Tag Archives: coffee

Throwing a Little Wild

Hello and welcome to another post from the couch.  It is a good day for a Throwback Thursday, I think.  I had a chance to go to breakfast with my Elks friends (the Breakfast Club, the son of one of the members calls it, I like that) but feared my leg would not cooperate.  I am in better spirits these last two days, because I managed to brew some coffee.  Two cups yesterday, and I am on my second cup today.  AAAhhhh!

Behind the coffee cup is my biggest fan.

I just scrolled all the way down and all the way back up my Media Library and could not find the picture of the coffee mug I am using.  I settled for Dyn’s Cider Mill, so I can plug an area business.  I just looked at their Facebook page and saw a post from July 2025 saying they would be closed for the upcoming year.  I wonder if that means they will be open sometime in 2026.  I can only hope.  And hope if they do open I can make my way over there.

I do not currently feel fresh as a daisy, alas.

I said this was going to be a Throwback Thursday, so I share this picture from June 2017 of my lovely front lawn daisies.  I missed the daisies and my peonies this year. Who knew the season for them would be so short?

A dignified group, yes?

This is a kind of guerrilla theatre group I was in in 2019, Mummers Along the Mohawk.  We performed at the Great American Irish Festival, the last year it was held in the Herkimer County Fairgrounds in Frankfort, NY. What fun it was.

The house had no tenants.

This was in 2020, a barren year for activities, theatrical or otherwise.  But I see I took time to decorate my front yard.  Why did I not do that again? Note to self: decorate the front lawn.  After I get rid of the dead daisies and peonies.

I see I am over 300 words.  That’s pretty good.  Coffee, theatre, daisies… I could bill this as a Non-Sequitur Thursday, too.  As always, I thank you for tuning in.

 

Would Coffee Help?

Well, I am having a difficult time making my Lame Post Friday post.  I do not want to go on about my health woes, but I have some pain that comes and goes (mostly comes), and it keeps coming especially strong every time I sit down at my Chromebook to write.  Could it be psychosomatic?  I fear my post will be dull and boring so I am subconsciously trying to keep myself from making it?  It could be, but then, what am I subconsciously trying to prevent myself from doing the rest of the time?  Also, I am almost always afraid my posts will be dull and boring, yet I make them anyways.  Once again I say, what the hell, me?

At least she dies happy.

I add a silly picture to pep things up.  I personally have not had coffee or tea since Friday.  No wine, either (SAY IT AIN’T SO!!!!!).  When I do finally have a cuppa, I expect to enjoy it.

Pretty!

I add the Luna Moth because it is beautiful.  I was happy to get a picture of it while I was supposed to be working.

Who, me?

While searching for a third picture, I found Candice DeLong of Deadly Women and other true crime shows.  Last night while I was clicking around RokuTV, I found Deadly Women and watched a couple of episodes.  It is a total re-enactment-fest, which I don’t particularly like, but I loves me some Candice DeLong.

Reading over this post before I hit Publish, I think it reads like I haven’t had coffee in a week.  Maybe I’ll try for a caffeinated post tomorrow.

 

My Java Reward

When you get your biggest chore done by eight o’clock in the morning, it is a beautiful thing.  That is the observation I made to the staff at the Java Shop in Herkimer, NY this morning after I made my order.

In fact I had more than just coffee.

I had written my article on the Herkimer Town Board meeting for the Daily Sentinel, taken a picture to go with it, and got them both emailed out.  I drank a cup of tea while I  wrote, just in case I decided to treat myself to breakfast out (must watch my coffee intake).  Of course I decided to treat myself.  I ordered a breakfast sandwich with ham and provolone on a toasted roll, because I enjoyed the last one so much.  I got a regular hot coffee.

A writer’s breakfast.

As I breakfasted (broke fast?), I worked on a letter to my friend Kim in Colorado.  I SO miss going on Mohawk Valley Adventures with her!  Dylan, the young man who brought my sandwich to me, asked if I was writing another murder mystery.  I remember Dylan from when he worked at the End Zone.  He remembered me coming in with my friend who had since moved away.  I was pleased to tell him I was talking to that very friend.

That does remind me I need to start working on the next murder mystery.  At least a good breakfast should help!

 

A Little Help Waking Up

Last week when I was out and about and wanted to treat myself to a late breakfast, I finally went to Saturday Spreads in Frankfort, NY.  I was extremely happy I finally made it there.

I love a good coffee shop!

The cafe is located where the Knight Spot used to be.  They were open only for ice cream for the longest time and finally opened indoor seating.  They have remodeled the inside.  There is less seating than when it was the Knight Spot, but it is charming.  I ordered a coffee and an everything bagel with fancy toppings, then sat at a tall table (regular readers know I have a thing for tall tables).

