Not to turn this blog over completely to my dyspeptic rantings about coffee, although at this point, that may be a noticeable improvement over the rest of my posts, but on the suggestion of many, I was set to have a cup of Dunkin Donuts medium roast while waiting for the Community Coffee I’m ordering to show up. Sadly, I fat-fingered the mug and dropped it, smashing my new favorite mug into a thousand pieces on the kitchen tile and shooting hot coffee everywhere. It smelled great.
I’m back to drinking coffee out of a measuring cup again, it seems. I really need to find a coffee mug I like and order 100 of them. Or install rubber floors.
Here is a picture of Abby, who belonged to commenter Polish the Guillotines, and had to be put down yesterday after 18 years:
Not that it makes it any easier, but eighteen years is a pretty solid run. The most awesome cat ever, the cat we had as a kid, Mr. Purr Puff (my sister named him), lived for close to twenty years, and at one point my father’s only goal in life was to “outlive that God damned cat.”
djork
I can top that. My mother has a cat that’s close to 22 years old. We got the cat for her birthday when I was 12. I’m now 34.
The cat had a stroke of some sort last week, but is still going strong, though a bit slower. According to my sister, who is a vet, there’s a very good chance the cat will recover completely from the stroke.
What’s 22 cat years in people years?
John Cole
George Burns?
former capitalist
Maureen Dowd cries in today’s NYT. So sad.
jibeaux
You could go to any thrift store and get a bunch of Santa and other random homely mugs for probably a quarter each.
Everything shatters on our tile, including probably rubber cups dropped from 6 inches above the ground.
Punchy
That has to be the funniest name for a cat ever. Not content to be Mr. Puffy, or Purr-dy, or Hank, yo sis goes full-on rural Alabama with the Three Name moniker.
Kids.
joe from Lowell
That’s the saddest story I’ve ever read.
And the bit about the cat is sad, too.
Eric U.
We had a cat that lived to be 23. Last I saw him, he was missing an ear, one of his legs wasn’t working. And he was out stalking and catching birds. He adopted another family when he was 15 or so. We had other cats and they didn’t. He still came back when he felt like it though.
dmsilev
I have a set of these which I’m quite fond of ( the bigger size, not the espresso size linked here), though they’re not exactly designed to withstand drops to the floor. Still, I’ve only broken one in about 5 years, so that’s not too bad. And they really work; the outside is cool to the touch even when the cup is filled with really hot coffee.
-dms
malraux
I was just coming in to recommend the bodum double wall coffee mugs as well. They look unusual, do actually work, and can go in the dish washer. They are a rather fragile glass, so no dropping on tile floors.
Bill H
My favorite mugs are a couple we picked up on a trip to Hawaii. You just made me shudder at the thought of breaking one of them.
Community Coffee? I grew up in a Southern family and have done the chickory thing. Chickory is what they used when the damnyankees cut them off from availability to actual coffee; they didn’t drink it from choice, for God’s sake.
I was in a local(?) store called The Coffee Bean and decided to try it out, ordered a half-pound of Sumatra. The girl was chatting with me while it was being packaged and I told her I usually got my coffee at Peets. She asked what they were like and, among other things, I said they had several South Pacific coffees, which I like. She thought a minute.
"I don’t think we have any South Pacific ones," she said, and handed me my Sumatra coffee.
PaulW
Open thread being hijacked.
Today is April 15, 2009. Welcome to B-tsh-t Crazy Day.
I actually know of one person who’s goin’ teabagging today.
More coffee for the rest of us.
Lilly von Schtupp
My first job was at a Dunkin Donuts. I used to go in at 2AM to "finish" the donuts. I was 16. I loved filling/frosting/powdering the donuts. Mine were always pretty in the display case. The only bad part was the weekends when the church orders would come in. Dozens and dozens for fundraisers. Usually, I’d have been out till 12 or later with friends. Sometimes I’d go in without having slept at all. Only a stupid teenager could pull that off. They do have excellent coffee. Sorry you broke your mug/spilled the coffee/have a mess. Bummer.
