Cuparius.com

That's right. Yesterday, I learned that November is National Novel Writing Month, or NaNoWriMo. 'Twas news to me. Every month is Gordon Ought to Be Writing Poetry and Fiction Month, in all honesty. I really must master my schedule even as it becomes tighter with my two-job juggling act and commuting extravaganza. Och, and I was wrong about that 16-day interval betwixt days off. 'Tis seventeen. Aye, I'm working a full shift today at the bookshop because a.) I was needed, and b.) I need the money. So, why am I updating the Cuparium this morning when I could be sleeping or writing a novel? Because, my friends, it is a labor of love -- an imperfect labor, but nonetheless one of love.

In the Wonderful News Department, last night I found a source of both Sumatra and Mocha Java whole bean coffee at *gasp* a reasonable price! (To me, any Indonesian coffee under $9.00 a pound is reasonable.) I haven't had Mocha Java in a few years, until this morning, that is. All I need to find now is a source of Celebes whole bean coffee at *any* price, and I'll be a much happier man.

Along similar lines of unexpected positivity, I've learned that a teashop nearby sells looseleaf tea, something of which I have been deprived for far too long. I'm making a note to myself here to pay it a visit as soon as I can. My English teapot has been cloistered in a cupboard long enough.

Thinking about that teapot reminds me of the teahouse where I bought it: the British Tea Garden in Portland, another landmark I wish I could have patronized more often than I was able when I lived there. I hope it's still in business, unlike La Patisserie. Soon, I fear, the Cuparium might become a virtual tour of my favorite places in Portland that are no more. Here I go, feeling those pangs of secondhomesickness again (since I think of Portland as my second home).

How anyone can drink that South American sludge they call coffee after trying African or Indonesian coffee is beyond me. Strike that. Most people in this country have only tried that Colombian swill or various flavored abominations. (I intend no offense to those who enjoy flavored coffee, but its omnipresence is frustrating when the greatest coffee in the world is nowhere to be found.) Of course, I think I answered my own question. People don't go back to South American coffee after trying African or Indonesian coffee. The problem is that they never try the good coffee in the first place. Everywhere I look it's Colombian Supremo here and "House Blend" there. If I owned a coffeehouse, I would have something to satisfy every palette, but regardless of the rotating selection of coffees of the day, the following would always be available: at least two Indonesian coffees (Celebes, Mocha Java, or Sumatra), and at least one good African coffee (Kenya AA or Ethiopian Harrar). The one African coffee I would never allow, of course, is Zimbabwe, which is repulsive for both flavor-related and humanitarian reasons. Guatemalan coffee would be banned for reasons of undrinkability. Colombian blasted Supremo would be tolerated to appease those who are terrified of the slightest hint of adventure. There would be some flavored coffees, I suppose, and one or two of those incomprehensible European dark roasts, too.

I want an espresso fudge brownie to go with my coffee.

Let's see... Can I think of anything other than caffeine this morning? [Time for my third refill. I'll be back in a flash in the flesh, as the Three Stooges used to say.] I wanted to try out some CSS near fanciness on the Cuparium for this update, but those shenanigans will have to wait until I have more time. Soon, though, I promise! The Cuparium is overdue for some structural improvement.

Gordon jots another Note to Self: Start cartooning again. It isn't as if the world lacks for things to ridicule. That reminds me, I learned of another cartoonist of monumental reputation who is an Ohioan: Bill Watterson of Calvin & Hobbes fame. His complete collection of Calvin & Hobbes comic strips is in bookshops now. Other cartoonists from Ohio include Richard Outcault, who invented the sequential comic strip with The Yellow Kid and continued to make his mark with Buster Brown; Milt Caniff, who created Terry and Pirates; Tom Batiuk, who created Funky Winkerbean and I think some others; and Jerry Siegel, who, with the help of Joe Schuster (who was originally from Canada), created Superman when they were high school students in Cleveland. Siegel also wrote and (I believe) created Supergirl, Superboy, and The Legion of Super Heroes.

Next time, I'll ramble a bit about movies. Expect the next update on the tenth or a few days later. Hopefully, I'll have actually seen another movie by that time. If not, however, there are other movies I've been meaning to mention. And I must remember to talk about the book I most want for Christmas/Winter Solstice/Any Occasion, and the CD-ROM that was just released that I must own. I'll remember, and I'll include pictures, too.

Ta'ra for now!