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Oblique Coffee Roasters

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Friday, June 18, 2010, 6:32 AM - USA vs. Slovenia post-match thoughts:

AAAUUUGGGHHHIIIEEEEEAAAAUUUGGGGHHHIIIIEEEEEAAAAUUUGGGHHHH (AHHHNOLD GUTTURAL CRY)!!!! I was on bar and throughout the entire morning the shots were coming out just..., ..., sour-ish! I didn't panic, but internally was trying to troubleshoot what was going on. After the match I finally gave up when Heather, my ever stalwart and even-keeled wife took over and took a stab at it. She deduced that our espresso blend was not mixed thoroughly, so we were hitting pockets of very bright Ethiopian Sidamo, then very deep Sumatran Mandheling, etc..., and after making the appropriate measures started turning out embiggened shots. Sorry to anyone who didn't have a coffee worthy of our name. If you mention this blog post on your next visit, the next one's one me! We're doing the best we can, and learning valuable lessons as we go.

 

Oh and the US was completely robbed of a win against Slovenia. On the third goal that was denied, we should have had three penalty kicks - if I'm not mistaken, hugging three of our men during play in the box is not allowed per FIFA rules of the game - but I could be wrong. Slovenia = poor form & cheap play.

Wednesday, June 16, 2010, 6:32 AM - sitting in the Papa chair:

First shot of the morning out of the gate - spicy and sweet; tickled my tongue it was so lively, fresh, and bright. But..., it was 4:15 AM, and I'm still dragging a bit. And then I think, what else people want to read about, and I would think it would be things not limited to twitter or facebook post size limitations. Never been guilty of being at a loss for words, so if there are issues / requests about what you want to read about, email me: john.obliquecoffeeroaster@gmail.com

Tuesday, June 15, 2010, 6:04 PM - sitting in the Papa chair:

So, I guess I need to explain the lapse in reporting the blow by blow account of our fledgeling business venture... I remember I was at my computer and everything was fine. I went to the counter to get a drink for someone, and when I came back, the BSOD (Blue Screen Of Death) met my gaze with a finiteness that can only be experienced to be truly understood. After spending more negative money, and wrangling with HP to warrant the hard drive failure, I am back in business, documenting the experiences of Heather and I, traveling the path of making our little world a bit happier with really, really good coffee.

 

There have been so many things happen since we opened, but I guess maybe the big thing that everyone might want to know, is whether we've been financially successful out of the gate (I know that is what our daily question is). The answer is a tentative, non-jinxy yes. Although we do have a considerable amount of debt to pay off with all of the renovation costs and will be carrying that debt for years & years & YEARS to come, every month we have been able to pay all of our living and operating expenses, as well as small chunks of the debt we've amassed. Realistically we are doing as well as one could expect, and with the continued help of our community, we will continue to progress toward a profitable position without compromising the quality of our coffees or the genuinely friendly, unaffected service you've come to expect from us.

 

We have a couple new items to crow about, most important the first piece of furniture hewn out of the Elm tree that was growing into the basement when we bought our fair building. After slabbing the trunk into workable pieces, and a couple years of curing in the basement, I made a good first effort at a coffee table for the love seat / sofa combo in the Southwest corner of the shop - Y..., ..., ..., VOILA!!!

Also, we did suck it up and purchase two, not just one, but two, forty-seven inch, ten-eighty p (ten-eighty p - golly!!!), two-hundred-&-forty MHz (yes Jimmy, two-hunnert-n-forty MHz), Toshiba LCD flatscreens for the World Cup (GOOOOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!), and the Tour de Lance, er..., France!!! So we got that going for us.

 

We've also got some new coffee in our quiver collection. A very sweet, bell peppery Sumatran Mandheling, a cocoa / caramel El Salvadoran, A Costa Rican that rings clear as a bell, and a Colombian that is very, very good, in the words of Dave our Espresso tech, from Espresso Me Service. Come on in sometime soon, try our new offerings, and be sure to tell us your thoughts!

Copyright © 2010 John M. Chandler (a mine; not yours production)