Kitty was very beautiful though.
SLKRR
18 years isn’t bad for a cat. I had one that made it to 16 and I thought that was pretty old. Best damn cat ever, BTW. He was the only cat I ever knew who would run to you from anywhere in the house if you snapped your fingers. He also once fought a German Shepherd and won.
valdivia
Polish the Guillotines–sorry about Abby. wonderful she was around for so many years.
my favorite mug for coffee–picked up on a trip to Costa Rica, very solid, colorful and just the right size.
Alan
IMHO, Pier 1 Imports is the best place to go to find the right mug. Most hold at least 16oz–my minimum requirement for a mug.
Egilsson
I recently had a cat move out on me. That bummed me out, and was actually kind of embarassing.
He was (is) a wonderful cat – the most gentle, sweet natured cat I’ve had. You could pick him up and he’d be as limp and pliant as a towel.
But he liked to go out and have his schedule, and apparently the family one street over me better suited his needs.
He still drops by periodically, cleans out the food bowl and naps around the house for a couple of days and then he’s gone again.
If you love something, set it free… I love you Bobber!
/sniffle
Comrade Darkness
John, if you want to do the full DFH route on the flooring, cork would be the way to go. All natural, low outgassing because the contractor must use water-soluble adhesive for installation, and almost nothing breaks when dropped. Comes in an astounding array of colors, too.
gbear
That sounds like the beginning of a wonderful tale of abandon and debauchery.
These stories about old cats are a bit disconcerting. I’ve got a 14 year old cat who just keeps getting more annoying and hard to live with as she gets older (I can already hear the chorus of ‘projection!’). She likes to bite and I can’t find a way to make her quit. I’m not sure that the other cat and I can take another 8 years of her.
MattR
If you don’t mind hand washing, here’s a mug suggestion.
Trinity
My beloved Kasey lived for 22 years. He never had any major diseases and only one serious eye injury when he was 10.
I remember the day that he got me. A house full of college kids had a litter of kittens in a box they were giving away for free. My Mom took me over to the box, I opened my arms and Kasey jumped in. He owned me from that day on.
I do miss him so.
My sympathies to you Polish the Guillotines.
Krista
Sorry to hear about Abby, Polish. I love those pushed-in-face cats — they seem to have so much character. I’m sure you were a great friend to her.
And John, just get a bunch of double-walled stainless steel mugs. Absolutely no chance of breakage, and they’ll keep your coffee hot longer. Plus, if any of your friends visit with small children, you can let them use one of those when you get the inevitable "I’m thirsty!" tug on your sleeve. They are more expensive than your average mug, but considering the fact that they’re pretty much indestructible, they’re worth it.
r€nato
Probe into whether e-voting was rigged in 2006 transit election
we told ya so.
tess
Sympathy to Polish for the loss of Abby.
My two are 16, one with a tumor that will likely kill her this year; the other with a variety of problems aggravated by the meds to help with her back after she had an injury that caused nerve damage to her back legs. They have been with me since college, moved with me from apt to apt, and still, after 14 years, consider my husband the junior senator. (Once he realized they believed they’d always outrank him, he didn’t take it so personally.)
A long run is good, but it doesn’t make a bit easier. For me, these are my first long-term adult life buddies. The one with the tumor sleeps next to me every night, resting her cheek against mine. She sits up with me when I’m sick. The other is my baby who used to run to the door when I came home from work, and drape herself over my shoulders to watch me wash dishes in college. It’s heartbreaking to lose them when they’ve been there for so much of your life, and at least in my case, the good part of your life.
I know it was hard, but sometimes doing what is best for them is terrible for us. I admire your ability to do that, Polish. It’s so much easier said than done.
