“Gratitude is the memory of the heart.”
The day is cloudy and humid, but a breeze makes it tolerable. A thundershower is predicted for later. I would have guessed. I can feel it in the air.
One of the joys of Coffee has been the people who drop by to visit. I have friends I haven’t ever met, but they are friends almost as close to me as the ones I see all the time. A few disappeared without a by your leave or a note. I still miss Richard and his comments, his pictures and his trips to the farmers’ market. Chris was one of the first Coffee people, but he’s been gone a long while from here as has Dan from Canada. Rick told me how my former Blogger site had been high-jacked so I suspect some of my old friends think I’m the one who disappeared though this site pops up before the old one on a Google search. My friends are from all over. One of my best lives in Australia and another in Sweden. My friend from Canada makes the funniest, often drollest comments, sends great youtube sites and has helped de-mystify my mac. A couple live in South Africa. In the US we’re talking a great friend in Ohio, another in California, one in Florida, another in Maine who usually stops by every day to say hi and whose life seems to parallel mine, and a couple in Texas. Every day I can count on Zoey & Me and Christer to stop and comment. Splendid comes by when she can and always leaves a comment. Morphy is also a hit or miss visitor. He made the different headers I’ve been using, and I love all of them. Bob too drops by a lot, and if my wishes ever came true, he and Rick would get the rain they need. There are more Coffee people but these are the most faithful and the reasons I write every day. If I haven’t said thank you, consider this a huge one.
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keepthecoffeecoming.blog 
July 12, 2011 at 11:03 am
Rather cold here today but sunny. The wind is sometimes strong and that makes the flies staying in the trees and bushes and that I don´t mind 🙂
It´s strange how people we´ve never met still can be good friends 🙂 But at the same time we do share our daily life with the ups and downs we might have so in some ways we actually knows each other better than those we normally meet in our daily life 🙂
But I will be taking a vacation from blogging (both reading and writing till monday.I´ll be doing other things and I might write about it next week.
Have a great day and a great continuing of the week!
Christer.
July 12, 2011 at 6:52 pm
Christer,
Enjoy your vacation. I’ll miss your daily visits and the pictures you post.
My air conditioner is on. The outside is brutally hot while I’m comfortable and cool.
You are so right about our sharing daily lives and ups and downs. When I had my surgery this winter, my Coffee friends were wonderfully cheerful and encouraging. I am grateful for that. It helped!
July 12, 2011 at 11:39 am
Coffee has become that favorite Cheers place where everybody knows your name, so nice to drop in and share a bit of conversation. i count on you Kat to always share a bit of your life, i can’t tell you how much it means to me to read you. Reading you reinforces all the wonderfulness of my own mother’s childhood, the things she did and the world she lived in. i especially love your dad stories! Seeing the comments is almost as fun, Christer tells us of his adventures on the other side of the world with his four-legged family, Zoey & me always keeps us up to date as well. JM Heinrichs,s, im6, & Rick always crack me up with their comments, Careyn, Lori and Clare give the women’s perspective and everyone always shares a bit of themselves and a lot of humor. i miss Richard as well and often wonder how he is, it is oh so easier to think of him as still keeping on.
the internet has been a wonderful tool for finding and making new friends, thanks to special people like you who bring us all together:)
xoxoxoxoxoxoxo
July 12, 2011 at 6:34 pm
splendid,
I too love all the comments. We all share so many fun childhood adventures in common, and I get such wonderful stories from all of you prompted many times by my own memories.
I count myself lucky in my friends whether cyber or physical.
July 12, 2011 at 1:48 pm
still a working stiff and a health problem is probably why I dont come by as often. But I always try to stop by,if not just to read the comments
or enjoy the music as I sip my coffee.
Kat, I still think a book of this blog ,would be a seller.
A paperback type,with pictures and comments,and even atories,Hmmm.. for only the cost of a can of coffee,and thats not all. Maybe even an offer of a CD with a compliation of favorites voted by the readers, but wait.. thats not all 🙂 🙂
July 12, 2011 at 6:35 pm
Morpfy,
It would be lovely to turn this into a book. Richard always persisted in urging me to do so. I seem to lack the motivation but for that can of coffee…..
