I’ve loved coffee since childhood, when it was "verboten" because, as my four-foot eleven-inch grandmother used to warn, "It’ll stunt your growth." (This as she reached to pour her third cup, mind you!) So to me, it was always a treat when I got up extra early, came downstairs to the kitchen where my grandfather had the pot perking, and he allowed me to have a quarter of a cup of coffee with three-quarters of a cup of milk and a big spoonful of sugar. Yum! ""Now don’t tell anybody I gave you coffee, OK? This is our little secret." And until today, I never did!

Now I’m on the decaff, and having trouble adjusting to the lack of that little coffee-rush as the caffeine would kick in, but health concerns mandate it, alas. There are some good de-caff brands, though, and I will always enjoy the taste of a cood cafe con leche - even decaf. James, you might want to give it one more try, but I understand how that first gut reaction to a cold, stale remnant turned you off. I had the same reaction to a nice steaming plate of okra that was the color and texture of pond algae as a child, and have never been able to bring myself to try it again. Tell you what: you try a good cafe con leche, or a great cup of espresso with just the right amount of crema, and I’ll give okra another shot. Who knows? We might both find something new to like after all this time! ;-)

                                FORBIDDEN FRUIT

Coffee was forbidden in the sixteenth century in Constantinople. The ruling dictator believed coffee stimulated thinking by the common people. The first offense was punished by a beating, the second offense by death.

And we wondered why it took folks so long to get some smarts. Problem solved.