Bulworth
Sorry to hear about Abby. I had to put down my beloved Coniah after 18+ years in November.
rcareaga
Early in the Bush 41 administration I was slightly acquainted with a family in Berkeley whose rather tattered-looking Siamese had been born when Kennedy was president: the creature was 27 years old. It took about an hour to traverse the living room, with interruptions every few steps for a short nap.
gopher2b
My history teacher in high school had a far worse experience. One morning (and this was well before you could brew a decent cup of coffee in your house) he got up an hour early and headed to Dunkin Donuts for a coffee. He drove 30 minutes, got his coffee and started the 30 minute drive to work. So, he places the coffee on the dashboard and of course it tips over and pours into the car’s heating system. This is the dead of winter. Long story short, he spends all winter driving around with the aroma of a Dunkin Donuts coffee blowing into his face without the actual coffee. Sad, sad story.
passerby
It’s hard to put down a pet. I empathize Polish the Guillotines. 18 years of the good life for Abby, good job.
Fulcanelli
@Bill H:
Heeeeere’s yer sign!
Mr. Cole, if you think that sucks you ought to drop the coffee mug and have the kitchen tile floor crack. Been there, like my shirt?
IMO Dunkin Donuts coffee is good if you have it within 10-15 minutes after brewing. After that those stainless steel BUNN coffee makers they use keep it just too damn hot and it gets bitter, not to mention you can’t drink it for half an hour.
Condolences on the loss of your feline friend Mr. Guillotines, to the great, eternally clean litterbox in the sky. It does so suck to lose a pet.
gex
Do people take no pride in their work anymore?
We had our pool opened yesterday. The pool company is the one we paid to install the pool, who service the pool every spring and every fall, and who sell us all our supplies. We are their cash flow that lets them make it through times like these. Not a lot of people buying pools these days I imagine.
Anyhow, they came out did their thing and left an open/broken bottle of ANTIFREEZE sitting out in the yard. Where I let my 3 cats and 1 dog play during the day.
I could easily have had 4 dead pets when I got home from work yesterday. You think that people would be careful when handling deadly poisons, but no.
Svensker
Ditto the go to the local thrift and pick up a few coffee mugs that aren’t (or are, depending on your mood) too revolting. Measuring cup? No. Wrong. Coffee needs a good ceramic or porcelain cup or mug, not too thick, to be appreciated. Metal or plastic — or very unaesthetic glass — ruin the taste.
Polish — so sorry to hear about Abby.
lilysmom
Polish the G, I am so sorry to hear about Abby. I thought that my heart would break when Nabila died.
Condolences.
ET
YEAH for the Community Coffee!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ah but Bill H now New Orleanians are used to the chickory and coffee without may be thought weak. Of course even though I am from NOLA I don’t care for it. But Community now sells it without so you can get good Community coffee without it.
Ash Can
Once again, condolences to Polish the Guillotines. Although the circumstances may be comforting, and thank goodness for that much, losing a family member, even a non-human one, is never easy.
When I was four I found a kitten outside on a cold November morning. I picked it up and couldn’t bear to let it go, and it clung to me and didn’t want to be let go. So it was the classic scene of little kid bawling to keep the kitten, tiny kitten bawling to be warmed and fed, and mother tearing her hair out (especially since we already had another cat at home). Kitten did indeed come home with us, turned out to have the world’s greatest personality, and lived to the age of 22. She declined very quickly at the end, so her suffering was minimized. But my parents and I did drown our sorrows in straight gin the night we had to have her put down.
As for coffee cups, IMO, nothing beats a Victor. Whenever I spot any at a garage or estate sale, I grab them. They don’t hold a huge amount of coffee, but this isn’t a problem if you’re at home and can walk to the kitchen for frequent refills.
AhabTRuler
@gex: Call them up. Fire them. Tell them exactly why. And then never use them again.
MacsenMifune
Sorry to hear of your cats passing Polish the Guillotines, you also have my condolences. I’m willing to admit that I cried like a baby when they had to put my mom’s dog to sleep, even though that dog never liked me or my dad, always sad to hear when someone loses a pet.
Anyone not sick of the 2008 election? Come on there must be one person out there that isn’t , HBO seems to think there is demand for a movie about the elections.HBO sets election 2008 film.
Heres the best part its based off a book co-written by Mark, everything is great for John McCain, Halperin. My mind is literally blow by the idea of it.
