Every now and then I see something that most people would consider to be an everyday item, but I don’t see it as common or normal at all. It’s so far removed from my everyday life, that I see it with different eyes. It jumps out at me, as if asking me to pay attention and not look past what it has to say. I know that my eyes are different than most in our convenience driven culture because I’ve purposely tried to lay aside the trappings of that lifestyle in favor of the old ways. My off-grid homesteading life has given me a different perspective. I’m looking through new lenses. Or maybe I’ve just wiped away the smudges so that I can see more clearly.
In any case, I frequently have the experience of seeing a modern day item in a way that makes me see it not only as a concrete thing, but more as a picture of a culture and lifestyle. For a moment, it’s like I’m standing in an art museum looking at an artifact so removed from my own experience that I’m compelled to hear its story.
Today, that artifact is the electric coffee machine. There are myriads to choose from. The choices astound me. Pick your favorite or the latest model, but they all seem to have one goal in mind: coffee at the press of a button. Did the Star Trek replicator technology begin with a cup of coffee? Did it start with coffee and move to re-hydrating sandwich cartridges, and then to food simply appearing out of mid-air. I wonder. But I digress.
Americans Love Coffee
It is my opinion that coffee may be the quintessential American drink, as American as apple pie. Perhaps some will disagree and submit that lemonade and soda would be more appropriate for that title. But I don’t generally drink those things, so in my mind I’ll stick with coffee. It’s kind of funny actually because coffee isn’t even an American commodity. It doesn’t grow here. It was originally introduced to Americans when they were still subjects of the English crown. It came on ships from the Caribbean, but so did the favored English tea from across the sea. It wasn’t until after the famous Boston Tea Party of 1773, that drinking coffee became popular as a way of declaring a patriot’s loyalty by ditching the English tea. What’s a Yankee to do without his tea? Drink coffee, of course. That makes coffee pretty American, I think.
Image: Texas Ranger Museum
Later on as Americans spread across the West, coffee was stowed away in chuck wagons and saddle bags. The beans were still green and had to be roasted before grinding to make coffee because roasted beans were not shelf stable before the existence of vacuum packed seals. So hardy Americans packed up their beans, transported them, roasted them, ground them, and boiled them. More likely than not they enjoyed their coffee grounds and all, with much thanks that their supply had not yet run out. Coffee must have been pretty important for all that effort.
It’s pretty important to me too. But I don’t go to near that amount of effort every morning. I enjoy mine by pouring boiling water over grounds spooned into the bottom of a coffee cone. It’s a morning ritual that takes about 10 minutes. My grandma was always one to have the newest kitchen appliances and she enjoyed her coffee made with an electric percolator. Her mother would have used a stove top one on her wood burning cookstove.
Modern sensibilities say that even that requires too much time! Waiting for a pot of water to boil is out of the question. I’ve heard it over and over again. The popularity of the single serve coffee makers proves it. But how did we get here? That’s what I see when I look at a modern coffee machine. I see a commentary on the instant gratification that has become so all important in our lives today. I can’t imagine my great-grandmother complaining about the slowness of her percolator as she waited for it to achieve the perfectly brewed color. In my mind’s eye, I see her bustling around her kitchen as she started her day by enjoying the aroma wafting from the pot on the stove.
The Modern Quest
In our modern culture’s quest for the fastest, easiest, and most convenient gadgets, I just can’t help but feel that we have lost something. I think that “something” is rather important. It’s the ability to see things as valuable and to cultivate appreciation for everything we have. I truly believe that the further and further we get from being involved in the work of something, the less valuable it becomes. It’s taken for granted. And it’s never enough. The bigger and better thing is always craved. When there is work involved (even just a little), we ensure an appreciation for the result of every task we perform. The longer our culture continues down this road, I’m afraid we will lose the understanding of the value of things more and more. Our children will see everything as easily replaceable commodities and the “something for nothing” mentality will continue to grow.
Am I saying that you get rid of your coffee maker? Not really. I am hoping that tomorrow’s coffee will be a little more fulfilling when you remember how the early pioneers valued it deep into their journey across the west. I’m just making a simple observation about our modern world where true value of the simple things seems so distant. I have to wonder at our consumer throw-away habits. I realize that my own values seem to belong to a different time. When modern convenience technologies glare at me like high beam headlights shining directly in my eyes, I am simply more thankful and committed to my slower homesteading lifestyle. Maybe once in a while, we could all benefit from taking a step back and looking at our world through the lenses of days gone by. Maybe that would allow us to experience a fresh and more thankful perspective on our lives.
