Espresso Express

(Continuation from previous post)

And so I "finally" (and by that I mean after obsessively cross referencing the number of reviews against the ratings, price, quality, yada yada yada and trying to determine if there were any deals to be had out there cause I love the discount, but then who doesn't) decided to purchase an open box Ascaso Mini in black ABS plastic.

C'mon, aint she a beaute

I purchased her online for $199 from idrinkcoffee, a fairly local "merchant" (they call themselves merchants- great word) free shipping included. That's a good deal- $40 off the regular price because of the open box. What is an open box you ask-or maybe you figured it out cause you 're smart but I asked. It means that a previous customer opened it and returned it cause they immediately decided they didn't like it, (why would they not like it on sight?- that's disturbing) or there was a minor problem which has been repaired and it is now in perfect working condition,(even more disturbing- but they say it is perfect now and are giving me the normal warranty so it must be perfect, right?)  I took the plunge notwithstanding my concerns. So I was pretty excited when a day after my order, I received a large package in the mail. Yes indeedy- it was my new grinder. Excellent coffee here we come.  Took er home and pulled er out of the box- she looked perfect. Ready to go when I am! Had seen a video on how to run er, so the next morning, plugged er in- put some beanos in the hopper, hit the grind button- she ground once, she ground twice and then stopped. Cold. Stopped cold. That's right.  Do you mind! This can not be, and yet it be. GRRRR. Ground the coffee in the magic bullet, dripped it through the drip maker- had an crappy coffee, dashed off an email to idrinkcoffee espressing (ya, that's a joke) my dismay, propped up a note in bold marker on the new grinder for Mr. L which read "DOES NOT WORK" and went for a run.  Mr. L had taken a look by the time I got back and said "Yup, it doesn't work- you're right." After a few emails back and forth with customer service at idrinkcoffee wherein they suggested possible but ultimately futile fixes I decided to speed up the process by returning the sucker in the flesh.

Because in the meantime, I had found a truly astounding deal at Whole Latte Love (cute yes? Whole Lotta Love- Led Zeplin, I get it- I wonder if they had to pay to use it) a Gaggia Classic espresso machine rated pretty highly by coffeegeek and discounted together with the use of a coupon to $329 about $270.00 off.

C'mon, aint she a beaute, too

I wasn't even going to get an espresso machine but could not pass up this deal. I bet I've spent thousands of unnecessary dollars on not passing up a deal- anybody who goes to Costco knows what I mean. Maybe one day I'll be able stop to that.

There's a whole lotta story about getting that machine here involving, Meg, Phil, border guards, a dancing bear and a clown, but the good news it that it was shipped and landed on my kitchen table within 2 days.  I gotta say the delivery for this coffee equipment is express.
In the intervening day, I had driven to idrinkcoffee (it's worth the drive to Milton- gorgeous store with gleaming and shiny eye candy, equipment wise, guaranteed to blow your mind), met Stawek the very knowledgeable & charming founder and CEO who calmed me down by preparing for me a fantastic espresso right there, appropriately apologizing about the open box fiasco, answering all my boring questions about grinders and giving me the $40 off a new polished steel Ascaso mini. (Good PR, Stawek but you had me at the espresso). So here is the upgrade:

C'mon it's worth the extra $50 to have matching equipment

I was on an upswing. So flash forward to Sunday morning-time for my espresso which I was going to have with French toast with real maple syrup to celebrate. The stakes were high and yet unbelievably but true there was another cafuffle with the grinder involving it getting clogged, Phil and Mr. L opening it up, some fiddling with a thingamabob, the guys closing it up- finding that the screw didn't catch, trying to find another screw, til finally (yes, for the love of Seymour, please, please let this woman have a cup of espresso) all was in readiness, the Spanish machine- Barcelona, (grinder) the Italian machine- Milan, (espresso) yours truly, (more than ready) and ta da!

Espresso Express :  a mere 20 easy steps!