July 12, 2011 at 3:54 pm
Kath:
The nicest thing about you is that if somebody leaves a comment, you always respond. It’s a little like a short conversation every day or so. I poke around a lot of blogs and you are the only one who does this…
Stay cool – –
Waving from Jersey – – 🙂
Coleen
July 12, 2011 at 6:37 pm
Coleen,
I am always thrilled when someone takes the time to comment so I answer, a thank you for the comment.
The air conditioner is on, and the house is cool. I just put something into the car and nearly died from the heat.
You stay cool too-waving back to Jersey!
July 12, 2011 at 5:07 pm
Hi,Kat. I always enjoy your blog. Your evocative stories about your life and where you live always remind me of the writings of people like Mark Twain, or Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings (The Yearling is still my all time favourite book). But really,you have a genuine gift for beautiful writing. Sorry for repeating myself! I used to have a few loyal followers of my blog, who have now vanished into thin air. I often wonder if they are well, as I do not have contact information for many of them. I’m thinking of placing a “Missing Blog Followers” widget on A.O.O.F.C! Anyway, keep well, Kat, and I’ll check back soon…Paul (aka A.O.O.F.C)
July 12, 2011 at 6:41 pm
Hi Paul,
I am remiss in not leaving comments when I visit your blog and for that I apologize. I will be better. I promise!
Thank you for the very kind words. Twain has long been a favorite of mine ,and I still can’t think pf The Yearling without crying. To be compared to them is a gift from you for which I am grateful.
I sort of hope they just lost interest. I’d hate to think something has happened to those loyal followers!
July 12, 2011 at 5:42 pm
No, this would be a huge one …
Cheers
July 12, 2011 at 6:42 pm
WOW is about all I can say to that, Minicapt!
July 12, 2011 at 5:56 pm
Trips down memory lane keep all of us coming back to coffee. I’m convinced your writing talent is Americana and worthy of a book. I agree you probably lost a few followers by changing engines but I thought Richard had a search team out there looking for him long before the switch. Anyway, there is always a line that flips a memory or two of yesterdays, childhood, teen romps and good ole college days when we were finally cut loose. Coffee is a special place to visit daily, to find out what great wisdom you depart. Thanks!
July 12, 2011 at 6:46 pm
Z&Me,
I love that we all share so much in common. I think the common threads have people returning to Coffee every day. Your comments often trigger memories for me as I’m sure they do for others. It’s is a source of amazement that all across the country we were doing the same things and watching the same TV programs.
July 12, 2011 at 6:54 pm
Thanks for your site. It’s one of the best on the web. Everything that has been said so far is true and I for one appreciate your reply to every post. I won’t bore you with the weather report today because it’s the same as yesterday and the previous 10 days. Dallas normally gets an average of 16 days of 100 degrees or more a year. It’s not even August and there doesn’t seem to be any relief in sight.
Coffee has been a great place to visit because you have been a great hostess.
July 12, 2011 at 7:01 pm
Thanks, Bob!
I am so sorry about your weather. Having lived in the same sort of climate, I know how awful it is. My relief was not drying off after my cold shower and hurrying to bed so I could air dry and fall asleep feeling just a bit cool.
It is my pleasure to be your hostess!
July 12, 2011 at 7:50 pm
I also think that a book could be done from the blog, with pictures– your writing talent is superb and you are a fine photographer. The sun came out for a minute, enough to let my cat outside to enjoy 5 minutes of sun. Where is our summer? Well, off to procrastinate. My cat is howling at me.
Waving from California..( although I am a N.J. transplant)
July 12, 2011 at 9:26 pm
Lori,
I think we had far too much sun. I was out for a while and couldn’t wait to get back to the cool house. Gracie, though, is driving me crazy. She stands in front of me and stares. I let her out;.she comes right back in. She wants a treat for doing nothing. I turn my head. That doesn’t go over too well.
Waving back!
