A Cup of Joe...

     I am a coffee geek and am unashamed of this fact!  I worked at Starbucks for 4 and 1/2 years and from the very beginning loved learning more about this tiny little bean that,when brewed correctly, can make my morning complete.  I had a great manager who was extremely passionate about coffee and the job.  She passed on her passion and here I am today blogging about it.
     Recently I have been borderline obsessed with local coffee shops.  In the past my favorite coffee shop hangouts were the obvious: Starbucks and Barnes and Noble.  But a few weeks ago I revisited my favorite Java location with a friend and remembered why I loved it so much.  Picture old hardwood floors, a roaring fireplace, big ceramic "for here" mugs filled with a creamy mixture of vanilla, espresso, and steamed milk. Don't you feel calmer?  Do you have warm-fuzzies like me?
     Another place I've been dying to visit is Quill's Coffee.  I heard about it from a friend and visited their website. It's down in the Baxter Ave area and their blog has been feeding my "coffee geek" hunger for the past few weeks.  They do latte art (creating pictures when they pour the steamed milk into the espresso)!  You may laugh or say "What's the big deal?" but they have national competitions for latte art connoisuers.
     There are several other new coffee shops that I'd like to visit locally, but I won't go on and on about them.  I do think that some day in my future, if I have the funds, I'd like to own my own coffee shop.  The appealing thing about it is that you can make it whatever you want it to be.  You could host a million coffee seminars, book clubs, live music, and whatever else you could dream up.  The decor can also go in any direction- modern, cozy, rustic, vintage, retro. 
     I love dreaming about my hypothetical coffee shop and I usually do it best with a steaming cup of joe...

http://www.javabrewingco.com/
http://www.quillscoffee.com/