Music makes me take control

Bodum Pavina - double layer for extreme isolation and clear taste

Two things for inspiration and finding the flow - coffee and music;

The coffee has reached room temperature. The bitter bite reminds me that it is time to refill the cup again. Morning will not move forward without this action. Refilled I can once again type. Let the words pour forth with the hopeful goal of something worth keeping.

Like the post on toes in the grass, this one called Finding the Flow came up over the weekend, by another member of the rat pack of social and digital media - aka Media Hacks.

CC is clearly carving his own path, doing speaking and books, along with being a dedicated dad, rather than working for an agency. Pushing the podcasts every now and again, as another item in the content mix.

And that is part of the joy of reading his post, hearing his thoughts and reflecting on his questions.

He brings another view and vibe, kicking it up with the music, relaxing with a cup, and generally bringing a smile.

I've had a lot more fun with music over the last few months, after I (finally) got on the streaming bandwagon and subscribed to Wimp (similar to Spotify, Norwegian based rather than Swedish, paid only and more focus on blog and recommending music across genres, less cover bands)

Rather than having it as background while doing things, I've used it to explore new ideas and themes, and to have a jump back into years long gone - songs that played on the radio that never bought, artists that seemed strange at the time but grew into something more.

Not simply a tool to tune out and zone in, it has added a little bit at times when that was needed. And all for one less pint each month. While feeling sort of good that some of that money is being kicked forward.

Opinionated by nature

Dilbert 2012-10-07, (c) Scott Adams as always

Wonderful jedi mind trick by Wally 

"Your whole life is a lie"

- is the point of having an opinion that the facts take too much effort to find? And by extension you might as well just make it up as you go and feel fine about it. 

By taking a stand - for whatever reason - at least you get to feel empowered and involved. 

And isn't that a value in and of itself?

Or is it just the opposite? That making calls based on "gut feelings" is just about not wanting to have your biases exposed, your assumptions clarified and your process defined?

"There is no spoon"

That last panel could be the base for a whole book, or a line of zen meditation. 

Xmas in march

CoffeeGeek - Baratza Vario Grinder: "Baratza partnered with Mahkonig to produce the burr set and burr housing on this grinder, and it's unique to the Vario - 54mm flat burrs made out of ceramic"

As I've learned today while looking around for the euro relaease and pricepoint, Mahlköning is a maker of professional grade grinders - and will be pushing out the Vario under their brand with a 220V set-up - listed now as march 2009.

At a bit over €300 it will take some time to "sell it" internally, but by the time easter arrives I hope to have one to play around with - for doppio, presspot and the huge presspot.

...and the sun is coming back...

11k coffee?

"With an $11,000 asking price, the Clover has become a fetish object among the coffee-obsessed"
"program three key variables: dose, water temperature, and brew time. (Example: 37.5 grams of Brazilian Fazenda São João at 204 degrees for 43 seconds.)"

See the Clover work some magic in a short video along with the Wired article. Wonderful concept. A bit of a sticke-shock, but hey - it points to a brighter future for coffee in general. Details and control for the extra-ordinary cup. And just a little bit better everyday joe.