Tuesday, September 01, 2009

tomatoes, anniversary, coffee

Posted by PicasaThese tomatoes have a natural black tint when they ripen. They are small but remarkably sweet. For three years my tomato crop has been ruined by blight. This year, I nearly gave up and grew only three plants of this unusual variety. I wish I had planted more.
.
On the anniversary of the beginning of World War 2, I keep thinking of Woody Allen's joke: "I don't like listening to Wagner. It always makes me want to invade Poland."
.
My beautiful thing for today is the clean, bitter taste of coffee which lingers long after you have emptied the cup and left the coffee shop.

3 comments:

Roderick Robinson said...

Two largish coffees in a sort of Laura-Ashley-patterned china mug, at lunchtime, are the pivot of my day. The ritual has evolved over many years. Given its association with heroin and warlords it was ages before I realised that Colombia also produces rich but not over-strong coffee and that is presently my bean of choice. The search for the perfect percolator stretches back over decades during which time probably eight or nine devices, still completely functional but defective in some design detail, have been discarded. The present one made by Krup, famous for other things, cost three times the normal price. I look upon my coffee-making as a small world I can control.

Reflecting on the memory you carried away from the coffee shop I wonder whether that long-lasting effect was and is further enhanced by the conviction that black coffee is unequivocally an adult drink. It is not something we are required to share with youth since youth, it seems, is not interested in such a straightforward experience. Most Starbucks customers (ie, the young) order potions on which cinnamon is scattered or which emerge bulbously from the mug. As you can see I'm in my slippered pantaloon phase today.

CC said...

I can almost smell the sun warmed garden
smell of those tomatoes...
Then the coffee...ummmmm.

Clare said...

This blogger might be helpful -- www.tomatolover.com -- she's quite good on all the scientific stuff behind tomato growing.

I love my daily coffee, but I can't drink black, because I won't sleep for about three days.