how depressing

80% of coffee sold in oz is instant. crumbs. that's not coffee, that's toilet duck.

going caravaning

taste buds are in mutinous revolt against the host organism. i've gone off coffee. all espressoed out. desperate measures required. reverting to tea in the interim. russian caravan tea, to be precise.

a boost

as a consequence of the sclerotic world economy 600+ starbucks outlets in america are closing. hooray. hopefully the dozen or so in oz will be next.

melbourne on the arno

obscure as it is, melbourne is still one of the coffee capitals of the world. that's why starbucks does such lousy business here. but it wasn't always this way. we used to be tea-drinkers. why the change? well, we aren't as culturally cosy with the english anymore. but, mostly, it's all the italians' doing. they instilled the espresso taste and established the café culture. and, believe me, we're all jolly grateful.

and as i was thinking of italian things...

things italians do well: coffee, art, architecture, scooters, food, clothes, cities, religion, attitudinizing, lassitude.

things italians don't do well: sport, government, tv, music (except monteverdi), war, suburban villas, cars, men.

please remind me if i've omitted anything.