So worth it!

MORNING CUP O JOE

How important is your morning cup of coffee? I mean really.  Well, I know for me its pretty darn important, so when I became thwarted in my attempt to have a decent cuppa- I knew this could not stand.

 *As a sidebar I have thought the thought " this is the talk of an out-of-touch, privileged  person living in the first world- get a life- try living in the Ukraine" and while it's all true, and enjoying a good cup of coffee simply is not that relevant, it's also true that our society gets all hepped up about this type of thing (just go to coffeegeek.com and you'll see just how intense people get about coffee and coffee paraphernalia)- and other creature comforts, luxuries and material items that maybe we shouldn't focus on so much....... but do.  Also, I like to think I am injecting a "shot"(espresso term) of  humour and irony into this issue. So having rationalized that it's ok, I'll continue.*

 I would go to sleep at night knowing I had something exciting and delicious to wake up to- (Mr. Lovely- well-yes, but  he tends to sleep in and I'm talking about) my morning cup of coffee. And even though I have been a lover of (Mr. L, well- yes, but I'm still talking about) the coffee for over 34 years, I was  pretty much low tech. We had a Cuisinart burr grinder which was 8 years old, and I had a Bialetti (I was on my 4th one), that I used on the stove top. So when my grinder started seriously jamming (it always has a bit, so that getting the coffee was always a bit of  a grind- ha!) and I had to attempt to clear it out with a shishkabob skewer and then press down with all my might on the plastic lever, which more often than not didn't even work, I started to get frustrated and then grumpy.  I began grinding my coffee in the magic bullet- which is not designed for grinding at all. It crunched the beans into large chunks and then smaller and smaller chunks. GRRR #1. Then my busted up Bialetti became glued together so that I could not unscrew the bottom. Do you mind! Sometimes Mr. L could unscrew it but sometimes not. Sometimes I forgot to ask him the night before (I get up a good hour before him and need that equipment to be available first thing.) Here is a picture of my Bialetti and the magic bullet:

Rough- don't I know it.

 GRRR #2. Out of desperation I began using Mr. L's drip coffee maker which quite frankly made inferior coffee. NOT GOOD. My morning ritual (of having a coffee and going for a run followed by another coffee) was becoming a drag and I did not look forward to it. It was difficult to be joyful about getting my sorry butt out of bed at 6:30, that's for sure.  And so commenced my search- for a new grinder.  I knew I could get a new Bialetti anywhere so I started with the grinder.  What a commotion. I went, obviously, to coffeegeek.com.  I think the name speaks for itself but here is their spiel from the FAQ:

"What's the deal with CoffeeGeek?

The deal is, we're a community of coffee and espresso lovers, and the CoffeeGeek website gives people, both consumers and folks in the coffee industry, a place to hang out, read, debate, write, or even ponder the finer aspects of coffee and espresso.  Our primary concern with CoffeeGeek is creating and maintaining the ultimate destination online or off for the coffee and espresso loving persion. (I think they mean person - give em a break).This includes industry people as well as your typical Joe Consumer looking to find out just a bit more about brewing a better cup.  We beat any industry publication or trade journal in terms of monthly readers, but we're never satisfied - we want the world to learn about better coffee. It's going to take some time."

Its founder is Canadian from Vancouver and I say bravo and thank you, Mark Prince. It is very detailed and informative, often humorous and so a pleasure to read and they sure had a LOT to say about grinders- first and foremost- don't skimp on one. The variables are enormous- (get ready for some coffee speak)- step vs stepless, doser vs doserless, espresso vs.french press and last but certainly not least how much moolah you want to lay out. Yikes! Ya, I can't pick a colour- how on earth can I pick a grinder? Three variables were helping narrow it down- my budget was under $300 ( which sounds like a fortune and is, but is actually an entry level price for coffee aficionados), I wanted it for espresso, and it needed to fit under my 15 inch kitchen cabinet. And so....

