There is no doubt, we are becoming a coffee culture. Across America, soccer moms have traded Diet Coke cans for paper cups of their favorite double-shot lattes. Working stiffs pull single servings of barely palatable stuff from the Keurig. Hipsters eschew all other permutations of joe for a mug of single-batch Harrar (chemex brewed, of course). It’s intriguing, I think, the way our various subcultures have adapted the drink to their own particular styles.
This nationwide trend is felt acutely in my medium-sized university town, where we boast no fewer than thirteen coffee shops, the majority of which opened their doors in the last ten years. We have local artisan roasters, expert cuppers, and graduate students who prepare well-researched papers regarding the socioeconomic effects of corporate coffee plantations on local farmers. Here, the university has influenced us, so we mostly take our coffee with a bit of cream and a spoonful of pseudo-academic sweetener. And we take it by the jugful.
Yes, it seems that coffee is infiltrating all of our communities, replacing the time-tested stimulating beverages of yesteryear—cola. After all, I can’t remember the last time someone asked me if I wanted to take a Coke break (though my grandmother insists this was all the rage in the 1950s). And though my anecdotal observations may not conclusively prove that coffee is quickly supplanting cola as America’s drink of choice, I stumbled across an article that seems to lend support. According to the Atlantic, coffee revenues are trending upward while soft-drink revenues are heading south. Moreover, sales of coffee are projected to surpass those of cola in the not-too-distant future. What does this mean exactly? Folks are pitching the Pepsi, ditching the Diet Coke, and swapping their Sprite for a cup of joe.
The beverage wars are on—soft drinks v. coffee. Which will ultimately win? I suppose that depends on whether the growing interest in coffee is more than a passing fad. Which brings us to the subject of this week’s poetry prompt. Pit coffee against soft drinks (or any other drink, really) in a duel to the death. Compare; contrast. Write something unexpected, something different. Play with personification; use metaphor. But above all, have fun.
Now, who’s first? Let the battle begin!
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Tweetspeak’s January Coffee and Tea Poetry Prompt:
This month’s poetry theme at Tweetspeak is coffee and tea, and we’re composing poems that play with the theme. Perhaps you can gain a bit of inspiration from this month’s playlist, from the music at your local coffee joint, or from some other coffee or tea inspired piece of art. How do you participate?
1. Think about your favorite experiences, works of art, literary scenes, or songs that involve coffee or tea. Listen to the Tweetspeak monthly poetry playlist.
2. Compose a poem inspired by your coffee and tea experiences.
3. Tweet your poems to us. Add a #TSCoffeeCup hashtag so we can find it and maybe share it with the world.
4. If you aren’t a twitter user, leave your poem here in the comment box.
5. At the end of the month, we’ll choose a winning poem and feature it in one of our upcoming Weekly Top 10 Poetic Picks.
Last week, there were a few gems dropped on Tweetspeak’s “How do you Take it?” prompt. Monica Sharman shared a poem on her her own website. In “How I Take my Coffee, ” she opens with a marvelous run:
Coffee is unlike an emergency
or harsh criticism
or a sudden change in plans;
I take it well
no matter how it comes…
I’m with you, Monica. Visit her site for the full poem.
Tess shared 5 different haiku with us. In “So Cold, ” she writes:
The sun she floats up.
Even cold, you arouse me.
Ice trails down my skin.
Craig visited, too. He shared his observations from a coffee shop. In one, he writes:
Serving time
at my fav’rite café
Allen’s last poems
wait on the table.
Even reading demands courage…
I’m imagining him to mean Ginsberg, which indeed takes courage. Good work Craig.
Visit last week’s poetry prompt and read the prompts for the full offering of responses.
Now, let’s brew up some great poetry. Who’s first?
Photo by mattcameasarat, Creative Commons via Flickr. Post by Seth Haines.
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Buy a year of Every Day Poems, just $5.99 — Read a poem a day, become a better poet. In January we’re exploring the theme Coffee and Tea.