Jaimie is a writer and vlogger for AnAmericanHomestead
Visit Us Online: http://AnAmericanHomestead.com
Nice post Jaimie. We've been purchasing green coffee beans for long-term storage. We have an indoor coffee plant too, but we've only gotten one coffee cherry so far. @ironshield
Where do you find your green coffee beans? Can you buy them in bulk?
We purchase beans a few lbs at a time, not sure about bulk. They have good promotions. If it's someone's bday, they'll discount. 10% off coupon code "BDAY17"
Beautifully thought and written, Jaimie. As I have switched from my commodity-guzzling suburban lifestyle and finally gotten to homestead on our land, I have found that my appreciation for the "slowly gotten" things is so much more sharp and clear, like you're saying. I relish the 7+ hour wait time of getting a sourdough loaf done. I truly enjoy the months its taking our heritage chicks to reach adult size. I love watching my husband harvest lumber and mill it by hand, even though it takes all day. Being able to take part in, learn from, and truly experience these moments of life has made me see the Creator's good design in so much of the living things that surrounds me, and I feel more thankful than I ever did when it was easily accessed. I want my children to grow up learning this, like I'm sure yours are.
Being able to read articles like this is both encouraging and bolstering. Thanks for sharing your thoughts, and thanks for seeing such beauty in the time it takes for water to boil.
Thanks so much for the kind and encouraging words!
Oh my, I could not agree more Jaimie. While I don't drink coffee (can you believe I've never tried it once) I do live off-grid and completely understand the detachment most folks have. I was one of them. When I lived in the city and a "normal" lifestyle, I demanded instant gratification. I was so spoiled that if the cable became hazy during one of my precious shows, it seriously would make me grumpy.
I look back on those days now and think how blind I was. I liken living off-grid to being "born again". One experiences that moment of clarity. It is as if they had been living with blinders on previously.
You've really got me thinking. I think I'll write an article about my "awakening". Because that was what it has truly been. There you go again, inspiring me.
Yes! It very much is kinda like being born again and looking at life through new eyes.
I have almost every coffee contraption imaginable and I still always reach for my stovetop espressera or my pour over chremex.
Nice, I'll have to check those out!
I learned how to make coffee on a gas stove when I lived in Central America. I don't know why, but it does taste better that way. Good article. Upvoted!
Wood fire coffee tastes even better than gas. But you're right. Gas is better than electric coffee pot in my opinion.
My own mother would say I was born in the wrong century because of my love and appreciation for the old ways. I don't care for the push button coffee and enjoy a cup boiled in a pot more (grounds as well) along with all my cast iron that my son loves but his wife hates... Do I feel like a dinosaur or just welcome the slow way things were done? Stay true Jaimie, I suspect we will survive better than the push button people....
Sharing for others to enjoy this topic!
Thanks for the share! And yes, when the times get tough, we may not languish so much.
Thank you for your blog I enjoyed the coffee while reading about coffe off to a good start today.
THANKS!
Never seen coffee made like that.
I have a 12 cup bun...usually make three pots a day.
If the wife wants some I make more.
We only usually have 1 cup a day....maybe 2.
how do you survive on so little?
Ditto! I have to have my 2 pots!
Gee, this brought back memories. Thanks, Jamie. I have an old metal coffee percolator that sits on top of my gas stove (also old). The coffee tastes just as good or even better than is made in the newer electric machines. I like my coffee unadulterated-no milk, no sugar. Just black thanks.
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STOPJust found your blog - really enjoy reading about your off-grid lifestyle!
I think The Wife has had us try just about every possible kind of coffee maker over the years. Percolators, press-pots, espresso machines (a wedding gift), straight-to-carafe drip machines with incorporated grinders...
The press-pot is deliciously low-tech and makes some of the strongest coffee.
But for the last several years we've had a basic drip pot from the second hand store. Cost $5. And I have to say I'm damn grateful it has a timer so the stuff is ready when I get up in the morning.
great post my buddy Bob Tuskin is a homesteader in North Florida I will tell him to check you out I like coffee but only drink it ever so often I enjoy cold brew. I started following you from a comment by @raserrano
Nice post. We have two coffee makers. One for my husband and one for me. I know it is sad.....but at least mine was given to me. :=)
I am not a homesteader but I watch your channel with the same sense of wonder and curiosity that you have with things outside your world. The coffee cup you use is just facinating. Ive never seen anything like it. I love reading about and watching everything you and your family accomplish on your adventure. Thank you all for sharing and the history in a beverage I love. Good luck and shalom.