My heritage takes me to Southern Minnesota. When I was growing up, I recall my Grandparents making egg coffee. Boiled on a wood burning stove, it could get very strong! The standing joke was "if a spoon wil not stand up in it, it is not strong enough.". Towns were settled by nationalities. German, Swedish, Polish, Czech, Danish, English, Irish and all the other countries in that part of the world. The time of my youth was the late 40s and through the 50s. Fore the most part, coffee was the beverage of choice.

Coffee was consumed year round. In the summer, temps could soar to 100 degrees. Winter temps would drop well below zero.

Coffee was part of life. It has great social implications to it. When you were invited to a neighbors home for a cup of coffee, they were saying in so many unspoken words, "You are our friend and we cherish your friendship. We are honored to have you as a guest in our home, to share what is happening in your life and what is happening in ours."

Think about this. When someone asks you to join them for a cup of coffee, they are saying by this gesture, "you are important to me and I want to show you my gratitude for your presence by sharing a cup of coffee with me." It does not get any better then that when one human being feels a connection with another human being with this simple act of inviting them for a cup of coffee.

And this has been going on day after day for hundreds of years!

The social impact of sharing time with someone cannot be measured.

Coffee drinking and smoking cigarettes went hand in hand when I started at the age of 19. Very few people questioned the health risk of smoking and drinking excessive amounts of coffee. In the great movies of the day it was in vague to smoke. The movie stars were our role models. This was what we as young adults fashioned our lives around.

I stopped smoking after 20 years. The coffee has been my companion for over 50 years with no health problems. I attribute much of why I have had no health problems from coffee and caffeine is my attitude. I do not anaylyze how good or bad drinking coffee is. I simply enjoy the taste of the beverage. Moderation is the key to what we as humans should do in everything we do. 2 or 3 cups a day satisfies me.

To be alert at the controls of a large 18 wheeler requires the driver to be alert at all times. Coffee makes it much easier to stay alert. Law enforcement officers, firefighters, all branches of the military, commercial airline pilots to name a few crucial occupations were personnel must be alert when on duty.

During my life I managed Motor Inns. These businesses never close. At some point in a 24 hour period, the days business must be closed out. The slowest time in this hospitality business is after 11 PM. The person responsible for balancing the days business and closing out the day, is called the night auditor. After 30 years, the night auditor title may have changed. The duties are the same, I believe.

Managing a motel or hotel requires the manager, a good working manager such as I was, to tarin new night auditors. The auditor worked from 11 PM to 7 AM to balance the days business. Having a delicious cup of coffee periodically during the night was simply wonderful. It helped keep our heads clear so we could focus on the task at hand. I have the greatest respect for night auditors. Anyone working the 11 PM to 7 AM shift alone may want coffee to help pass the time. Coffee really helps.

My wife, children and I have spent many hours on our interstate system. We traveled from the midwest to the west and back. We traveled from Minnesota to southern Texas and back. From Chicago to Minneapolis and to Milwaukee. Vacation times called for loading up the thermos with coffee and heading out on the open road. Traveling the interstates gets rather boring.

The answer for me was a thermos of coffee. Driving, with a good tasting cup of coffee in hand, enjoying the scenery was very enjoyable for me.

We live in the most beautiful and interesting countries in the world. Traveling the Interstate can get pretty boring. The rst stops were a welcome sight to stop and refresh yourself. Exchanging tales with fellow travelers about where you were headed and they were going was a good time to enjoy a cup of coffee. Another great way to reach and socialize with people.

Coffee to me has always been a way of enjoying precious moments with people. I have read that coffee is not good for us. I have also read it is good for us. To offer an opinion is not my intent. I wrote this article from the heart to share with any one interested in reading these words of why I enjoy drinking coffee.

Alan Grundemeier