If the temperatures would be like this year round, I would be completely ecstatic. We’re in another “cold snap” where the temps are starting out in the 60’s, moving upwards into the 70’s and dropping back into the 60’s throughout the course of the day. MMMMM, that’s nice.
So, today the weather played this same game again. I worked until 1:00, as usual. When I got off, I rolled down my windows and drove home the long way so I could have the river view for my short little trip. I got home and got my shower as usual, but decided I didn’t really want a nap. The cats were so disappointed. Actually they were more disappointed that I didn’t put food down for them. It wasn’t time yet.
However, it was time to replace my coffee pot. Yep, less than a year here and I’m already on my second coffee pot. I have no idea what happened. I’ve used this coffee maker every morning since I got here. I used it Thursday morning with no problems. Friday morning I got up and followed the usual ritual of setting up the pot and turning it on while I fired up the computer and turned on the 24 hour news channel (that repeats the same news every 30 minutes). Usually, by the time the computer’s up and at it, the coffee is ready and waiting for me to pour my first cup. And usually life is good at that point.
Friday morning there was no joy at the pouring of the first cup of coffee. There was no first cup of coffee. There was no coffee.
THERE WAS NO COFFEE! (Coffee addicts everywhere are all groaning in understanding of this horrific revelation.)
My best guess is that something happened to the electronics. The light lit up but the water and pot warmer never heated up. So it didn’t percolate and nothing went into the carafe. How depressing.
Realizing I was not going to function without some form of caffeine, I drank the dregs of a diet coke I had in the fridge, quickly showered and dressed (thank goodness it was jeans day!) and left early to go the long way around so I could hit 7-11 (oh thank heaven…).
I repeated this Saturday and Sunday mornings (only 3 hours earlier) and by this afternoon I had had enough of not having my own *$^% coffee pot anymore.
So today after my shower, I put on public clothes (as opposed to clothes you wear to scrub the bathroom or sleep in) and headed down to Sears. I had been to Wal-Mart (the social center of Titusville on the weekends) on Friday night, but they only had fancy-pants 12-cup programmable monsters or 2-cup baby coffee pots. I am a staunch 4-6 cup woman and would not settle for either extreme, so I left sans coffee pot on Friday.
Today at Sears I wandered around looking at everything BUT coffee pots until I realized I would be truly sorry if I didn’t accomplish my mission. So I wandered up to a counter and asked the clerk if they sell coffee pots. He said no and I got ready to head back to Wal-Mart for an oversized, over-fancy monster. As I was walking away he said, “We do sell coffee makers though.” I resisted the urge to turn around and explain to this snide little puppy just how dangerous a game he was playing. You do not get smart about coffee pots/makers/machines (whatever) to a woman who has had to go 7 miles out of her way every morning for three days in a row to get a 20 oz. cup of not-what-she-wanted-when-she-got-up-that-day. Especially one who is cranky (with or without the coffee issues), and thinking all men need to stay the heck out of her way right now.
Instead, I turned and smiled and said, “Oh, really? Where do you hide them?”
“Just head straight back into that corner there by the restrooms, ma’am.” I don’t know if he was trying to make up for being smart with me (I’m sure my face showed what was flashing in my head in spite of my quick recovery) or if he was trying to get even more smart with me. All I know is there was not a cash register on his head when I walked away and that was a good thing for me because I don’t like the thought of jail.
I found the coffee pots. As in Wal-Mart, my choices remained a two-cupper or a 12-cupper. Still not happy, I searched under, around, and behind every item that resembled any part of a device intended to put caffeine into my body. I finally found a straight 4-cupper with no fancy programming gadgets that brush your teeth after your last cup or whatever. It was not a 4-6-cupper, so I will most likely be making a second pot on some mornings. We’ll just have to see how that goes.
Tomorrow will be the first pot of coffee from this machine. I took the time to unpack and scrub it thoroughly so it would be ready for me tomorrow. Woe be unto the earth if this fails to bring me coffee.
My actual point before I got side-tracked by my coffee-fury was about the beautiful weather today. Once I was done buying my new coffee pot, I decided the weather was way too gorgeous to spend cooped up in my apartment. So I put on my walking shoes and headed out for a walk.
I’ve mentioned the stretch of trees next to the north side of my complex. Today I decided to explore it. I took a jacket with me, which I appreciated a great deal in the woods, and removed and tied around my waist (Hamptonian style) once I was back out on roadways. I soon learned the dirt road on the property stretches all the way through to the road that runs parallel to my road. Enjoying this tidbit, I decided to follow it around to the cross road that connects them so that I made a full circle. The weather was so beautiful and I felt so good just being outside that I didn’t pay the least bit of attention to how far I had gone, but if I had to guess, I’d say it was about a 2-mile circle. (Not the diameter, the outside of the circle was 2 miles around.) It was a very nice walk and I hope to repeat it often. I passed along side a nice little park I didn’t know was there, and pretty little cemetery. And the people I passed were all friendly and said “Hi” back to me, which never EVER happened when I lived in the Towers. It was very nice.
So that’s my big adventure this weekend. Several of my friends from the Hash down here, and apparently some of my friends from the Hash in Virginia were at Daytona Bike Week having a blast. I had been jealous of them until I took that walk, especially when one of them drunk-dialed me while I was at Deb’s house Friday night. I think I had quite enough fun now that I think back on it. Good food and good wine with a good friend, and a good walk today. Life is good today. And it will be good tomorrow if my new coffee pot works like it should.