Tobacco and French Perfume

Jennifer Lawrence, or rather her character, Rosalyn, in the movie American Hustle has accented (or acscented as Alex would pun) "scents for women" with her enthusiasm for the smell on her nail polish topcoat- "smells like flowers but with garbage" she raves. Interesting that the garbage adds to the allure. Or is Rosalyn just wacky? Yes but I think there is something to having the somewhat off, earthy scent adding to the appeal of the sweet, citrus or floral. I prefer that as well in a scent (to put on my body)- maybe not garbage though.

On my recent trip to the Yucatan peninsula I stopped by the local perfumerie, Coqui, Coqui in Valladolid. They had a lab on site (because they use local organic material) and a very posh sales clerk who spoke perfect English and allowed me to sample some of their more popular fragrances. I tried quite a few but none was quite so alluring as the tobacco scent.  It was...rich, mysterious and yes, smoky. I had to have some-- who wouldn't?

Tobacco perfume....drool!

I would have bought more because the essence was so great but I am a big fan of the french perfume-(the floral but mixed with  the dark, hefty scents which include roots, wood, pepper, black tea), the Hermessence four pack to be exact.  Mr. L got me hooked on Hermes perfume when he bought me the Vetiver Tonka as a birthday present one year. Here is the write up: "powerful vetiver smoothed out by velvety hazelnut. A hint of pralines is mixed with the sweetness of Tonka beans to soften the earthy rough effect of the roots".

Here's what the vetiver root and the tonka bean look like:

vetiver root- rough

tonka bean

and here is the swanky Hermessence bottle:

It has a slightly green tinge

I love wearing this sophisticated perfume. I feel very grown up, edgy, sexy. Like I did when I used to smoke. (Ya that's why tobacco and perfume mixed together- really the perfect combo!) When it was just about finished Mr. L offered to buy me some more.  I guess he liked it too. Well, what's a girl to say? (Thank you darling,that would be divine. Yes, that's the ticket.)  We trekked down to Hermes in Toronto and found that they had a product we had never clued into before, on offer- the Hermessence 4 pack:

Signature orange box

with

4 gorgeous perfumes

4 of 11 options

Personally,  I am drawn to the scents that have floral tones but combined with woody and murky essences- like cedar, pepper, tea.  The four I now have are the Vetiver Tonka, Paprika Brazil (brazil tree mixed with paprika), Santal Massoia (which comes from the massoia tree which is native to New Guinea) and the Poivre Samarcande (old oak mixed with pepper). I sometimes combine two.  I wear perfume every weekday and when going out on the weekend and I have to say I get quite a lift from it.

My next purchase will be the Ambre Narguile which Jean-Claude Ellan (a Hermes perfumeur) describes as follows:

Amber, the Western expression of Eastern fragrances, has a warm, enveloping, almost carnal smell. (ME - Do you mind- Jean Claude!)  I wanted to imbue this idea of amber with the memory of the East I love where tobacco - blended with the smells of fruit, honey and spices - is smoked in narguilés, or water pipes, and where swirls of smoke diffuse a sweet sense of intoxication." 

SWOON!
They didn't have this fragrance the last time but now that I know that tobacco and perfume go together it's the one.

I Love Mexico

It's true. I love Mexico or at least the part that I visited- the Yucatan peninsula. I didn't get a tee shirt but I should have.

Here's the top three things that I love about Mexico:

Uno: The people. They are lovely-warm, chatty, charming, helpful and have a good sense of fun and humour. I know it's a generalisation - I am sure there are some nasty ones out there, but the people I met were great.

Here I am with Bambi- our guide (in the Punta Laguna nature reserve) to an island with  20 different species and  about thousand birds-x 2 cause there were 2 islands. I'm not even kidding

I'll give you a couple of examples:

A guy started talking to me in Spanish in the town square in Valladolid. I said "No hablo espangnol except que si se -Nuestra elefante no es blanco" ( "I don't speak Spanish except I do know our elephant is not white." You will recall  from the previous post that was one expression that I had learned). I smiled and he smiled and he said with a twinkle in his eye "No- nuestra elefante es gris!"  I must have used my line about the elephant about 20 times through my travels in Mexico- Mr. Lovely says it has now become a meme down there but every time people got that I was kidding and laughed or at least gave me a smile.

