carried the Scandinavian gene of a coffee aficionado.  My dad, during World War II, was not allowed by his employ, the military, to tell my mother in a letter, where he was, but he wrote, "I'm in a country where they really love their coffee." So she figured out he was in Norway.  I realized that these countries are actually dependent upon the growers in the tropics. So, when did their addiction to the brew begin?

My late Swedish neighbor was so addicted to coffee that we would hear his wife, (The house is like a stone's throw distance away) every morning, ask, "How's the coffee?" And he really let her know each morning, if it was to his liking....or not. He also wouldn't obey the lab Drs. regarding not drinking it before a test.  I guess that was okay, as his being my late neighbor had nothing to do with those tests.  Why should he have suffered deprivation?

Back in the day before coffee makers, my niece gave me a large thermos, which kept the coffee warm overnight,  All you needed to do in the morning was turn on a lever akin to a beer barrel spout, and there, you could drink.  My husband complained in the morning in the bedroom, about the "sploosh" sound, and was I going to start frying bacon and eggs in there, too?

We still didn't have many coffee makers around, but I received a percolator for Christmas that made the coffee just right.  On top of that, we visited a couple of friends; the man of the couple told us about his visiting a city in Michigan specializing in specialty coffees, and also told us about how he made his coffee with ice cubes instead of just water.  So, I tried that, too.  My brother, upon hearing this, said the guy was more into the process of coffee making, not the coffee itself.
There was a gap where I thought I had to follow the decaffeinated route for health sake, which turned out to be nonsense.  But I never didn't have coffee. I'd also learned from this guy that they often make decaffeinated with formaldehyde, so you have to find the right formula for that.

I've been the Mr. Coffee route, both in coffee maker and coffee grinder, which did not work out in either case.
So now, I have the above: Hamilton Beach. It can receive either a cup or a thermos, if you remove the bottom pedestal.  It can also be used for ground coffee or a Keurig-type container.  I ended up getting a grinder of the same brand, (i.e. H.B) which also works better.  Now, the process is to grind the coffee the night before, place it in a #1 filter, cut off the top of the filter, so it doesn't curl over, (placed in an old Black&Decker coffee maker I still use for traveling) measure half of it into an almost 8th cup of Hazelnut, ground by me, plus either a teaspoon or tablespoon of Seattle's Best for added flavor.  If I want to warm it up half way through, I can still use my old Mr. Coffee pot and warmer.

Bill thinks this process is nonsense.  He just pours water out of the filtered tap, puts the water on the stove, brings it to a boil, and adds Taster's Choice.  He keeps trying to tell me his way is the best way.
I remain adamant in my process expecting nothing but the best, well, what I believe is my best.

Our Healthier Size Support Group

In order to give credit to where credit is due, I shall prove a point made in a book by Brian Wansink, PH.D. called, Mindless Eating.  The cup at the right, which is an exact cup from Sweden, purchased from the Nordic Nook in Stoughton, Wisconsin, contained the tea presented on the left.  The tea was poured out exactly from the cup, with no cheating.  The author says there are "Hidden Persuaders" (a book by Vance Packard in the 60's, regarding advertising gimmicks) in the way food is presented to us.  So if you want to fool yourself that you're drinking more now and enjoying it more, do this.  If you don't believe me, try this yourself.

The reverse kinds of illusions can be applied to changing large supper dishes to smaller lunch or salad plates, or even kids' plates for adults, large bowls can be changed to smaller bowls, too. The amount of food appears larger on or in smaller containers.

     Marianne Williamson, in her book, Course in Weight Loss, takes the reverse illusions in plates a step further.  She recommends changing your plastic plateware to glass plateware, and using a cloth napkin.  I had already purchased smaller plates and bowls in colorful plastic, but decided to try the glass.  I didn't go so far as the cloth napkin in a holder, but I did have a different kind of feeling of treating myself to something special by regarding myself as a very important person,

who deserves elegance as part of her food plan.  The plastic is pictured on the left as a small bowl and kid's plate.  It's attractive enough.  The setting on the right is Corelle.  I don't want to waste the plastic, but Corelle is a good dinner setting.

The next thing to do is get organized, especially the Kitchen, as recommended in the book, Thin through the Power of Spirit, by Lucia Capodilupo.  The idea, in a nutshell, is that your home is a projection of yourself, your body.  So, with some guidance from a book on organizing, One Year to an Organized Life, by Regina Leeds,  I started organizing the kitchen. Instead of a cupboard, where you have to crawl on your hands and knees to determine what you have available, as well as up to date, you get trays from WalMart or your place of choice, put liner in them, toss the old stuff, and there you have it. Tossing the old stuff cleanses your soul and your formerly overstuffed body.

Most importantly, I recommend the following book.  It will change your perspective, and hopefully, change your life for the better.  The main premise is that your best dieting got you here, and it obviously, hasn't worked.  It's written by two authors, Judith Matz and Ellen Frankel, who specialize in eating disorders, and who tell us to get off the yo-yo dieting and get into "attunement" eating, 

                                         ..........as well as the following companion books.