Coffee - do stupid things faster with more energy!

Stole this from that funny guy, George Takei.

Starbucks keeping it going with mobile...

To help get their impatient, often pushy, customers through the door even faster, Starbucks introduced a new mobile app this January for prepayment of their goods. In hopes that there might be less interaction between the jittery caffeine addicts and therefore, less chance of negative publicity, it seems they have embraced this new technology and are now the top company in the world when it comes to mobile transactions. Read more here, I'm going to go pour me a cup now: http://www.forbes.com/sites/limyunghui/2012/08/12/to-square-up-the-starbucks-experience-potentials-and-potholes/

Using Coffee as a Platform for Creativity

I know I'm not alone when I talk about how much coffee affects my life on a daily basis.  I use it as a motivation to get through each day.  A fresh pot of coffee gives me a good 4 to 6 hours of hope and lets me know everything is going to be alright.  Without that beautiful aroma in the morning, I'm often left wondering whether or not love exists and if tomorrow is really worth sticking around for.

Coffee inspires me to create in many areas of my  life.  Like for instance, when I finish a pot of coffee, I have created room for more fresh coffee in that pot.  Also, I find I ruminate more about the things and voices which plague my wandering mind when I have some coffee to hold close and cherish.

I will now create a masterpiece in the toilet bowl -- that Italian roast really moves me.

Banana Lemon Coffee Cake / Bread

So, here at home we got:

1. a freezer full of effin bananas because we have great intentions of eating fresh fruit.

2. a grocery bag of lemons from a friend and already made some fresh lemonade.

3. a hankering for something to go with my coffee in the morning.

Turns out that's not all you need to make some banana lemon bread. So I looked up a recipe and found one on food.com then I modified it and it is delicious.

Makes 2 Loaves:
4 medium bananas, extra ripe
1/2cup butter, melted
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 eggs
1/4 cup sugar white
1/4 cup sugar brown
1 tablespoon lemon zest (grated lemon peel)

For Lemon Syrup
2/3 cup lemon juice
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tsp lemon zest (grated lemon peel)

Directions

• 1 Preheat oven to 350°F.
• 2 Puree bananas in blender or food processor.
• 3 Combine with butter.
• 4 Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
• 5 In bowl, beat egg, sugar and lemon peel.
• 6 Beat in banana mixture.
• 7 Beat in flour mixture. NOTE: BATTER WILL BE STICKY
• 8 Turn batter into 2 9 x 5-inch loaf pan coated with vegetable spray.
• 8.A. Sprinkle top with brown sugar.
• 9 Bake in 350°F oven for 35 minutes.
• 10 Cool in pan.
• 11 Meanwhile, in small pan stir together lemon juice and sugar over medium heat until sugar melts. Let sit on stove on low and dump in remaining lemon peel, for 5 to 10 minutes.
• 12 Poke holes in bread with skewer.
• 13 Pour syrup over top.
• 14 Let stand 10 minutes.
• 15 Remove from pan.
• 16 Slice when completely cooled.

Chillin with my iced coffee by the pool.

Coffee Shop Review: Barclay's Coffee and Tea Co.

Supporting your local non-national chain coffee shops is just one way you can help to stimulate the local economy. It's good for socializing and building morale within the community when the local shops do well. That being said, I would never suggest going to a local coffee shop I didn't like. Here in Los Angeles, there are millions of places to get your coffee. Not all of them are that great.

For example, I live right next to a Circle K. They have a wonderful selection of terrible coffee. It is usually old and often very acidic. I do not tell people to go there for coffee, because I regret it every time I do.

However, Barclay's Coffee and Tea Co. ( http://barclayscoffee.com/ ) located at 8976 Tampa Avenue
Northridge, California 91324 is one I can definitely get behind. Always friendly and serving up a delicious cup of coffee as well as some delicious treats, you'll be impressed with the edibles as well as the atmosphere.

They also are a wonderful source for new espresso and coffee machines. Check out their selection on their website and then stop in to see how their knowledgeable staff can inform you on what machine might be right for you.

But the coffee alone is worth the stop. Just ask Martha Stewart who is prominently featured on their website. Not sure how many other federal prisoners are featured on there, pretty sure she's the only one.

Great Coffee = Great Opportunity

Fellow Coffee Lovers! Great opportunity here:

I got a new sponsor. Reserve Your Cup!



If you sign up now, you get your foot in the door before there is a joining fee!

It's a coffee loving and drinking solution that you get paid for.

Check it out and sign up today!

Seriously, it's worth checking out for most people who have an email and love coffee.