They serve Utica Coffee, which has the memorable tag line, “Wake the Hell Up!”  Of course I love local, but this is also yummy coffee.  My bagel came with cream cheese, tomato, capers, red onion, and fresh dill.  It had a name but I foolishly did not make a note of it.  All the more reason to return!  The other reason being to try the other bagel toppings or treats they offer, and to drink some more coffee (I often need to wake the hell up).

For those who do not share my thing for tall tables.

Saturday Spreads is located at 264 Main St., Frankfort, NY, phone number 315-444-8151.

 

It All Started with the Spider

I am having a Tired Tuesday Post.  It may even be construed as a Terrible Tuesday Post, but let us not become too dramatic.  Then again, drama is my life!  (Said with a dramatic gesture).

This morning there was a spider in my coffee.  Ew!  This is what happens when you do not examine your mug before adding coffee.  I have only myself to blame.  Full disclosure:  I drank the rest of the coffee, spider germs be damned.  I had to finish my story about the Ilion Village Board Meeting for Sentinel Media.  Caffeine helped.

As my day progressed, I needed to go to Ilion again to drop off a flier of my latest murder mystery, A Revolutionary Murder, at Morning Star Methodist Church.  While there I shopped at their Pay It Forward Thrift Store.  Alas, I did not take any pictures.

Later in the day, I walked to the post office to mail a note and post card, then on to the Herkimer Elks Lodge to reserve two tickets to the previously mentioned murder mystery.  Then I walked on to The End Zone Pub.  Just to say hello.

You can’t really see the new light.

While I was there, Brock, the owner, was placing a new light in the front display.  I took a picture, but as you see, not a very successful one.  What can one expect on a day which began with a spider in one’s coffee?

 

Another Brew, Another Book!

This morning I had occasion to go to Little Falls, NY, so naturally I made a stop at Athenix Books and Brews, one of the all time coolest bookstores ever.  Nick, the owner, greeted me by name as I walked in, which is so flattering!  I had a box of books from my parents’ house and asked if he was still taking donations.  He said, “Always!”  This is good news for me, because I haven’t even started cleaning out my own library!

Lots of choices!

I was in need of a treat to ordered a Mocha with whipped cream and a deluxe brownie (it’s true:  I do not have weight-loss goals; I have weight-loss daydreams).  I sat down at a tall table and worked on a letter to a friend while I sipped and nibbled.  I really want to begin some more substantive writing projects than letters and post cards, but one does what one can, and I believe most people like to receive snail mail on occasion.

A very welcoming atmosphere.

Sometime I will have to come in with a friend, so we can sit on the couch to sip and chat.  After I had finished my treat, I naturally looked for a book and found one amongst the used books.  Reduce, reuse, recycle!

No, I did not purchase one of these books!

It has actually been a while since I had stopped into Athenix but I hope to stop in again soon.  As I was leaving, two ladies were entering.  “This is a great place,” I told them, and I could tell they were quite taken with it as they continued into the store.

Athenix Books and Brews is located at 624 E. Main St., Little Falls, NY, and is open daily.

 

A Really Tiresome Tuesday

I really really want to do a Tired Tuesday post.  That is, I really really want to do a blog post and only feel capable of managing a Tired Tuesday.  At the risk of oversharing (it’s kind of a hobby of mine), tomorrow I am finally having a colonoscopy.  I guess some people start getting them at age 50, but I have always been kind of a late bloomer.  I tried to spend the last few days eating easy to digest food (as much as I could manage at the Elk of the Year Banquet), and today I am eating NOTHING SOLID.  What a struggle for a big fat pig like me!

Wednesday afternoon or Thursday will be OK with me, too.

Of course I have very little to complain about.  I can sit here and do nothing except not eat; I do not have to be at work, I do not have to be getting anything specific done.  Then again,  I always say go with your strengths: complaining is one of mine.

What I will feel like if I go too long without eating.  Or without coffee.

I went to look for a silly picture to cheer the post (and myself) up, and found this one.  How appropriate, yes?  My only hope is that I do all the prep properly, so nothing terrible happens, like having to reschedule or my butt exploding.  I try to keep myself from envisioning possibilities.

The other possibility, if I don’t get food and coffee at some point.

My sense of humor comes to my rescue as usual (what isn’t to laugh at Joan Crawford with an ax?).  I laugh at myself.  I sit here drinking tea, water, broth.  Later on I will have some GatorAde and that stuff they tell you to put in it.  I feel a little better now that I have expressed myself about the matter.  I hope you are all having a delightful Tuesday.

