Dad’s love of coffee

Coming from Ireland, one might have expected my dad to be a tea drinker, but he drank coffee like it was water. He drank coffee with every meal, and in-between meals as well. Both my parents had a love of coffee, and they were from that generation that drank it throughout the day and also at night. How did they avoid getting the caffeine jitters back then? Now there are so many “experts” that warn people shouldn’t ingest caffeine after 3 p.m. if they want to get a good night’s sleep.

My dad liked his coffee with cream and sugar. I can still remember how the sweetened, caramel-colored liquid looked and smelled in his gold mug, the one he used when I was a kid. They drank instant coffee at home, but always appreciated the brewed stuff when they went out to eat. In fact, they almost always ended up enjoying a fresh pot of coffee when they were at a restaurant, because really, who drinks coffee at a Pizza Hut? My parents!

I would always cringe at the odd combination of food my parents would eat with coffee, from pizza to fish to pasta. But my dad had always lived that way, claiming that when he was a young man in New York City, he survived for years on coffee and hot dogs.

And yes, in case you are wondering, I love coffee as well. I’m a bit snobbier about my coffee, and no, I don’t drink it with pizza, but it is one of my favorite beverages.