MacsenMifune
Crap, sorry double post.
Media Browski
Pardon the interruption, but I believe that Brick Oven Bill’s bet with Ninerdave is due today.
cia
Sorry about the cat and the coffee mug. Putting down a loved pet is never easy.
About the coffee and the mug. I too am very picky about the mouth feel on coffee mugs. However, regarding quality of coffee, listening to the Lynne Rosetto Kasper on the Splendid Table (NPR cooking show on Saturdays) I learned a few tips. Beyond the quality and age of beans here’s what’s next in importance, when the beans were roasted, when they were ground and the temperature of the water. Apparently two weeks is the time limit for roasting; starts going down hill after that which means most national brands are probably already degrading by the time they’re bought at the grocery. Grind them as you use them. And the temp should be around 215 (I think) just below boiling. Most drip coffee maker don’t get that hot which is why drip coffee tastes like dishwater.
Finally, a spanish roasting technique which adds some sugar allowed to carmelize, adds a really lovely depth to the coffee called Torrefacto. I’ve tried something from LaTienda (http://www.tienda.com/food/products/cf-04.html) which was very nice. But they are several places on line where you can get it. Might be hard to find here in the states.
anonevent
From GOS, come to find out, the government did prepare a report for Left Wing Extremist groups, titled Left-Wing Extremism: The Current Threat. It was published in 2001.
WereBear
@gbear: Biter? Unless the cat has been declawed, that’s rather unusual.
But rather unusual cats are part of the package.
What a lovely kitty Abby still is! (I believe in reincarnation.)
Screamin' Demon
Meh. My grey cockatiel hen Simone is pushing 23. She’s lived more than four times as long as the average cockatiel (five years, factoring in poor diet, abuse/neglect, open windows), and at the rate she’s going, she should make it to 30.
You people can have your cats. There’s nothing cooler than having a pet that can fly.
The Moar You Know
@SLKRR: Good lord, youi bought back a memory. I was maybe about three or four years old and we had a mean neighbor lady (every kid gets to deal with one of those, right?) The mean neighbor lady let her equally mean German Shepherd loose one day, and it came running across the street at me, barking. I just stood frozen in complete terror, waiting to die, and then our cat, CathyCat (who was a mean-ass kitty and wouldn’t let anyone but my mom pet her) came out of nowhere and attached herself to the face of that German Shepherd like the egg alien in Alien does to the astronaut. CathyCat fucked that dog’s head up but good; neighbor lady wanted my mom to pay the vet bill, the dog had needed quite a few stitches – my mother, in her usual way, told neighbor lady to go fuck herself.
That dog never came near our house again.
To this day it’s the most awesome thing I’ve ever seen a cat do.
CaseyL
Condolences to PtG on Abby’s passing. That really is a good long life – and no, that doesn’t make it any easier.
Ariel, the Elder Statescat of my household, is 18+, and though seriously slowing down physically, is in all other ways still a kitten. I seriously can’t bear to think about her not being around anymore.
Brick Oven Bill
Media Browski is correct that April 15th is upon us and I, your humbled commentator, a dangerous veteran who is concerned about the economy, did not pick the right side of that bet. Which is why it is a good thing for me that nobody took me up on it. I do note that on February 4th, the date of the proposed wager, Rasmussen’s ‘Presidential Index’ was +18 and it is now +2. I said on February 4th:
"Deval Patrick’s approval ratings dropped 20% between February and March, after the election. Disapproval ratings rose 22%. There is a difference between campaigning and governing."
We compare Obama’s ‘Index’ drop of 16%, with Deval’s 20%, and will all have to come to our own conclusions. I attribute the difference to a suspicion that Obama has a better teleprompter crew. Perhaps a want to believe in one’s leadership in tough times. Also in comparison, Obama’s overall disapproval only rose 8% over the same period.
Although I am disappointed in myself for my incorrect prediction, you have to write these things down, or else you cheat. I am excited in any case today, as I intend on giving a talk at a Tea Party. This, in addition to my military service and economic concerns, and ramblings here, should really get me in trouble.
