Read, write, enjoy.

The Best of The Week

In which, it turns out, coffee is anything but simple.


"Espresso is probably the most intolerant method of preparation of any food or drink in the world."
James Hoffmann


I originally intended to call this coffee cup, red. It was to be a look at how the serving of coffee influences how we perceive it in terms of flavour and enjoyment. There's been some study of how environment influences taste, and I have a memory of a study in which coffee tasted sweeter when drunk from a red cup. ¹ I'd done some experiments myself and found that there was some truth to this; that coffee flavour and enjoyment is influenced by the cup it's served in. This process of crossmodal perception is well documented. In my case, a red coloured heavier earthenware cup was sweeter, fuller-bodied, more satisfying, more alive and characterful. As I began to write it ran away from me, as things do, and

people are more important than cars.
rivers are more important than roads.
we've over-extended ourselves.

let's buy up every other house in the suburbs
and bulldoze them and plant trees.
why do we want to live so close together?
let's build a highway of forest
that connects every backyard to every other backyard
every childhood to every other childhood
across the earth.
why do we want to live so far apart?

where are the walkways in our parking lots?

A mudu is a unit measure in Nigeria. It is typically an enamel bowl of 1.33 liters capacity. It is used to measure beans, garri, rice and similar foodstuffs. It is rarely used to measure liquids. The practice is to heap the stuff being measured until it forms a cone. This gives a mass between 1.13 and 1.5 kilograms depending on the substance. Things like garri and rice would weigh more since the individual grains are smaller.

This morning, I was wondering where the word comes from. It is a

News for Noders

June 3: Saint kevin's Day.

June 4: Aesop's Birthday.

June 11: TerribleAspect's birthday!

June 13: Serjeant's Muse's birthday!

June 16: Bloomsday.

June 19: Juneteenth.

June 20: Summer solstice (northern hemisphere) and winter solstice (southern hemisphere).

June 21: nicolasstag's birthday!

June 23: AdamTheDewott's birthday!

June 23: weroland's birthday!

June 28: Tau Day.


If you have an item for this calendar, /msg Tem42.

April 1: By popular demand, March has been redacted.

April 10: Happy birthday, nuggets!

April 12: Yuri's Night

April 22: Happy Earth Day, fellow earthlings!

April 23: Saint George's Day.

April 24: Happy birthday, Rancid_Pickle!

April 30: Walpurgis Night.

If you have something to add to the monthly news, /msg Tem42.

February 1: Brevity Quest 2025 begins!

February 2: Happy birthday Auspice!

February 2: Happy birthday npecom!

February 5: Happy birthday wertperch!

February 8: Happy birthday to panamaus

February 15: Happy birthday Admin to the goo!

February 23: Happy birthday Samuel Pepys!

February 29: Happy birthday Browncoat!


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January 1: Gregorian New Year.

January 16: National Nothing Day.

January 24: Happy Birthday Silverai_me!

January 26: Happy Birthday Segnbora-t!

January 30: Happy Birthday O-Swirl!


If you have something to add to the monthly news, /msg Tem42.

December 1: Iron Noder ends

December 9: Smallpox eradication day.

December 9: Grace Hopper's birthday.

December 12: Happy birthday to horacetheclown!

December 21: Winter solstice arrives 10:27 PM, EST.

December 23: Happy birthday to Nemosyn!

December 25: Hanukkah begins.

December 25: Merry Christmas!

December 29: HairQuest 2024 ends.


If you have an item for this calendar, /msg Tem42.