Tag Archives: coffee

Share Your World 18 Auguast 2025 – Coffee, Cubs, and Chaos: My World in Four Questions

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Di asks some interesting questions and here are my answers.

What is more tantalising on your taste buds:
frying bacon, freshly baked bread, fresh coffee, apple pie.
Wake up and smell the coffee! Whether it comes from an Italian Moca Pot or is poured from a plunger, it is pure enchantment!

(AI-generated image) Aaaah- First cup of the morning – the best!

What is the most unpleasant to you:
onions, garlic, the smell of the country, and personal hygiene.
Many years ago, when I was just a child strolling through a bustling city with my gran, we crossed paths with a person with very poor personal hygiene. Ever since that olfactory ambush, I’ve had a lifelong aversion to bodily odours.

(AI-generated Image) A lesson learned on the need for good personal hygiene

What is the most annoying:
a continuously barking dog, whiny bratty children, loud music, bad language.
I am reasonably tolerant of noise and am quite good at switching off. Whiny kids can be annoying, but I usually try to distract them or make them laugh. Usually it works, but sometimes not.

(AI-generated image) The Neighbourhood Watch – In charge of security, sanity and sleep schedules!

What is most likely to make you smile:
kittens/puppies, toddlers splashing in puddles, a baby’s smile, an elderly couple holding hands.
All of the above —and so much more. Life always finds a way to hand us a reason to smile. And when it comes to babies? Irresistible. But wild babies? Nothing lifts my spirits quite like a fuzzy, feathered, or furry youngster doing its thing in the great outdoors.

Lion cubs – Kgalagadi National Park

Gratitude:
I love today’s meme

Life’s little joys—whether brewed, barked, or born in the wild—remind me that retirement is anything but dull, and for this I am truly grateful.

Share Your World 11 August 2025 – Charming Cafés and Breakfast Delights in Small Towns

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Here are my answers to this weeks SYW challenge from Di

Do you prefer bar food, a restaurant, cafe or tea rooms?
I have a soft spot for coffee shops with character. Breakfast is my favorite meal to enjoy when eating out—especially on a road trip. Here in South Africa, our small towns (or ‘dorps’) often surprise us with the most delightfully unique cafés and tearooms. The photos below are from a quaint spot in Britstown, once a working mill, now lovingly transformed into a shabby chic haven filled with memorabilia.


Do you always have the same thing, or try something different from time to time?
“I love the feeling of walking into a place where they know my name. In my hometown, we often visit a coffee shop called Shipwreck, where the owner knows us so well that all I need to say is, ‘My usual, please!’ Her coffees are exceptional—and if you’re in the mood for something sweet, there’s simply no better spot.

The best eggs and bacon in town
The omelettes are to die for
Delicious cheese cakes
Best of all is the chocolate cake


Have you ever had to send something back to the kitchen because it was substandard?
It’s only happened a handful of times, but recently—while visiting a town more than an hour from home—I ordered creamed spinach with my breakfast. It arrived looking like a green dream… until I took a bite. Crunch! Gritty as a beach picnic gone wrong. Thankfully, it was served in a separate bowl, sparing the rest of my delicious breakfast from leafy sabotage. The place was bustling, so I only managed to raise the alarm after polishing off my plate. The owner was wonderfully apologetic and handed me a voucher for a free coffee,

(Image AI generated) Creamed spinach: now with extra gravel for that authentic garden experience


If you have a complaint, do you make it in writing after you have left, or before you settle your bill?
It’s always best to speak up right away—no one should have to pay for food that misses the mark. In my experience, a polite complaint usually leads to a replacement dish or, as in my spinach saga, some form of compensation

(Image AI generated) One bitter remark earns one sweet reward.

Gratitude

I truly appreciate the privilege of dining out as often as I do. Most of the time, the restaurants are exceptional—offering great service and consistently delicious food.

(Image AI generated) Two seasoned souls, one shared table—proof that good food and great company only get better with age.

Share Your World for Monday 18 March 2024

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After a brief absence, I am participating in SYW again, Thanks to pensitivity101 for the questions.

Here are this week’s questions:
1.  Did you wake up in a good mood this morning?

I am recovering from a bout of diverticulitis which had me laid low for a week so when I awoke this morning (Friday – not Monday) I felt on top of the world for the first time in a while. I have been living on broth for a week and not missing food at all! This morning I was full of energy and quite hungry but not dumb enough to indulge in a big breakfast! That will have to wait another week. It’s clear liquids, jelly (jello) and mashed food for the next week or so.


2.  What was the first thing you thought of when you awoke?

Yay, I’m better in time for Shannon’s wedding! She is getting married on Easter Saturday which involves a six-hour road trip and a weekend in Saint Francis Bay. I need to be well because I am —


3.  Tea, coffee, or fruit juice/smoothie for breakfast?

I had my first cup of coffee in a week yesterday! Yes, Coffee is my choice of beverage in the morning. While I was sick it was clear apple juice.


4.  What topping do you prefer on your toast?

I don’t eat toast and generally limit processed foods – bad for my above condition. For breakfast I usually have eggs done in various ways with various accompaniments and no toast is required.

Most foods, that are served with carbohydrates such as rice and pasta, can be enjoyed without them. I substitute cauliflower, courgettes (zucchini) eggplant or cabbage.

In the days when I did eat toast, I liked soft fried eggs on top for breakfast. Another favourite was toasted bacon and banana. Melted cheese with apricot jam was another treat I very much enjoyed but I have not eaten that for eight years!

This is what Earl thinks of Opal’s substitutes!

Poor long-suffering Earl!

Gratitude:

I am grateful that I have not had an attack of diverticulitis for over a year and that I have recovered well after this bout. It is unknown what brings it on but from experience, I know that if I have not been eating my usual healthy diet, I get sick! It is also stress-related. I felt it coming on during our week in Cape Town to do Visa applications. We were rushing around catching up with friends and family so our diet went south and so did my gut!