Reserve Your Cup!

Coffee Tip: Vanilla Cinnamon Coffee (When there's no dunks)

No big secret really. It's more of a confession than a tip I guess.

Sometimes, I like to add vanilla extract to the grind before I brew...and also, just to foofoo it up a little more, sometimes I even add some cinnamon.

The aroma is very therapeutic. And if you want to effin make fun of me for it, I understand. I don't care, but I understand.

Truth is, it's just an attempt to make it as good as one of my all time favorites, Dunkin Donuts Coffee. Why they don't do it here in L.A. like they do it on the east coast, I don't know. I miss Dunks, but it's awesome that you can find it at some grocery stores now, and it's even more awesome that you can get a big ol' bag of it online anytime you want:

Dunkin' Donuts® French Vanilla Ground Coffee - 40 Oz.

Coffee Table, Coffee Table Book and Building a Coffee Table

Coffee Table Books
This is a must have for any coffee table owner.  It's important to switch up your coffee table entertainment for your guests.  Most people have the same people over regularly, why not give them something to talk about?

The Coffee Table, Coffee Table Book
So this first one is one of my favorites simply for it's title.  It's a book about coffee tables (yes, Kramer had the same idea on Seinfeld, but this one does not turn into a coffee table), and it's what they commonly refer to as a "coffee table" style book...one that is a funny conversation starter...or easy and smart guest entertainer...just sitting there waiting for someone to chuckle at the pun.

The book itself is a beautiful piece of work.  The subject is what it is, a book about different coffee tables.  They are not celebrity coffee tables, or gimicky, just a straight-forward book about tables used to hold a coffee mug.
The Coffee Table, Coffee Table Book



Coffee Table Quotes

As far as a book that does the job for which it is designed, you can't get much more to the point than this.

This book is really quite impressive.  The quotes span a wide variety of subjects from philosophy to trends.  And once again "coffee table" is in the title, so that in itself will also get a smile most of the time.




Planet Earth: As You've Never Seen It Before
Hands down, the best coffee table book that has ever been on my coffee table. Everyone who has picked it up agrees that THE PICTURES ARE STUNNING. Without a doubt some of the most beautiful and captivating photos of our amazing planet. A sure way to take up 10 minutes to 2 hours of your time. Fascinating.
Planet Earth: As You've Never Seen It Before (See all Photography Collections, Catalogues & Exhibitions Books)



Building A Coffee Table
I've been wanting to build a coffee table for awhile and found this downloadable working plan for a
Glass-Topped Coffee Table: Downloadable Woodworking Plan

Of course, this is not something I have just started thinking about.  I've had this book for almost 10 years now:


Creating Coffee Tables: An Artistic Approach (Schiffer Book for Woodworkers)

It's an inspiring book for a lazy hobbyist like myself and also a decent conversation piece.  It really is more for the Professional or at least, well-equipped amateur woodworker.  But there are some really beautiful pieces in there.

Vivint Gives Back: Alternating Hemiplegia of Childhood (VOTE PLEASE!)

The great thing about the internet is how easy it makes it to exchange thoughts and money.

You don't have to write a check and put a stamp on an envelope, you just have to 'click'.

There are tons of charities that are receiving more assistance than ever before and it's because of amazing programs like the one vivint is running now.

When all you have to do is click, it just doesn't get much easier than that...until they have an app that lets you think money to people...where is that app?

Anyway, I'm asking all my friends and readers to take a moment and help a charity close to my heart receive some much needed funding through this great program.

Help AHC: http://www.vivint.com/givesbackproject/charity/57

Go ahead, you can do it...just click.

For less effort than it takes to make your coffee in the morning you can make a real difference in someone's life...

Maple Bacon Coffee!!

I can't wait to wrap my taste buds around this.

It's breakfast flavor without having to eat it all!

BocaJava.com offers this unique, light breakfast blend for only $8/lb.

Back when I was a bachelor, I had a similar experience when my roommate "did the dishes" and served me a cup of coffee that tasted much like maple syrup, bacon grease and soap...

I would expect this to be a slightly more appreciative experience.

Stock Up on the Other Black Gold - Prices Rise!!

Not sure if you noticed last month...but Maxwell House went up 22% in the marketplace...not the stock value, the cost.

Weather plays a big role in prices around the world...not just coffee obviously, any type of farming of crops is subject to mother nature, the bitch that she can be...corn, cotton, etc.

But everyone is looking at Brazil these days and wondering if the projected cold spell coming up from the south pole is going to legitimize the hedge funds that are hiking up the coffee prices around the world.