 

An Artistic Interlude

Yesterday when I was in Rome, NY I enjoyed coffee and a scone at the most delightful cafe, Superofficial on West Dominick Street, right next to the Capitol Theatre.  It is actually Superofficial and the Copper Easel Art Gallery, so I enjoyed art and atmosphere as well.

I especially liked the guy shooting the red stuff in the shed, but it does not show up here very well.

I did not want to eat too much, so as not to spoil my lunch, but after much debate I had to try the scone with Rosemary, figs, and goat cheese. It looked more substantial than what I had in mind, but it just sounded so different.  I also had a cup of regular coffee.

You can’t really read the menu, but that’s OK. I understand it changes weekly.

The scone did not disappoint.  The coffee was good, too.  While I ate, I looked around at the art on the walls, all of which was by local artists.  Then I laughed out loud, because I saw a skeleton sitting on the counter.  I love skeletons!

It looks like he’s laughing out loud too!

There were several other customers, most of them looking rather artistic themselves.  Some were working on computers.  I wondered what creative endeavors they were working on.  I myself worked on a letter to a friend, which I believe my friend will appreciate.

Cool logo.

I felt I was in a very artsy spot, and wished there was such a spot in Herkimer (where I live).  Maybe somebody will open one.  In the meantime, I will try to feel creative in the coffee spots I live near, and make sure I stop by Superofficial when I am in Rome.

Superofficial and The Copper Easel are located at 216 W. Dominick St., Rome, NY.  You can find them both on Facebook.

 

Late Slacker Saturday, but Shout-Out for the Cats!

This will be a late Slacker Saturday post and no promises about a Sunday blog post.  I am on my second cup of coffee, which should help matters, but as the late great Fats Waller said, One never knows, do one?

Drink coffee, write. Only two of my goals for today.

I thought I would throw in a coffee cup as an illustration.  I purchased this one at Athenix Books and Brews, just to throw in another shout-out to one of my favorite local businesses.  I got the ghostie pen holder there too (should it be “ghosty” or “ghostie”?  My computer thinks both are wrong.  I suppose I could say “ghostly,” but I think my little guy is too cute for that) (But I digress).

Yesterday I did a few things and reminded myself to make a blog post, even if it was a Slacker Saturday post.  Alas, I did not get to it.  I wrote my weekly post cards and walked them to the post office (that makes it sound like they walked along with me, perhaps on little post card leashes) (why did auto-correct capitalize “Little”?).  A little later (left it lowercase that time) I went to a wine tasting at Valley Wine and Liquor (another shout-out!), then brought an afghan to Mohawk American Legion, where I donated it to the HALO Lucky Paws Auction for Sunday (today!).

HALO (and here we come to the real shout-out of the post) is the Helping Animals Live Organization.  This is the 17th Lucky Paws Auction.  I have attended many in years past and won great stuff.  They get tons of great donations: baskets for any interest, gift cards from area businesses, and an afghan from me!  It takes place today, Sunday March 8 at the Mohawk American Legion, 45 West Main St., Mohawk, NY, with viewing beginning at 11 a.m. and drawings beginning at 2 p.m.  If any local readers read this in time, I encourage you to attend!

 

Another Coffee Adventure!

I thought of this title yesterday, as I was writing my blog post, because I remembered that Athenix Books and Brews in Little Falls, NY, was opening the Brews component on Feb. 26.  I needed to get there soon and make a blog post about it!  I drank tea for my first cuppa at home this morning, then after completing a couple of other chores and errands, I headed to Little Falls.

Lots of choices!

I opted for a regular dark roast coffee with whole milk.  I couldn’t resist also getting an Oreo brownie.  I sat at a tall table wrote a few more lines on my murder mystery (preview of coming attractions)  while I enjoyed my treat.  As I sat there I noticed that it looked as if there were letters on the wood floor.  I could not make out what they were supposed to be until I got up and realized I had been looking at them upside down.  Normally I can read upside down, but I failed this morning.

It says Athenix!

I was very impressed with the craftsmanship.  The whole place looks wonderful to me.  Nick mentioned he had gotten a one star review that called the floors unfinished and not modern.  Another customer and I asserted that we love them.  They have character and add to the ambiance.

Cozy!

I sat at a tall table, but there are also some soft chairs and sofas to lounge on while you enjoy your beverage.  I plan to make this a regular stop.  I will sit at a table or one of the cushy chairs, sip my coffee or tea and write!

Athenix Books and Brews is located at 624 E. Main St., Little Falls, NY.  You can follow them on Facebook.