The Saturday choice of coffee is extensive. In order not to be too spoiled, the special coffee is reserved for the weekend. Usually, a cappuccino is the choice, but today, something else is on the mind. Let’s see. The options include flat white, latte, latte macchiato, espresso, double espresso, or plain coffee. Well, plain […]

  My favorite place is the kitchen. I do a lot of work there, and it is the home of my beloved coffee machine. It sits in its mysterious blackness on its haunches, just waiting for the order to strike. One touch of the power button is like waking up a sleeping dragon. The stretches, […]

  The coffee machine sends me a good morning message on the touch pad. “Good Morning, Boss. There will be a slight delay with your morning cup today. It seems that someone forgot to fill the bean reservoir. Through Bluetooth, we contacted the freezer to have a fresh supply delivered. Unfortunately, frozen beans do not […]

This morning is cappuccino morning. The machine receives its command, and the grinding, whirring sounds bring joy to the heart. There it is—a beautiful 8 oz cup of frothy goodness. One sip and a wipe of the foam mustache prepare one for the clock. The clock is set for April 11, 1925. The location is […]

The coffee machine, as has become a familiar pattern, informs me of a malfunction. This time, the cappuccino operation is temporarily disabled for repairs. Since that was not on my mind this morning, the news has no impact on me. The coffee button starts the process. In checking the date for April 5th, 1925, the […]

The coffee machine gives me a message that it needs to be cleaned. It is an automated process that only requires me to drop a cleansing tablet into the appropriate hopper when prompted. Knowing full well until the machine is cleaned, there will be no coffee. So the button is pressed, which starts the twenty-minute […]

  The coffee machine detects the reality of being away for a while. She asks about the nature of my coffee drinking for the past week. Hemming and hawing did not forestall the answer long. The confession of drinking coffee brewed elsewhere brings a silent rebuke from the machine. “I hope you have a doctor […]

The coffee machine leaves a message to watch the time after pressing my order. The 10 oz coffee order is pressed and the cup is filled in ten seconds. A message comes back that the machine will try for a new record tomorrow. With a shoulder shrug and a sip, the clock is the next […]

  An explanation is in order. Last week, there may have been some confusion around the fact that the coffee machine communicated with me. To be clear, the machine does not talk. She sends messages through a mounted menu screen. The screen also has a touch pad, so no external mouse is needed. It wouldn’t […]