It's enough to drive a coffee freak to wonder if he needs to start rationing his precious commodity. Start cutting off the wife after the first cup...start offering water to house guests and charging for coffee...just to cover the cost.

I already have started leaving mugs of coffee around the house...behind the toilet paper, under the kitchen sink, in the old draino bottle...

Just some words of wisdom from the OG Coffee Freak.

Read More Here:
MSN Money Article: Coffee faces a 40% price jump

Denis Leary on Coffee

"Is it impossible to get a cup of coffee-flavored coffee in this country any more? What happened with coffee? Did I miss a fucking meeting with the coffee, huh? You can get every other flavour except coffee-flavoured coffee! They got Mochachino, Chocachino, Frappachino, Rappachino, Al Pacino, what the fuck? W, w, w What The Fuck dot com!

I walked into a Starbucks about a year ago, little kid behind the counter I said yeah, give me a regular. "A regular what?" Coffee.

"What flavor?" Coffee flavored coffee! I'll stick that menu right up your ass kid. Menu? Coffee doesn't need a menu, it needs a cup! That's all it needs!"
- Denis Leary

Coffee doesn't need a menu, it needs a cup!

I remember the first time I heard that. I had just gone through a very similar experience in my head that same day. But I didn't say it because the kid behind the counter is still the only person in my life who calls me "boss" regularly.

I can appreciate both sides of the counter...you just have to agree on 2 things...call it coffee if it's coffee (not Americano or Drip) ...call it espresso if it's espresso (or Americano or Cappuccino)...

if your sign says, Starbuck's Coffee, you better have coffee on the damn menu and Starbuck from Battlestar Galactica should be selling it...because YOU DON'T OWN COFFEE!! You serve something that is more beloved than any other single beverage on the planet, including cola...way to go.

If you told me you created it (I'd call you a effing liar, because I know who created coffee and it's not you), or even discovered it before anyone else did...THEN you can start calling it something else if you like because you made it...you found it. If you are using it as a part of a larger drink...fine...

Until then, it's coffee...you don't have to correct me with "drip"...it's hot water over ground coffee in a filter...

Then again...a cup of coffee by any other name will still get me outta bed.

Google Coffee - Not a new Google venture, yet.

Just to answer the question, "What would happen if I googled coffee?" I googled "coffee".

Brands: Starbucks Green Mountain Gevalia Folgers Keurig
Stores: Coffee Bean Dunkin Donuts Amazon eBay Walmart
Types: instant k cup decaf espresso gourmet


Next was a wikipedia article, and after that, a starbucks page about organic coffee.



After that, I asked, "What would happen if I googled "Google Coffee"?" So I did.


First I discovered a Google guide site that puts a google guide on a coffee mug...ridiculous.

The next thing I found was something I had not known about...the Google Directory.
http://www.google.com/Top/Recreation/Food/Drink/Coffee/

I could not find my blog here. :{ which means it's a terribly inadequate directory...further research showed me that it was based off of the dmoz open directory...meh.

And I did find a google forum called the coffee shop...but still, I could not find a google brand of coffee yet.

It's too bad because I hear they make a killer Ginger Bread.

Coffee Porn

this shot from Andre at http://espressoporn.blogspot.com really does it for me.

By now, I'm sure my readers are aware that there is such a thing as adult oriented material called porn. Most are probably aware there is something often referred to as "food porn" which is a nice name for the Food Channel and food oriented photography or even reviews...when you love something passionately or like something more perversely and/or disproportionately than the average human in your general vicinity, it could be considered a type of pornography for your specific taste.

Well, sometimes a good picture of a coffee nature can really appeal to the inside of me.

I'm not an espresso expert, though I have been a barista for several years in the past.

I do like photography, and I do have fond memories of espresso.


Another nice shot from where else but CoffeePorn.net:

If you need some inspiration, you can find it through coffee, one way or another.

Right now I'm feeling inspired to get some coffee a brewin...maybe even a little cream n sugar.

Coffee When There is No Power

Some people call it camping, others call it roughing it, either way, you can't turn on your pot of coffee in the morning with the flick of a switch. In cases of emergency like the flooding and storms they have been having throughout the midwest and east coast, when there is no power for days or weeks...you have to figure out a way to get your dose of coffee. YOU HAVE TO.

Instant coffee is a nice thing if you don't have anything else that tastes more like coffee...but that really is the last resort, because it is a substitute and it tastes like it.

Chewing coffee grounds is not recommended by the ADA. But it will work if you give it enough time. Downside is people won't stop telling you that you have something in your teeth for the rest of the day . That, and it's generally an unpleasant experience.

