Muggy

Yo Quiero Folgers Black Silk. Photo Jennifer Weber 2010As you probably already know, I'm a coffee drinker. 

I wouldn't call myself a "serious" coffee drinker … unless you consider being unresponsive and incoherent prior to ingesting the first cup of coffee on any given calendar day, to be serious.

I drink coffee only in the morning, for example.

Unlike some, who think nothing of quaffing twelve to fifteen cups a day.

If I did that, I'm afraid the voices in my head would no longer be able to communicate rationally. They'd begin talking over one another and that's too much like court reporting for my taste.

I handled it all wrong. Photo Jennifer Weber 2010I've written about this before: when it comes to my favorite non-icy beverage, I admit to a penchant for skating around the edge of Persnickety Pond.

I like demand my coffee fully caffeinated, fresh, hot, strong, and liberally laced with real half & half.

No fat-free nonsense, no preservatives, and no funny flavors.

And I like it in a mug. A great big mug.

A mug that could double as a planter for a venus flytrap.

In late 2008 I became involved in a case that had me working so much, I slept with one eye open, clutching my Week-at-a-Glance organizer in one hand and my cell phone in the other. 

And step lively. Photo Jennifer Weber 2010I briefly considered an IV drip for timely infusions of coffee but ditched the idea (I don't like needles) in favor of keeping my coffee pot set to begin brewing at 5:55 every morning.

Naturally, I blogged about it.

During this time, Erica bought me a mug emblazoned with a bit of saucy rhetoric, to wit: "What Deadline?"

The sentiment resonated.

Of course, said vessel originally had a handle. A very handy handle.

At some point I dropped it on the ceramic tile floor.

A banner year. Photo Jennifer Weber 2010It was an awful moment because there was just something about the shape, size, heft, and shiny finish of that mug that made it my all-time favorite.

And I've loved a mug or two in my day.

"Kill all the lawyers!" is a clever one I bought in 1992, not long after I first became a legal secretary.

And you won't believe! A lawyer once actually gave me a hard time about that mug.

I heart it. Photo Jennifer Weber 2010With a withering glance, I sent him off to read about constitutional law as it pertains to censorship and free speech.

I don't know where I got "1957: A Banner Year!" and, due to being too small for my needs (as in, it holds less than 24 ounces), it really doesn't get used much.

But since this bit of mug-kitsch loudly features not only the year of my birth but also Elvis, TV dinners, Humphrey Bogart, Thrift Stamps, The Saturday Evening Post, and a great big finned Cadillac, I'm all about it.

The cooling tower. Photo Jennifer Weber 2010You'll never guess if I don't tell you straight out that I got the yellow mug with the red heart and happy hashmarks as a souvenir while on a trip to Chicago.

The ginormous orange one (it's larger than it looks in the picture), which reminds me of a cross between Saturn -- well, its rings anyway -- and a nuclear cooling tower, was purchased to replace "What Deadline?" after I broke it.

It was a passable attempt and this mug has seen a lot of action, but orange is not really my color.

Reminds me of Tiger Woods. Cheetah! Photo Jennifer Weber 2010Plus which, if you linger over your java as I am wont to do, this mug acts just like a cooling tower: it cools the coffee one degree.

And I don't like that.  HOT I said! Hot and fresh!

*whipcrack*

So then I bought an animal-print one, which has a twin, two for five dollars on clearance at TJ Maxx. 

It's very tall.

In fact, it's a tad too tall because when I'm sitting in my recliner drinking my coffee in the morning, I'm approximately one-fifth awake. In that state, with a mug that tall, I'm as likely to pour the fresh, hot coffee onto myself or a groggy Javier as to get it into my mouth.

Getting bad with the Bard Photo Jennifer Weber 2010Some time ago I blogged about my acquisition of a Shakespearean Insult mug, which I know for a fact appeals to my blogging buddy Mari. She even bought one for a relative!

The only problem with this mug is, if I read it while imbibing I will spit coffee out my nose.

Even partially awake I cannot fail to guffaw at cracks such as "Infinite and endless liar, an hourly promise breaker," and "Beetle-headed, flap-ear'd knave."

From the Konitz "Guess How Much I Love You" collection Photo Jennifer Weber 2010Besides, if I think about Barack Obama that early in the day, I will become queasy.

"I love you to the moon and back" is Erica's mug.

Aww shucks! I bought it for her.

