Is FB Like Coffee?

My two favorite non-eternally significant arguments are over coffee and running.  People say to me, “I don’t like coffee,”  or they say, “I don’t like running.”My initial, knee jerk (emphasis on jerk although I think the phrase is really punny in context) is to say, “well, fine, I don’t like you.”  I realize this is just my insecurity showing itself and I can usually find other reasons to like people even with such glaring character flaws. 

While I realize that some people have taste bud disabilities, damaged knees or caffeine issues, for many people, it’s an issue of experience.  I would say I didn’t like lots of things if they were a bad experience every time.  But there are rules, akin to rules like gravity that need to be followed.

When I first learned how to slalom water ski, I tried to deep-water start 17 times.  I fell over to the left every single time.  It was frustrating and very tiring.  I began to consider that, I might not like water skiing.  As an over thinking sort, I kept asking questions and getting fresh suggestions every time the boat circled to get me the rope again.  I finally realized that I was trying to keep my left leg up next to my right, which was in the front boot of the ski.  You’re supposed to let it trail behind.  It was creating too much drag and pulling myself over to the left.  As soon as I realized this, I let my left leg trail and popped up.  Within seconds of skimming across the water, I claimed slalom water skiing as my favorite activity.  This lasted until I got married and then it took second place. 

If I had given up before I found out how to do it right, I would have missed a great life experience.  Granted, I may have finally achieved a correct slalom position above water and still not liked it.  But, before that, I was unable to say “I don’t like water skiing.”  The same is true for coffee or running. 

Most people who say they don’t like coffee have never had a truly good cup.  No surprise.  The opportunity for a truly good cup is a recent phenomenon in the entire world.  Coffee, I’m not joking, is a new, barely discovered frontier.  Thank you Stumptown.  Since the 1600’s when it was first discovered in Ethiopia, coffee has been burned, boiled and consumed crudely with almost no attention to its complex and wonderful characteristics. 

Coffee has more flavor complexities than wine, by a long shot (600 factors vs. 1200).  It is influenced by the soil, weather and elevation of the region it is grown, how and when it is harvested, processed, dried, shipped, roasted, stored, ground, extracted, and what temperature it is consumed (among many other things).  Most baristas in most coffee shops have little comprehension or training.  They are minimum wage employees with no reason to care seriously about their craft.  They are doing a very difficult job as the final factor in a long line of factors and they just don’t know. 

As for home brewing, all electric coffee makers and the vast majority of large scale coffee roasters are not capable of combining to produce a cup that does any justice at all to the potential of the glorious pit (of a cherry).  Coffee beans are not actually beans.  Typically, they are half of a pit.  Then there are peaberries.  Smaller, whole pits – rumored to roast sweeter. 

Do not loose hope.  Excellent home brewing IS possible.  There are multiple methods that will beat most baristas with their ten thousand dollar espresso machines hands down.  Aeropress and V60 pourover with a Hario Buono kettle are my two current favorites.  Anyone can run an Aeropress with a little practice and make a truly excellent cup of coffee.  And I would be happy to show you how.

All this to illustrate a point.  The world, all of life works according to rules and laws that govern our interaction with it.  Some we cannot fight.  Please, please, please do not give up on the idea of experiencing life gloriously.  I know, I may be taking my coffee too seriously.  It’s just such a great metaphor.  Running is as well, maybe I’ll talk about it in a future post – I’m taxing attention spans already (hint: slow and short for longer than you want).

Sunday I talked about Facebook – really, electronic social interaction in general.  I suggested that it is a wonderful opportunity.  Something we are presented with that we have not had access to for a hundred years or more.  I hold to my hope.  There is a new way to connect and maintain momentum in our relationships.  There are rules for it though, that will determine its level of usefulness.  If you and I agree to commit to an intentional use of the tool it will be more powerful than a passive approach.  If we commit to face-to-face interaction as our main relational context, we will get more than if we only interact electronically. 

I’m really excited about this opportunity, the potential for community and relationship.  I’m hopeful that it will be used by people to invite, challenge and change lives in significant way. 

I also hope more people will discover good coffee.  If you would like to give it a shot, let me know.  I’ll come to your house, office, school or job site… and change your life.