My dear mother has long had the habit of absentmindedly leaving sips of lukewarm coffee in a variety of colourful mugs around an otherwise spotless house. It is a dark day for whoever has the gall to toss the remnants of powder and water down the drain – only she may determine when the miniscule servings of Nescafe she serves herself are simply beyond the hour of tasteful consumption. My beloved girlfriend, the other woman in my life, has a similar eccentricity for caffeine in its hottest form. She allows herself the soothing relief, like mom, amidst her grueling workdays, or falls victim to a bitter, yet sugary darkness when exams come creeping.
