News & Coffee

Dallas looked in the utensil drawer for a spoon to scoop the coffee into the coffee maker. It was later in his morning than the usual time that he would be getting his fix of caffeine. The slot in the drawer for the spoon that he normally would use for this is empty. With a slight shrug, and a faint thought of the clean dishes behind him in the dishwasher, he reached for the larger version of the same spoon in the slot next to the vacant one.

Dallas has a very specific way of making coffee to suit his taste. It didn't come from anywhere except his own experiences and a trial and error process. Even though there is nothing exact about the way he measures his coffee, he is very specific about the amount of coffee grounds to coffee that he uses to make his warm, comforting, morning drink. There is a ratio of 3:4. That's 3 heaping spoonfuls of the coffee grounds that he is using this day to 4 cups of water. Today there were 6 cups of water due to the fact that he had been making 8 cups of coffee for the last few days and there always seemed to be a couple cups left the next morning that had to be cleaned out of the glass coffee pot.

Being that it was a monday and the beginning of a new week of not having to be anywhere in exchange for income, and because the once clear glass had a slight amber tint, Dallas had cleaned the coffee pot. Not that anyone else in the house cared or would pay any attention to the cleanliness level of the coffee pot or coffee maker in general. Not in any bad way at all, but simply because the coffee maker in this house was simply a tool for Dallas to satiate his addiction to colombia's number 2 export in the cheapest fashion possible.

Gone were the days when he used to live the high life and order a "Triple Grande Soy No Whip White Mocha," at the highest end espresso bar and whip out his huge wad of cash, always leaving a generous amount for the barista! These days it's even become too lean to hit up the local drive-through 24 hour fast food joint for a fix more than a couple times a month and as much as he is on the road lately, those have to be chosen carefully. There are very few items that he keeps at his best friend's place in LA where he stays while doing business in the southland, but a coffee maker and coffee are definitely among them. In his world at this point, a device to provide an economical way to deliver what he needs to reach a mode of stasis ranks over a toothbrush on the critical items list!

Times are tough, but they are tough all over. This has been the mantra of Dallas' life lately. The best way to stay away from the despair that so many Americans are feeling in these uncertain times. At times, he is struck by how fortunate he is to have so much support behind him. From the amazing friends-who-are-more-like-family that have given him a roof over his head to his parents who took on his financial responsibilities and allowed him to keep his vehicles from being reposessed. There have been plenty of stories on the news about people that have been out of work longer than ever before and now they don't know what to do.

"What do we do?" Dallas thought to himself, noticing a news report about a man in DC with a family, who can't find work. The entrepreneurial side of Dallas' mind had thought of a lot of ways out of this rut but there is always a big problem. NOBODY HAS ANY MONEY!!! Lately, his thoughts have been drawn to living a completely sustainable life out away from society. A way to avoid being so affected by the greedy consumerism that has gotten the American and world economy into so much trouble. He wonders how many other people have had these same thoughts. He longs for the time before the industrial revolution when small farms existed and people could live on what was locally produced.

Dallas has been talking a lot lately about starting an artist's commune somewhere in the Santa Ynez valley. This is not the first time he had the idea for this commune, it has been an occasional flight of fantasy for him since a magical experience he and Leesa had getting a Lomi-Lomi massage in Kauai, Hawaii in 2003. After coming back from that trip, the idea was conceived. However, it has been a topic of Dallas' conversation much more lately. Probably a way of coping with the feeling of being a slave to the system that we are stuck in. Just like Jamie Foxx's character in Collateral takes his little mental vacations by looking at the picture of his island on his sun visor. Dallas' imagination is waaaay better than any pictures could ever be. This artist's commune that he wants to start is his Utopia.

The coffee continued to percolate as Dallas found his attention drawn in to the story of the destitute and how the congress did not feel the need to extend unemployment benefits before their July 4th recess, but with Senator Bird's replacement, the Dems believe they will be able to get an extension passed. His thoughts were drawn to the idea of how many people were in similar situations as his. Come to think of it, he never saw stories on the news about people that were supported by their friends and family and were being a drain on them and not on the government. He felt that the problem in our country is much worse than what people realize because of the people like him that don't show up on many reports.

Although, how will it be for the people that have been supporting others in their families, like the people in his life? If everything works out the way he imagines, there will be a sudden change in the amount of support that his family will be giving out. For them, that may be like a sudden cash boon! However, his father did let him know that he would like to stop working his "retirement job" next May, so they will not really have any more than they have had, but hopefully his parents' lifestyles will improve dramatically and they can finally, really enjoy retirement. I guess we will have to wait and see if that really happens or not.

Drip, drip, drip... the coffee is just finishing up the brewing process and so is the report on unemployment and the attention shifts to some of the more sensational stories of the day. The stories that must be a great escape for some of the people that have nowhere to be today in exchange for income, but for Dallas just represent everything that is wrong with our media and our citizenry. He reaches into the fridge and grabs a breakfast supplement shake, grabs his favorite mug which reads, "Hello sunshine," on one side, and "Life is good," on the other. Pours a hot cup of locally roasted, Mocha Java, and heads into the garage to start another day.