Thankful for the times dad and I have shared a cup together.

The stuff flying by on the roadway of life has been going so fast, I missed the sign that read Friday. But here we are. We made it and it is good to bring you greetings on this Friday, June 17, 2011. I feel blessed to be able to sit here each morning clicking and clacking away while savoring a super hot cup of that Louisiana brew, Community coffee. Coffee is bad for you. Coffee is good for you. Coffee may or may not be as bad as was previously thought. New evidence shows that coffee in moderation may have a favorable impact. I could wallpaper this office with all the conflicting studies that have been published regarding coffee just in my short 64 year plus run. Hurry up and stop. No, hurry up and wait. How about? Just sit back and enjoy your cup filled with 'good morning' written all over it. One comedian said that coffee was discovered in Ethiopia when the shepherds noticed the goats were dancing. I'm not sure about that but I do know that it is one of my daily cherished indulgences. Here's a little ditty I found to pay homage to our cup of  joe:

Bean Peace
A poem by Drew K.  

A mystery wrapped in brown,
A fragile enigma,
Enveloping the senses,
With the earthy steam
Of a bean. 

The mind wrapped in warmth,
The essence of dark roast,
Heating from within,
The senses thrill,
With every lingering
Sniff of the aroma
In the mug

Etymology (from Wiktionary)
Josephus Daniels (1862-1948) was appointed Secretary of the U.S. Navy by President Woodrow Wilson in 1913. Among his numerous reforms of the Navy was the abolition of the officers' wine mess. From that time on, the strongest drink aboard navy ships was coffee and over the years, a cup of coffee became known as "a cup of Joe".

Alternative forms

• cup o' joe
• cuppa joe

I suppose that was a little over the top but I've most likely been much more over the top than this. You remember that? Good memory. They all tend to run together for me, after a while. Man, I do love my coffee, but these coffee prices are getting out of hand. I can hear you non coffee drinkers out there doing your too bad chuckle. I've been scouring the internet looking for deals and typically there are some to be found, but you have to be careful. Read the fine print. Good price on the coffee but what about the shipping? Shipping by UPS couldn't be that bad. Right? Right, but there is that little word 'handling' to consider. You might just end up with a great deal on the coffee, a reasonable price on the shipping, but those hands that touch your package must be precious because that handling fee will kill the whole deal. Wonder who gets that fee? Hello? Maybe the coffee was not as good a deal as you thought. Bingo! Therefore, I look for the good price, typically in quantity, that comes with FREE SHIPPING with no additional charges. When I happen to locate such a deal and it is in my brand, and it is my blend, you can bet that hallelujah chorus is doing an encore from the balcony of my mind. All of this about a few pounds of ground coffee. Sorry. I told you I have been over the top before. I suppose this proves it.

Happy father's day, dad!

I can't think of anyone I would rather share a cup with than my stepdad. Sunday is the day we set aside to honor our dads, and believe me, our family has much to be thankful for in the man God sent to us so many years ago. Our real dad left the scene for his heavenly home all the way back in 1954. And, we honor him also on this special day because he was used by God to give us the life we have. Our step father is a man of integrity. You can put a period behind that my friend, or you take it to the bank because it is not a sentiment, it's fact. A career military man, he served in both Korea and Vietnam. A career civil servant he worked to make sure our fighting forces were prepared. Since his retirement he has served the local community in many different ways including fire chief and as a town council member as far back as I can remember. As a devoted husband to our mom, you will not find a better example. A common pulpit theme today you hear is how that a man can do more for his children than almost anything else in the way he treats their mother. I beleive that is true and dad has set a wonderful example in taking care of our mom. Dad walked into a mess when he married into our family but he has never looked back and he has never let any of us down. What do I attribute all of this to? I believe in my heart of hearts, it's a God thing, and I thank him for our wonderful dad. May God bless you dad on this day where we salute you and send our love to you! Amen.          .....More later.