WHAT?!

I'm back in the motherland, which is pretty great. My native language spoken? Check. NPR on at all times? Check. Sweet, beautiful, electric, 10-cup coffee makers? Che--AHHHHH!

I make no bones about the fact that I am truly, truly lucky to have my in-laws. Kathy and Bob are amazing, and not just because they have given our dog a life that I, personally, am jealous of. They are extremely generous, kind people, they are/will be wonderful grandparents, they have always been very welcoming to me and I still can't believe my good fortune at being part of their family.

That very sincerely said, is this a joke?





The Toastmaster CoffeeBreak. CoffeeBreak? What do I need a break from? I don't work!










Yeah, I got into Eph's parents' house in Georgia from the 18+ hour trip from Greece, and other than a shower, the thing I looked forward to most was that first cup of sweet, sweet liquid relief from the ultra-powered coffee maker that usually sits on their counter. What I found was this:


















Note that the 8-oz. water bottle is, in fact, taller than the machine itself. I fully realize that some managerial decisions need to be made during the approximately 50 weeks per year that I am not at the Lytle house, but whoever thought getting rid of the real coffee maker is just plain wrong. My only hope is that somehow, some way, it's on the boat in the Bahamas (where we're heading in a few days--see you guys soon!), but I'm not holding my breath. My quiet but increasingly terrible fear is that Boberino is trying to force me into some sort of Faustian bargain: "We'll give you the coffee maker, we keep the dog." Not cool, guys, not cool. Don't think for one minute that your attempts to weaken me through caffeine deprivation are going to work.

Oh, and by the way, bad news about that carton of strawberry ice cream in the freezer. We owe you one.