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.