This ring: how much coffee could I have bought with this ring?!
 

As Robert Frost wrote in "Two Tramps in Mud Time,"

" . . .I had no right to play
With what was another man´s work for gain.
My right might be love but theirs was need.
And where the two exist in twain
Theirs was the better right -- agreed."

This is to say that I never should have started making my own espresso and afternoon decaf at home, because I woke up to this headline in the Press Democrat this morning:

"Deaf Dog Coffee bites the dust
Maverick Sonoma County java retailer victim of Starbucks, Petaluma flooding, redevelopment."

Frankly, the coffee wasn't that great. I don't know what animal pissed out the soy milk that they served. Before the city put the kabosh on the practice, they allowed dogs in, not all of which were friendly. The staff generally looked like they hadn't slept before coming to work, and there was generally too much ass crack. On the other hand, the kids were competent without being Starbuck's peppy or without the pissy "We're not Starbuck's" attitude you get at Peet's if you accidentally use the word "tall."

The Deaf Dog near us opened up just as we moved to Petaluma. It was within a half mile walking distance, which made us hyperventilate a little less about the transition from San Francisco. The fact that a good chunk of that walk was over a mucky, glass-strewn unpaved path did not deter us.

Now the pressure is on for me to make my own coffee every day or go further out of my way to get to Starbuck's. My dog run routine is now screwed up, as I always hit the Deaf Dog drive-through on cold mornings while my dog whimpered in confusion.

We have to move.

It is always kind of strange to have a routine disrupted.

Then again, as a former Peetnik, my biggest problem with people saying tall is that some people didn't mean small, they really meant large. Same thing with grande. At least with Venti, they could only mean one thing, but only it's such a rediculous word to begin with... Starbucks' three words that just mean 'big' to describe three very different sizes has thrown the world off kilter.

I never minded that it was because they were Starbucks terms, it just becomes a problem when so many people can't accurately describe what it is they want. My gripe was (and generally is) with society at large. Or venti.

*steps off soapbox*

But again, it sucks to have a routine disrupted like that. I'm sure you'll come up with something.

All I have to add in sympathy is that I am out of Peet's and I bought a bag of Starbucks to tie me over. It's just not the same. But, it's better than no coffee - which is what I delt with yesterday.

What kind did you get? I really like the African blends.

I love Peet's, but I can't get it here. I bought a small amount while in CA and hopefully will be able to get some MA weekend. Major Dickinson's Blend. :)

You could just drink tea like civilized people. Or cocoa.

It's Ethopian from their Black Apron line. Good, but not great. And, not Peet's.

www.peets.com/shop

You can get meat in the mail; you can certainly get coffee. I like most of the Peet's beans. What I don't like so much is the drip coffee that they serve that generally just tastes like it's been charred.

Here in San Antonio the closest Peet's is in Denver, or Chicago, which means I need to get on a plane or join a cattle drive to get a good cup.

In the meantime, I found a Starbucks on the river and have been filling myself up with Maple Machiatos.

Perhaps, Mr. Lewis, you should open your own shop?

You can order Peet's online. I ordered it and had it shipped to VA.
Now I have a Peet's just down the street a ways.

oops! I see Strangler Lewis beat me to the punch!

I've never had Peet's but the Seattle Espresso just down the street uses Illy's. So good. I can never go back to Starbuck's again.