COFFEE
I love coffee. The taste, the smell, the ritual of getting out of bed and pouring myself a cup before I do anything else. Ah.. Nirvana! One thing that irritates me to no end however, is taking a swig of coffee and feeling coffee grounds swimming around my mouth. I liken it to how some people feel when they hear nails scraping against a chalkboard. I will run to the sink, spit it out, immediately pour the entire mug of coffee out, and rinse my mouth out with water to rid it of any stray grounds. Whats more, it actually angers me.
TOASTThis is a fairly new quirk I noticed over the last couple of weeks. I used to despise burnt toast in the way I hate coffee grounds swimming in my coffee. I used to watch my Grandfather ask for his toast to be "burnt", and then subsequently take a butter knife to scrape off the darkest part of the burnt surface. He'd say "Ah that's better" and would then begin spreading his butter across the less charred surface.
Strange as it may be, I totally get this now. When I eat toast.. I want my bread to be toasted. I HATE IT when a piece of bread is golden brown and the second you spread butter or margarine, it gets super soft, wet and actually sinks down, actually collapsing in on itself. Add some jelly or jam into the equation, and its even worse. A workaround, is to almost burn the toast to get more moisture out of the bread, so it stays firm while spreading butter or jelly across it. This also adds more taste and texture to the entire slice. I babysit my toast so it doesn't get to the point of being black, but if you don't have a toaster that controls heat very well, or have the time to watch it, Grandad's 'Burn it to a crisp' method and scraping it afterward is a quick way to accomplish this as well.
DONUTS
At one time, I jumped at the chance to try outrageous donuts covered in cookies, cereal, candy, and bacon, but anymore just give me donut of the old fashioned plain, sour cream, or fritter variety to enjoy with my coffee.
While Coffee can instantly get me to a good place very quickly, a coffee & a donut gets me Zen! The right kind of donut that's not sickeningly sweet, along with a nice cup of brewed coffee, perfectly balance each other out creating a whole yin and yang dynamic. Wow.. until now, I didn't realize there's a whole lot of eastern philosophy involved with my coffee and donut routine.
BEERWhen it comes to beer, I'm an equal opportunity drinker. I've known people who are self professed "Beer Snobs" who look down their nose at people who don't share their love of craft and micro brewed beer. I am just as happy at times drinking a Miller Lite, as I am a nice Dunkel or Altbier. There was a period of time throughout the 90s and 2000s where I drank nothing but craft and microbrews. I will still drink anything in front of me, but I've really begun to favor lighter bodied beers. Although, this might have a wee bit to do with relocating to the hot and humid Florida climate from Colorado. For me personally, lighter beers are more enjoyable to drink when it's hot out.
I'll play Devil's Advocate for a minute to expound on the whole "My beer is better than your beer" culture that has developed with the advent of the craft beer industry, I don't get it. People like what they like, and who are you to tell them they are wrong? I have drank hundreds upon hundreds of beer in all types of shades, colors, and styles. I brew my own beer, and love creating new flavors and hybrids. That being said, some of the most memorable beers I've ever drank were domestic beers. Like the Bud Light I drank with my Dad at a barbecue on a sweltering summer day. A Coors Light I drank with friends that we chilled in a mountain river. Or Malt Liquor I drank with my best friend during a cool Fall Colorado afternoon.
To me, an evening of drinking lower alcohol beer with friends is more enjoyable than throwing back hefty full bodied microbrews that pack a punch. And it's not even a quantity vs. quality thing. I for one don't set out with the goal of getting wasted. I love beer, and it's really easy to overindulge with stronger beers. It's simply easier for me to pace myself with a Corona or Bud Light versus certain Ales or Stouts.
I've got more quirks, but I think I'll save those for another time. I'm positive I'll develop more as I age, and am kind of curious to see how they manifest themselves.