That leaves camping coffee makers, percolators and french presses.

Outdoor / Non-Electric Coffee Makers

Coleman Camping Coffee Maker
Like my friends who were in the boy scouts always told me, it's good to be prepared. Coleman is pretty much the leader in mainstream camping cooking equipment and they have come up with some brilliant solutions for this acknowledged human necessity that is coffee. Coleman Camping Coffee Maker has got to be my favorite. It was designed for a coleman gas grill, but could be used over an open fire as well.

Percolators

The Coleman 14-Cup Enamelware Coffee Percolator If you are nostalgic and prefer a more "campy" feel to your experience, Coleman also still offers the good ol' percolator.

Percolators, boil the water and the coffee sits in a basket inside. After a period of time, you will see the top show a darker and darker color as the coffee is brewed...pour and enjoy!

 

 

Espresso Percolators

Bialetti 6800 Moka Express 6-Cup Stovetop Espresso Maker (See all Stovetop Espresso Pots) For the espresso addict, you do not have to give up your drug of choice, just because you don't have access to your thousand dollar counter-top machine. I have an antique espresso maker from when my grandma was a little girl that still works amazingly well, even at home on the stove! (Just like the one pictured here.)

Just a tiny pressure percolator you can sit over an open flame but it really makes a strong cup of coffee. The pressure extracts every bit of caffeine out of the grind and it is evident. As usual, espresso really packs a punch and one shot can give you a good boost when you need it quick.

 

 

French Press

8-Cup (34-Ounce) Coffee Press
Basically, the French Press is about as simple as you can get. You boil the coffee in a separate container, and pour it into the press, wait, then press the grounds to the bottom and pour for a delicous hot cup of coffee. It keeps the grounds out for the most part, but the glass ones are difficult to camp with. The best part of this solution is you don't risk burning it.

Bodum 1548-01US Brazil 8-Cup (34-Ounce) Coffee Press (See all Coffee Presses)

All in all, it's not a difficult task, a lot of people boil coffee and then let the grounds settle. Turkish style.

Desperation can lead down many paths, as long as it ends with coffee, you're okay.

Have a cup!

About The AHCKids.org and Why I Want To Raise Awareness For Them

My little sister grew up with Alternating Hemiplegia. It only appears to affect 1 in about a million people and if you look at it that way, she's pretty lucky. As I write this, she is the oldest known individual with alternating hemiplegia and has been a constant source of encouragement to everyone around her.

As a hobby, I write a blog http://ogcoffeefreak.blogspot.com/ -- I share thoughts about coffee, review coffee, review coffee places etc. Just a way for me to write creatively from time to time. I am using my profits from the ad revenue on my blog and the merchandise from the store ( http://www.cafepress.com/ogcoffeefreak ) to support this foundation that is dedicated to help other people like my sister.


If you'd like to know more or donate directly to the organization, feel free to do so.
http://www.AHCKids.org/

PLEASE NOTE: I have no official relationship with the organization. I am not a spokesperson or a sponsor or in any way affiliated with them personally or professionally. I just want to help raise awareness for the work they are doing.

Video: Combat Coffee

After my post a couple days back about Surviving Life Daily with coffee. A reader sent me a link to a video of these Canadian troops making coffee in the desert.

As always, if a canadian is good for anything, they're usually good for a laugh.

Bill Hicks on Coffee

"I'm just skin covering coffee and some real nervous teeth." - Bill Hicks


I have felt this way many times. 

It's like some kind of effed up anti-yoga meditation:

Sip in, swallow, now, imagine your body slowly being filled from the toes up every time you take your sip until you're sweating, peeing and sneezing nothing but coffee. 

Now imagine it more quickly because you don't have time for that kind of b.s. AFTER ALL, YOU ARE A COFFEE DRINKER.

You got stuff to do!

And so do I...so that's all for now.

Do I REALLY Support the GoodWill will with my sales? Yes, but not anymore.

Someone asked me if I really send half of all profits from my cafepress sales to the goodwill.

The answer is YES!

However, I have never sold anything from the cafe press store until recently. I made $2 from a t-shirt sale and yesterday I dropped a buck in the donation jar at the good will store.

If by some freakish chance I suddenly sold more, I would probably write a check, but until then, that seems to be the easiest method of money transfer for me since I do all of my shirt and pineapple-print dress coat shopping there.

UPDATE: I have decided to change the charity for the profits from the shop to something a bit more personal. I will elaborate more in a following post. However, the organization is AHCkids.org

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