She tends to be treacly. Although Andrew is technically younger, I fear Erica will always be the baby of the family.

Also she has this thing for butterflies, although she attracts wasps.

Only thing is, the Boo is infamous for taking two or three sips and then forgetting about her coffee. I find the cold, sludgy remains staining her cute little cup wherever she was when she set it down never to pick it up again.

The last time I saw Paris was never. Photo Jennifer Weber 2010She may be adopted.

Just yesterday I was at TJ Maxx and saw another of those very tall mugs ... this one featuring the Eiffel Tower.

And I just had to buy it for Audrey. She and I share an insane love of all things French.

She'll only get to use it while visiting here because I don't think I can part with it.

Speaking of Audrey, for Mother's Day she bought me a number of things, each more beautiful and useful than the last (all of my children were wonderful to me on Mother's Day ... but this one kid gave me a mug).

V&A in Newsam Pink Photo Jennifer Weber 2010And not just any mug! This is an exquisite piece of fine bone china from the Victoria & Albert Museum collection.

That would be Queen Victoria.

My mug is the "Newsam Pink" design but there are sixteen in all ... reproductions of wallpapers and fabrics with delectable names like Brompton Rose, Founier Blue, Georgian Trail, and Kilburn Silk.

I do believe my daughter bought the mug at -- where else? -- TJ Maxx, but you can find them online. 

And -- the piece de resistance -- to my delight, right next to the Eiffel Tower mug at TJ Maxx I spotted one just like my dearly de-handled "What Deadline?" mug, only different!

That's right; I don't. Photo Jennifer Weber 2010Which was like a dream come true … because although it's different in some ways, it is essentially the SAME MUG!

It feels the same in my hand and holds a huge quantity of coffee and keeps it at just the right temperature all the way to the last gulp.

And what it says is true! Truth in mugs!

I don't do perky.

However, I do pesky. A bit too well.

You've been mugged! Tell me about your favorite(s).

Comments

[Donna (Texas)]

Hahaa...What a fun post! I, TOOO, MUST have my coffee! Love the stuff...I have a stainless steel mug that keeps it nice and hot. I Also can't stand flavored coffees...Ruins the taste...
Have a great day Girl! Don't work too hard!
(Ugggg...just glanced at the TV and there was you know who's face...I need COFFEE!Lololol)
hughugs

[Lauri Rottmayer]

LOL! Love it. We're a bit like the Hatfield's and McCoy's here. There are an assortment of white mugs and those are mine because I am angelic and good. And the assortment of black mugs belongs to David because he is tall, dark and handsome. Plus, most importantly, it keeps the "is that my coffee or yours" out of our lives. :-)

[Jennifer]

@ Donna ... I need more than coffee when I see that face! I need a blindfold! *chucklesnort*

@ Lauri, that's a first for me ... white mugs for her, black for him? So cute! My man doesn't drink coffee and my children know better than to touch my favorite mug! Loved your coffee post, by the way! One of my favorite subjects.

[Susie @ A Slice of My Life]

I too am very particular about the mug that contains my morning brew. I think my very favorite was a huge mug that fit my hand perfectly. It had a picture of a scowling fat orange cat and said "I am smiling." It always made me laugh..I still mourn it's loss...

[Debbie]

I'm not a coffee drinker, I'm a tea drinker. I must have my three cups in the morning, three different kinds. Now my hubby must have three cups of coffee, and by cups I mean serving bowls that hold about 2, 8 ounce cups or more.

I found these huge mugs at Wal-Mart and they do look like bowls with a handle.

I like the Cheetah mug you have, nice.

[Jennifer]

@ Susie ... see? It's not just me! The cup you drink it out of is almost as important as what's in it! I can't stand to drink out of styrofoam ... can barely stand those paper cups you get served in at coffee-to-go places. I'm so sorry about the loss of your "I am smiling" mug! Perhaps someday you'll love another one just as much ...

@ Debbie ... you drink three different kinds of tea every morning? The same three kinds every day, or different kinds for different days? That's fascinating! Hysterical that your husband drinks coffee out of a big bowl. I'd try that but I'm not sure it would stay hot enough, LOL! I hate to re-heat coffee ...

[Keli]

I love the "Kill all the Lawyers Mug" I feel that way from time to time too. But my favorites are the delicate looking ones with floral prints like your Queen Victoria inspired mug. I'm particularly fond of the ones where the print continues to the inside of the mug - it's always a pleasant sight once the beverage is finished.