Life is full of dilemmas.

It's one of life's questions. Do you buy flavored coffee and use regular creamer? Or do you buy regular coffee and use flavored creamer?

I loves the coffee. I do. I tried to buy into the tea thing, and I occasionally do partake of some nice Earl Grey or maybe a little fruit-infused something or other. It has its charms. And when I'm sick and needing to pump myself full of warm liquids at an unreasonable pace, it fits the bill better than anything else. But tea just doesn't do it for me like coffee does.

Coffee is bold and rich, and once you've blended in some Coffee Mate or International Delight, it's irresistably creamy. It's like warm ice cream soothing you while simultaneously pumping you up. It's the perfect drink (alongside Coca-Cola, original flavor with all the caffeine God intended and preferably cane sugar instead of corn syrup...but that's a blog for another day).



I start each day with coffee - not right off the bat, the second I get up. You have to work your way up to that stage of addiction. No, I usually get up, watch some news, stretch. If it's an office day, I actually get completely ready for work and make it all the way to the office before jumping into Java Heaven. I fire up the computer, check my email for emergencies, figure out my plan for the day, then when I can devote proper attention to the coffee, I make it. If I'm at home, I usually get the coffee maker going once I've woken up a little. I don't rely on the coffee to wake me, you see. I get my feet under me, and then when I can properly consider the coffee and its glory, I perk.

I don't actually perk, though. My parents' perk. I have a drip-style coffee maker. I'm perfectly happy with it. I'm a coffee lover, not a coffee snob. I don't need special coffee equipment, and I don't have to buy expensive brands, and I don't harass the baristas at Starbucks with an elaborate ordering ritual for just exactly the right blend of beans and accoutrement. And I do like Starbucks. I know it's not popular to admit that - Buy Local! Starbucks Evil! Chains Should Die!

I'm actually largely on board with that sentiment about chains - I usually prefer independent vendors. They give more attention to service and being unique. Maybe it's an Austin thing, but I'll usually take an independent restaurant or shop, or a least a local one, even if they have more than one location, over a big chain. But there are exceptions. I love Target. And Lowe's. And Starbucks.



See, even Tony Blair likes it, and he's a Brit, making him a tea-lubber. But I can't afford to buy Starbucks on a daily basis. That brings me back to making my own coffee and my dilemma about flavors. I enjoy flavored, creamered coffee. So, do you buy regular coffee and add a flavored creamer? Or do you use plain creamer in a flavored coffee. I usually choose the flavored creamer. Good ole Folgers is reasonably priced, and flavored creamer isn't much more expensive than plain. So, that's a point for that setup. But there is the issue of variety. There are more varieties of flavored coffee than there flavored creamers. So, that's a point for the coffee. But the fat-free plain creamer seems more watery than the flavored kind for some reason, and that's definitely a point against the plain creamer. So, the debate rages on. I think I'll go drink some coffee and ponder it some more.