July 12, 2011 at 8:34 pm
You wouldn’t want me commenting every day. I can really be a grouch! Luckily for you, I generally hold my tongue on such days and comment only when it’s a more positive time. Or else I just email you and spare everyone else. Even though I don’t comment daily, know I do read Coffee daily — gotta keep an eye on you so you don’t go getting yourself in trouble or in case some guy named Noel puts a hit out on you!
July 12, 2011 at 9:27 pm
im6,
I get your being grouchy. Sometimes I am as well. It’s the nature of the beast.
You e-mail me great stuff and offer wonderful suggestions. I run (sort of) right to Amazon when you recommend.
Noel has been silent of late-bad sign maybe!
July 12, 2011 at 8:57 pm
Hi Kat,
I enjoy reading your blog every day though I don’t always have a comment. A friend of mine referred me to you because he liked the music you put up. I like the music, too, but your writing keeps me coming back. You gave me some excellent thoughts about handling retirement though you might not have known you were doing so. We have some things in common having grown up in adjoining towns. It’s great when you write about something that I’ve forgotten. It’s great when you post some music that I’ve forgotten about, too. I generally have to run off and buy it before I forget it again. 🙂
Keep up Keep the Coffee Coming. Thanks!
July 12, 2011 at 9:32 pm
Hi Caryn,
Why did I think you were in Maine? I meant you when I mentioned a parallel life. When you talk about your childhood, it reminds me of mine. We do have a lot in common.
I’m happy my love of retirement helped you. It can be scary not having the structure you’ve had for a lifetime (or what seemed like a lifetime). I am still enjoying my time even if I just sit and read or listen to music. Did I mention my naps?
You are welcome!
July 14, 2011 at 12:55 pm
You weren’t wrong. I spent many summers working on the farm in Maine. A few brutal late autumns, too. Never winters. I’m not that tough. 🙂
July 13, 2011 at 5:37 am
It has been several years since I’ve been coming here every day. I didn’t make my first comment for more than a year and only do occasionally but I love coming by for a visit and cup of coffee every morning.
July 13, 2011 at 9:11 am
Cuidado,
Sometimes, when I’ve chosen a song, I think Cuidado will love this one. You have been a friend for so long I know what music to post to brighten your day. I do count you among those Coffee regulars I appreciate beyond mere words.
July 13, 2011 at 11:41 am
I think you have many more in your community than you know. I stop by most days but usually do not make a comment- as I think a lot of your coffee companions do. We love the music and even more- the trips you take us on.
Much thanks
July 13, 2011 at 1:44 pm
Pat,
Of course, yours too is a name I recognize well. I know you’re out there reading and musing!
July 13, 2011 at 12:48 pm
i, too, am another siient visitor. always enjoying the great and wonderful things you and your readers write. i thank all of you.
greg mpls
July 13, 2011 at 1:48 pm
Greg, my friend, you have been with me a long time. I always know you by the mpls when you comment.
I too love the comments from all the Coffee people. The insights, the humor and the warmth are wonderfully comforting, like hugs in a way.
July 13, 2011 at 8:38 pm
I was on a plane when you posted…I really miss Richard as well and wonder what happened to him.
Oh and I was on the high speed train out of Beijing when the weather halted everything for two hours, it was quite an adventure
July 13, 2011 at 10:40 pm
My Dear Hedley,
I missed you! I did try to find him but got no return on the e-mail, and I googled him as he did sell photographs-nothing.
Tell me more about the train!!
July 14, 2011 at 5:44 am
Kat, that’s ok, I am sort of a B guest..probably not elevated enough to make it to the deck for movie night.
We took the high speed both ways between Shanghai and Beijing. No problems going up but coming home a heavy wind and rainstorm shut down the whole system for two hours. When our train stopped we were 100 feet up on a bridge and pitched at an angle from right down to left. The hostesses (not servers) were young, beautiful and immaculately dressed. However this was the first problem since the train went in to operation ten days earlier and they were not prepared..so they started to cry.
This high speed line has been subject to a lot of internal criticism in China due to corruption and whether or not safety was compromised. Our incident made the front page of the China Daily.
I thought the train was fantastic. fast, comfortable, reasonably priced, I spent my time staring out of the window. Interestingly each village was barriered from the vision line as we blasted through the countryside.