Another time Mr. Lovely and I went to a bar- I ordered some vino (which was not so good I have to say- but on the up side was only 35 pesos- so under 3 bucks-  do you mind-what do you want for that amount of money right- margaritas definitely the way to go if you can take the sugar) and Mr L said he didn't want anything. The waiter said  "Amigo this is so sad- go ahead order what you want- I'll buy you a drink" He meant it too. He kept coming back and hamming it up about Mr. L not drinking and being concerned for his health and happiness. Fun.

The last example is when I was checking in security at the aerpuerto - I stupidly left my oversized and very expensive Kevin Murphy container of hair lotion in the carry-on even though they tell you 9 million times not to. So of course it was confiscated- but the young woman said in Spanish but I managed to glean her intent- go and find some little bottles and you can transfer the product over- (there was only about 1/3 left) Who does that? So that is what I did and here is my hair product:

Yup, Kevin Murphy in tic tac

Dos: The best dining locations ever!  We spent half our time on the Mayan Riveria which has the most beautiful beach- (paraiso de playa) I have ever been to, so most of our meals there (mostly ate the ceviche or fish- it is the place for sea food!) were overlooking this gorgeous beach and ocean:

View from our table at La Lunite in Akumal

The other half of the time we visited the colonial cities of Vallodolid, Izamal and Merida so our meals there were in these splendid courtyards- fantastic trees and vegetation- we were plunked right down in the middle of the jungle.

 Kinich restaurant in Izamal- pretty tropical

It was fantastic.  I was not super fussed on the Yucantan cuisine except in one gourmet restaurant in Tulum but the locations could not be beat!

Tres: The art.  I was fascinated by the skeletal art -very Tim Burtonesque- he definitely was inspired here. But in particular I captivated by La Calavera Catrina (or Dapper Skeleton; Elegant Skull).  The original was an etching made by a  political printmaker/engraver, Jose Gudalupe Posada between 1910 and 1913- an image of a female skeleton dressed in a hat befitting an upper class aristocrat.

Isn't she creepy?

She is a satirical portrait of Mexican natives who were trying to adopt European ways and has become a major symbol of the Dia de Muertos (Day of the Dead ) celebrations which take place on (no surprise) Oct 31, Nov 1 and Nov 2.  I gotta get me there for that. I also heard the intent is to mock out people taking themselves and their riches too seriously for as it came to poor Yorick- "let her paint an inch thick, to this favour she must come". Great reminder- great stuff!
We went on several house tours a couple which featured these papier mache Catrinas- I thought they were spectacular. So much so I had to bring one back for a place in my parlour:

My very own Catrina. She has hair and a wonderful butt

What do you think?

Mexico Aqui Vamos (Mexico Here We Come)

So in less than a week, Mr. Lovely and I will be picking up a rental car at the airport in Cancun and driving to our first stop just outside of Akumal, in the Mayan Riveria in the Yucatan Peninsula, Meh-"EEK"-oh! Al, who is a big punster set us up with "So would you say that where you are going, you will have an opportunity to be out in the sun or in other words the place you are going is a place where..You can tan". Yes, Al, I would definitely say that. He loves being able word play so this goes on a lot in out house when he's home.

