You really want that?

I made the mistake of visiting a coffee shop for dinner. It's off Interstate 10 in Banning. Gramma had something to do with the "decor". Country kitsch. That should have been the first sign that I was headed for disaster.

I've eaten there before. And frankly everything is the same as it was then. Wasn't I paying attention then? Has my taste changed so much in a few short months? Well, yes.

The idea about eating on the road is to find the least objectionable item on the menu and just go with it. Once in a while I get a little something akin to comfort food.

Or not!

I have read way too much about the industrial food model. I grow my own (delicious) food and am learning about how to prepare it in ever more enticing ways. A coffee shop is what it is, right?

Right!

It's complicated to get into a Q and A about how the meal is prepared. Microwaved, fresh or canned, type of fry oil...See what I mean? It's out of place to broach the subject in a coffee shop.

I get to thinking about how we moved into this place, as a nation, where mediocre or worse is acceptable for our meals. Morning, noon and night. And every other possible moment in between. It's a shock. A disappointment.

I want it to be better for my fellow planeteers. Come on people. Bump it up. You're worth it.

Tonight I nurse a slight sodium headache and dream about the perfect cup of java awaiting me in the morning from the mermaid down the street.

That is gonna be good. No doubt!