WereBear
@The Moar You Know:
That is awesome. Not only did you get away unscathed, a cat came to your rescue.
This is one of those things people dis cats for, and yet it’s not the first time I’ve heard of a cat coming to the rescue of one of their family.
Zoogz
I seem to have bad luck with kitties. The longest-living one I had as a child passed away at nine years with (what seemed to be) a heart attack. Shortly after finally moving from rental living to my own house in 2006, a family asked us to take care of their two cats because they could not keep them anymore (child with nasty allergies), so we adopted a eight-year-old Siamese/Persian and a seven-year-old Russian Blue which was one of the most playful older cats I knew.
Unfortunately, about twelve months after adopting the Russian Blue, he developed a tumor on his head. We had to put him down on the 31st of January this year, at nine years old.
The older Siamese/Persian is still kicking. Incidentally, she absolutely LOVES the Furminator that we bought her on recommendations from Balloon Juice. She had to be to the vet recently with eye troubles, so I hope that it’s nothing major.
Ramalamadingdong
All of this coffee talk has reaffirmed my approach. Get in the car, go to the local espresso shop, order it and bring it home. I don’t car what Suze Orman says.
For the mugs suggest a trip to Ross or TJ Maxx housewares section. They always have an interesting collection and you can stock up on different sizes and shapes for not a lot of money.
Gary Hartlieb
Can’t help with the mug, but we have used Community Coffee for over 20 years. We buy the dark roast whole bean regular and decaf and mix 2 bags of beans at a time. I think you’ll really enjoy their coffee.
Eric S
John, I know nothing about coffee so couldn’t help you with that question. But, if you want to go the full Obama on mugs look at these. A picture of him, while running for the U.S. Senate, lofting a toilet plunger in a parade. I gave a couple to the GF just after the inauguration. Big hit.
J. Michael Neal
Is anyone else having problems with Firefox? It was a huge memory hog for a while about a year ago, but that went away with a new download. Now the problem is back, and now it’s overwhelming the CPU as well. Any ideas?
LD50
I was at a Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf near UCLA once when I asked the lady what their coffee of the day was. She replied in total seriousness that it was "Utopian". When asked again, she swore that’s what it was called, and seemed annoyed that I should doubt her. I found out the next day when someone else was behind the counter she meant "Ethiopian".
gbear
@WereBear:
She was about six years old and declawed when I got her. I think she may have had a less-than-pleasant kittyhood. The biting starts off with kind of a gnawing that seems like she might have been weaned traumatically. She just has some weird habits that weren’t apparent pre-adoption and I haven’t been able to convince her to change. She needs a feline Freud.
Cris
I’m diggin’ the retro cheesecake in the coffee-related Google ad in the sidebar.
Gus
My condolences Polish. It does give me heart that my 13 year old guy will give us another 5 years. He’s the best cat I’ve ever met.
AhabTRuler
@J. Michael Neal: By that do you mean is Firefox using the most memory of any program and a third again as much memory as the next biggest user? Then, yes, I am having a problem with Firefox.
The Cat Who Would Be Tunch
I’d like to offer my sympathies, Polish. I had a kitten when I was a kid that was run over by a car and the funny thing is, I still miss him to this day. It doesn’t make it any easier but the nice thing is you got to spend some quality time with your kitty.
@Brick Oven Bill:
So other than the wonders of oil shale, electrifying the railway system, and the psychological impact of watching a fight between lesbians in a Chinese restaurant, what else are you planning to talk about?
lawnorder
My 16 year old cat died yesterday :(
Rip Woody.
AhabTRuler
Condolences to Polish and to lawnorder.
LD50
For coffee cups, I recommend thrift stores. That’s where you can find those cool mugs promoting new prescription pharmaceuticals that doctors are given by drug companies (and usually throw away). For years I had a beloved mug advertising a new antipsychotic drug (the name of which I forget now). It was a good conversation starter when I gave guests coffee in that mug and they asked what the fuck it was.
