2-9-13 Admitting you have a problem is the first...

step.

My drinking problem is always in front of me on my desk.

1. I cannot seem to finish a cup of coffee before it gets cold.

2. I am filling that 101 oz. jug and drinking it each day.

3. I need a lot of bathroom breaks.

But seeing my half full coffee cups always reminds me of one of my favorite books, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn

There was a special Nolan idea about coffee. It was their one great luxury. Mama made a big potful each morning and reheated it for dinner and supper and it got stronger as the day wore on. It was an awful lot of water and very little coffee, but Mama put a lump of chicory in it which made it taste strong and bitter. Each one was allowed three cups a day with milk. Other times you could help yourself to a cup of black coffee any time you felt like it. Sometimes when you had nothing at all and it was raining and you were alone in the flat, it was wonderful to know that you could have something even though it was only a cup of black and bitter coffee. . .

Neeley and Francis loved coffee but seldom drank it. Today, as usual Neeley let his coffee stand black and ate his condensed milk spread on bread. He sipped a little of the black coffee for the sake of formality. Mama poured out Francie's coffee and put the milk in it even though she knew the child wouldn't drink it.

Francie loved the smell of coffee and the way it was hot. As she ate her bread and meat, she kept one hand curved about the cup enjoying its warmth. From time to time, she'd smell the bitter sweetness of it. That was better than drinking it.