We are pretty excited about the trip because it has all the elements we strive for in a vacation: Beautiful scenery, cultural input, physical activity and down time. First off and this was a big criteria given our FREEZING cold winter- (Do you mind- Ontario weather!)-it'll be hot, hot hot and I don't just mean the tamales!  For some chill time, we are staying in a hut off the grid in Tulum;  for exercise, we plan to snorkel in Akumal, bike in Coba to see the Mayan ruins in the forest, and also hike around the ruins in Chichen Itza, and elsewhere where we can find them; and for the cultural- well the ruins, - and in the colonial town of Merida, we plan to go English Library House and Garden Tour,  visit a couple of museums ( apparently there is reputed to be the best modern art museums in Mexico, here) a cathedral and the local market and one day hope to drive to see the flamingos in Celestun about an hour's drive west of Merida. We are going prepared. First off we spoke with our friends, the Terrys who had taken a similar trip a few years back. This was their route:

Cancun, Akumal, Tulum, Coba, Valladolid, Chichen Itza Merida, and back

This is our route:

Cancun, Akumal, Tulum, Coba, Valladolid, Chichen Itza, Merida, and back

Ya, ok we are copying them but why not- it worked for them. They also gave us their waterproof map of the area, their travel books, their tips on where to eat drink and play, difficult turns in the road, and when to get to a particular spot to avoid touristos and traffic and their wonderful enthusiasm for the place. They are great guides- for sure.

I also have been studying Spanish on my Duolingo app. What a world!  But in a good way- (not in the wicked witch of the west -"I'm melting WAW WAW"- way). It's a really great learning tool and I have learned invaluable phrases like "El pingüino contra el cangrejo"- Translation- "The penguin vs the crab". I don't even know what that means in English! Also "Nuestro elefante no es blanco." Translation- "Our elephant is not white". I am sure those will come up many times during our trip.  Seriously though I am having fun trying to learn the language and I definitely have memorized the important stuff like, aqua (water), cervaza (beer), vino (needs no translation), desayuno (breakfast), almuerzo (lunch), and cena (dinner), and the all important - where is the restroom "donde estan los servivios por favor"  (because this apparently more refined than say el bano- room that has a bathtub) and hablas ingles?

I think we are set! If you have any hot tips- kindly lay them on me within the next few days.  Hasta la vista baby!

So Long Solar Nails

When I was down in Tallahassee visiting my sister, my mom treated me to some solar nails. What are they you ask? Well they are fake-a-roo nails- that is - acrylic nails, gel clomped on top of your real nails. They last about a month until the nails grows out so much they start to look insane and they have to be refilled. You look like you've had a french manicure.  My sister had solar nails and was going on about how excellent they were. She and my mom agreed that my nails were egregious and that I needed nail help big time.

Ok, they may need a little help

So off we went to see Helen who according to my sister is a genius.  Helen is from Vietnam and though her English is spotty (while I was there she mostly spoke choppy, incomprehensible words in her confident no-nonsense manner to other staff who sidled up to the station to chit chat with her), she is slick and styling, has cool solar nails herself, and runs a large, well lit, swanky salon in a strip mall.  It is a family operation and her husband works there too, giving pedicures and manicures and the works. Other guys too.  Guys can do that stuff.  Who knew?  I was pretty impressed. Mom gave Helen a $15 tip and I gave Helen a hug.

Here is how my hands looked with the solar nails:

Note the pearls. They don't come with the nails but are there to show if you get solar nails you will get pearls too.

I have to admit my nails looked pretty great. C'mon look at them. Ok those are not "my' nails but they looked just like that.  Plus they were so "sleeky" smooth. I got into the habit of admiring them multiple times an hour and also running them along my lips for the tactile sensation. It was comforting.  So all was good until somehow, (don't even ask), I sliced through one nail and it was part on, part off.  This was bad, Rose. (A la Titanic, when Jack is handcuffed in the basement and the water is threatening to drown him). But it had been almost about a month since installation and they needed refilling anyways. So I called up a family run nail place that had been recommended to me and asked if I could get an emergency appointment. The exchange went something like this:

Not Helen: Don't need appointment-you come-we fit you in.

Me:  Really?  Awesome. Is there a time I should come that's better? 

