Interesting topic ... I just was musing about the social aspect of coffee in a little mini-book I made. The book started as just a fun little creative thing I wanted to do, but the more I started thinking about it, the more I realized how coffee was a major part of my upbringing. It seemed that from the time I was a baby, coffee was a part of every social gathering there was -- whether it was my mom having a cigarette and a cup of coffee talking gossip with her best friends, or a big Italian family dinner, or one of the many 60''s-era dinner parties my parents hosted for their friends. If I didn''t have these early, constant experiences with coffee, I can''t say that I''d be such a coffee drinker today. While I enjoy making and drinking coffee by myself, it far more enjoyable when shared with friends ... or for that matter, even with complete strangers in a coffee house or even in internet chat room/forums. I have a group of friends that I''ve never met irl, and we joke that our online get togethers are a 21st century version of the coffee klatches my mother used to attend in the 50''s and 60''s!
I have a great quote that I used in my little book from a Christian writer named Nicole Johnson ...
\"Coffee is an experience, an offer, a rite of passage, a good excuse to get together. When someone invites you to get coffee, it isn''t because they''re thirsty. It might be because they''re cold, but more likely it is becuase they want to spend time with you. Coffee makes a promise.\"
You''re welcome to visit my blog (in my profile) to see my little book. It''s nothing deep -- really pretty frivolous -- but it''s fun a nice little summary of the role of coffe in my life.