J. Michael Neal
@AhabTRuler: No, I mean that Firefox is using more than 10 times as much memory as anything else. It ratchets up to about 700 megs of RAM after several hours.
AhabTRuler
@J. Michael Neal: Then I am not having that problem, so you are on your own. ;-)
The Cat Who Would Be Tunch
@J. Michael Neal:
What version are you using? If it’s 3.0.8, two security holes were fixed but in the process, the infamous memory leaks of FF seem to be back with a vengeance. It doesn’t seem to occur in all instances from the initial reports but it’s annoying when it does.
If you are an excessive tab user or have plug-ins dealing with tabs, there’s a likelihood that they may be exacerbating the problem as well.
@Svensker:
Perhaps it’s not my place to ask but my curiosity is getting the better of me. How’s your friend doing? In much better shape, I hope?
Nancy B.
My cat turned 17 in January. My longstanding joke is that once he turns 18, he’s out of the house.
Polish the Guillotines
I sincerely thank you guys for your kind thoughts.
It was time, and Abby let us know. Mrs. PtG had Abby longer than she’s had me, but knowing the missus, it’s no surprise to me Abby lived so long.
We’re obviously both sad, but relieved as well that she could go in peace.
Now the missus is talking kitten to keep our youngest cat in a constant state of harassment. And she’s talking Maine Coon, which is hard for me argue against.
Anyway, I really appreciate the pet love on Balloon-Juice. Reason #17 why this place is the best.
lawnorder: So sorry to hear about Woody. You bet you’ve got my condolences.
KRK
My condolences, PtG.
You too, Egilsson.
Edit: And you too, lawnorder.
NutellaonToast
We had a cat named Roosevelt. We got him full grown so we don’t know his exact age, but when he passed he was at LEAST 22 years old. The vet said that he’d never seen a cat that old who still got around.
When he was 17 or so, he became hyperthyroidic. The vet said our options were a 1000 dollar shot of radioactive iodine, or a pill a day for about 30 bucks a month. We did the calculations and figured he’d have to live 3 years for the pills to cost more than the shot and that there was no way he’d live long enough for it to be worth it. We forgot to factor in the cost of shoving a pill down his throat daily, too.
I’d say we lost that bet, but having him around for what will end up being at least 1/5 of my life was no loss at all.
Ninerdave
@Media Browski:
Yeah! Where’s my $10 BOB?
63% buddy.
Actually you can donate $10 here
Batocchio
Condolences. We had a cat that lived for 20.
CatStaff
Deepest condolences to all who have lost a furry friend.
My 19-year-old Siamese Shyann died on Palm Sunday this year, and then my 20-year-old tabby Cookie left me on Easter, both from renal failure. Even knowing it was coming didn’t help, as it never does. We adopted the Siamese from a rescue group when she was 10, and she was such a clinging vine, but incredibly loving, and so beautiful. My son and I adopted my sweet tabby girl as a kitten in 1989 from a shelter, and she was game for anything, anytime. A couple of my young nieces were over at my house many years ago. I had gone out for a bit (other adults were on-site), and when I came back, one of the nieces in question came bouncing up to me with a beaming smile on her face, and said, "Guess what, Aunt CatStaff? We gave Cookie a bath!" I can just imagine Cookie sitting in the tub, looking around, thinking "I have no clue why this is necessary, but if it makes the kids happy . . . "
I still have my other, younger, rescue kitties, but I so miss my elderlies.
Incidentally, Nutella, if you find that you need to medicate for hyperthyroidism again, you might want to consider the compounded ointment that Vetcentric can make up for you. You just rub a bit on the inner portion of the cat’s ear and it’s absorbed that way. I’ve done that for several of my cats over the years, and it sure cuts down on the cat-pilling rodeo and pincushion effect on the fingers.
SLKRR
Y’all do realize that Sumatra is not in the South Pacific, right?
lawnorder
Condolences to PtG and Egilsson too.
Losing a longtime friend is tough. Me and my kids are missing our Woody dearly.
Hope he is having fun and being able to be a kittent again somehow "up there"