July 14, 2011 at 10:29 am
Miss Kat,
Lovely as always.
So happy to know you.
July 14, 2011 at 12:09 pm
Pete,
I think it the reverse-my pleasure to know you!
July 14, 2011 at 12:11 pm
My Dear Hedley,
Should you ever be in the neighborhood, I will personally deliver an invitation to movie night on the deck. Saturday is generally the night so keep that in mind when you make plans!
It would be my pleasure to have you as a guest. That would be an A guest of course!
July 16, 2011 at 8:38 am
I hardly ever comment, but you are an important part of my morning routine! We are almost neighbors, as I am in Amherst, MA. I’m slightly younger than you are, but what you say resonates with me. It is funny how you can get so attached to the blog of someone you don’t even know. I worried about you when you had your surgery, and I soak up your happy quietude. Thank you for your blog. I love being part of your life in this way!
July 16, 2011 at 10:18 am
Sara,
Thank you for your friendship as it is only a friend who is concerned.
This morning on the deck I sat and decided I am extremely lucky in my life. I find something wonderful in every day though there are some days when I have to look terribly had to find it!
July 16, 2011 at 1:11 pm
I’m like you. There is always something wonderful, and the small things are sometimes the best of all.
July 17, 2011 at 12:34 am
Sara,
I took pictures of the moon tonight. It was so beautiful I had to just stand there and look for the longest time.
July 17, 2011 at 12:21 am
My thanks to you for continuing to bring me memories from my home town where I grew up in MA. My grandfather loved being at the ocean in the summer. He rented places at the Cape, Plumb Island and a few other spots. The Cape was always the best. We grand kids got invited to stay with them for a week or two every summer. And we never turned it down. After he grew too old to go anymore, we all started going to the bible beaches on the south side of CN and RI. It was nice as the water was warmer, by a LOT. But it wasn’t the same, We never rented there, just day trips and sometimes a weekend, when we stayed in a cheap hotel. We always missed the neighborhoods of the Cape.
I’m still here in the Philippines and will be here indefinitely, Quite a change from the two months I was originally told, but a day in paradise is… well, a day in paradise. Still I do miss the states where everything is available. The grandson certainly like the pizza I make with sourdough crust and Its become a tradition that I make it for Sunday dinner, as Gemma (housekeeper) is having the day off and the boys really don’t appreciate my other specialties. LOL I’ve always thought my self to be a reasonable cook, not good mind you, just reasonable. Anyhow this week there is no Mozz cheese to be had.. I’m sure there is a good reason, like it went to China to help settle our national mortgage. So tonight the boys will have to suffer. Meatloaf in on the menu and although they put up with it, I can tell by how much is left that they really don’t appreciate it.
Which means of course that I will have lots for sandwiches next week. I’m making the bread anyway though. I usually make two pizza shells and one bread, but this week its just two breads. The property manager will be happy as he really enjoys it when I have some extra. Since I’m the only one that eats it in this house, he will get a whole loaf this week. I’m sure he will invite one of his ‘special’ friends by for an evening of bread and whatever it is that gay guys do. I really don’t think about that very much.
Anyway, before I totally fill the page, I really enjoy stopping by on most weekends to read your thoughts for the day and enjoy the music. Its really something very close.
Carl
MT C
July 17, 2011 at 12:42 am
Carl,
It is my pleasure to bring the cape back to you. Like you, I find the cape special. There is something in the air which just seems to pull me in. I hated it when my dad moved us down here from the town where I had lived for almost all of my life, but it is here I returned after Ghana. My parents had been transferred again back off cape, but this had become home.
I know former volunteers who had been in the Philippines, and they have returned to visit over time as they can’t get it out of their systems.
I know what it is like not to have what you are used to, but after a while, that becomes the familiar. I also missed what was easily gotten in the states. I didn’t have any fresh milk or cheese for two years and vegetables were tomatoes and onions and lots of yam.
I’m sorry the boys missed their pizza. Tradition is difficult to kick, especially if it concerns pizza!
Meatloaf sandwiches are a favorite of mine!
Thanks for dropping by. I really appreciate the effort as I know how difficult it is for you to get on-line sometimes .