COFFEE

I've been walking for 3 blocks already,
and there's no Starbucks in sight.
(Come to think of it, I haven't seen a Gap either.)
I want a cup of coffee.
It used to be so simple.
Any old deli would do.
Today I realize that I too have become a victim
of the designer coffee phenomenon.
I don't feel right anymore buying my coffee
in a store that sells cheese danish and cigarettes.
I'm not a coffee connoisseur.
Yet here I am going out of my way
for the privilege of paying $1.40
instead of 60 cents.
And I get to stand in line.
I'm horrified.
Not by them.
By me.
Where are my defenses?
My counterattack?
I'm going home to make my own pot of coffee.
Trouble is, I bought the beans at Starbucks.


© Ellen Azorin