Not Helen: No. Come anytime -we fit you in.
When I got there- (a dingy, small place that had construction paper on the windows blocking the inside from the out--also in a strip mall) Not Helen asked:  "Have you been here before? "Me: (And looking back on it, I'm now pretty sure this was the wrong answer): "No."
NH: "We no can help you. We short staff and people waiting." There were two women getting manicures and one or maybe two women waiting.  I don't know for sure. She was already walking away from me.

Me:  WHAAAATTTT??? (That part was inside my head.) "Well can you tell me how long I would have to wait?"

NH: We can't help you today.
Me:  But I called and you said you would fit me in. 

NH: We fit you in if we have no other customers.

Do you mind! That is not what "fit you in" means!
I was not happy at all, not one little bit. This SN gig was wearing on my nerves.  I managed to yank the balance of the acrylic off myself so it didn't look so weird. Nine solar nails and counting.

A couple of days later I was out in another part of town I had to drive to--buying shoes with Al, (it's a thing we do, yes) and I stumbled upon another nail place (and this was in a strip mall too- I'm starting to see the pattern). I wandered in and asked the little Asian man sitting at the cash if they could fix my solars. He offered me a seat (right at the cash- it had a whitish towel on the counter sill and some supplies there) and commenced a-working.  Weird and maybe not so hygienic but I was game.  Again I could barely understand what he said other than his wife worked there too and his daughter had moved back home and he was mad about it. There was a slightly different procedure and the white parts were decidedly thicker (true, I had assented by nodding when he asked me something) but they were back to scratch. Later that day I dropped a winter hat box on the same nail that had been totally repaired and it came right off. I decided to live with it.

I kept up with the nails even though they had started growing out, chipping and lifting up. I may be a bit hard on my nails- even my fake ones.  A couple of days ago, I'd had enough. I did some world wide web research, bought a bucket of salon strength acetone and started the hideous process of removing these solars. It took about 2 hours and they are still not completely off but my hands were getting beat up-- red, itchy and dry so I had to stop.  I have my nails back. They are shorty, stubby, weak as kittens, have bleeding hang nails, swollen cuticles and cracked tops but they are real and they don't require salon maintenance.  Of course I will miss the Asian cultural part - that was interesting.

PS. I ran this post by Mr. Lovely who suggested it might offend some ethnic sensibilities- which I hope is not the case as I strive not to offend- but to be descriptive (and funny).  I welcome your comments on that or anything really.

Note to Self -Unclutter Your World (Start with your Desk)

As a lawyer, I, and my clients, have to sign a vast amount of documents- Transfers, Charges, Acknowledgements, Last Wills and Testaments, Powers of Attorneys, Directions, yada yada yada, caveat emptor, fiduciary, res ipsa loquitur.. er...you know- a whole host of very important and interesting legal stuff. So as a lawyer I need to make sure that I have good working pens on hand. These are the pens that I have on my desk that I can easily access when I need them:

Yessir yessir- 2 (bags) full- easy to grab

This is the inside of the top drawer of my desk:

Pens yes and also bracelets, bandaids, tide to go, comb, white out, bank receipt, elastics, pencils, note about hotel in Sicily(hot tip from a client), stress release fish, highlighter, stapler remover, post it notes, napkin, scissors, gum wrappers

Do you mind? I'm not even kidding.

Ya well if I believed in New Years Resolutions- (although maybe it is too late- it is Jan. 12 for crying out loud) one would be to clean out my drawer.  Happily, I don't, so I that's why I have stuff in there from over a year ago.  As Frances Ha, in the quirky, life affirming Noah Baumbach film of the same name, says "I'm not messy- I'm busy." Whatever.

But seriously, every once in a while I think it is a good idea to unclutter your world- it tidies your mind and makes your environment more workable and pleasant. It does take energy and I have to admit that sometimes I have to bootstrap it but I always feel satisfied, even proud afterwards. I don't have to resolve to do it- I just have to do it........... tomorrow!