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Ruben says
My cup is full
The door is open
and life walks by
This plate is full
and I drink it slowly
She watches anyway
Fair trade
for a bear market
A farmer’s plate is half full
and he drinks his coffee quickly
Shade grown
sown on steep hand drawn hillsides
Her grinder calls me back
How lovely she stands
Plaid on black
My cup runneth over
Michael Garcia says
A different take on coffee seen from the different lifestyles of others. I can relate to the first line since I love to enjoy my coffee and watch the world go by; whether it be in a street cafe or from the view from my kitchen.
Megan Willome says
THE BEST HOUR OF THE WEEK
Dr Pepper Hour, that most Baylor
of Baylor institutions, still
attracts college students. Sixty years of refreshing floats. They visit
from 3 to 4,
then walk down the street
to Starbucks.
Robbie Pruitt says
The morning hopes for better days in early reflections and first sunrays. No soda no beer will calm the fear, soothe the mind and make it clear. Tope. The color of tope and a morning reflection of hope awakens the night and dawns the day.
Morning Hope
No ode to syrupy brown
Pop and fizz—not my biz
Condensation
Dripping brew
Off bottle brown
Nothing to see to
Barley and hops
Second at tops
Bubbly—no better than Brew
Water washes down
Better, when filtered brown
Through bean
And morning hope
Sweetened and creamed
To color of tope
© January 21, 2013, Robbie Pruitt
Michael Garcia says
I enjoyed reading your poem Robbie; a step by step process of taking in a cup of morning hope.
Robbie Pruitt says
Thank you Michael! . . . it is a journey. . .
Donna says
My husband loves his coffee, and he takes it with cream, no sugar. And so I have this special opportunity (on days when I know he’ll be down before the cream goes too warm) to let him know I love him without a word….
his favorite cup
waits with cream (no sugar)
whispering Honey
Glynn says
I went a bit to the serious side. http://faithfictionfriends.blogspot.com/2013/01/coffee-or-cola-in-half-light.html
Robbie Pruitt says
Just posted the poem Morning Hope on my blog as well. . . you can find it here:
http://www.robbiepruitt.com/2013/01/morning-hope.html
Morning Hope
The morning hopes for better days in early reflections and first sunrays. No soda no beer will calm the fear, soothe the mind and make it clear. Tope. The color of tope, and a morning reflection of hope, awakens the night and dawns the day. . .
Jody Lee Collins says
I live in Seattle;
there is no battle-it is
COFFEE all the way
in this town.
the only battle is
the choices–far too
many (and Starbuck’s
is NOT at the top of my list)
truly.
It’s the quiet
common cupcake cafe
on the downtown corner
where I know the owners
and they say my name.
I ask about the cupcakes
and the piereced and tatooed
20 something
remembers what I like (double
breve, extra foamy) even
though I’m her Grandma’s age
and that makes me feel
like I belong.
At the very cool
downtown corner
cupcake cafe
coffee shop.
Robbie Pruitt says
Well now. . .
Marcia Terwilliger says
Well, did I surprise you? Marcia
Robbie Pruitt says
I like it.
marcia terwilliger says
Thanks Rob, for some reason I liked it too.
Michael Garcia says
Just Coffee Please
Like a childhood memory; the aroma brings me back,
Its full bodied smell filling my senses
beckoning me like the warm morning sun.
It possess a comfortableness and a familiarity
like a treasured friend I look forward to seeing;
warm and inviting it never seems to disappoint;
partaking the moment my morning day has begun.
Copyright by NewLife2008
SimplyDarlene says
What if I didn’t speak
of The 2nd Amendment
today?
But only of fine
China teacups
Saucers, blue -n- white
Hand-painted flowers
And
Poetical stuff
Then I’d be a darn
Blasted fool
Pretending
To be
Someone
I am
Not.
Despite misconstrued
Ill-conceived, stereo-
Types,
Pistol-packin’
Momma’s don’t
Wanna
Fight.
Maybe, just
Maybe
I drink
From
A similar
Cup
As
You.
(or maybe mine
is a mug,
chipped,
stained
from
gloppy
coffee puddles)
http://favim.com/image/10271/