theatre and a coffee after?

“1536: WICKET - Panesar c De Villiers b Morkel 0, Eng 186-9
Here's the good news: Jimmy's still at the wicket. Here's the bad news: Monty isn't. He fences at a short one and spoons an easy looper straight down AB's throat at third slip. A line of lads dressed as Thora Hird in Last of the Summer Wine slump in their plastic seats.” – Tom Fordyce at the BBC text / reporting center.

Today is the first day of the second England v South Africa Test at Headingley. The 186-9 total isn’t exactly what you’d like to post in a first innings. England may be trying to speed things up a bit in order to bowl while the pitch is apparently favoring the bowlers – we’ll see.

The 61 is going to the theatre tonight to see Man of La Mancha at the Keegan near DuPont Circle. The Keegan is a smallish venue that does theatre more along my tastes than do the massive, and expensive, high-end venues. The acting and directing are fantastic but some of the big money theatre mentality is long forgotten. They also seem to be a somewhat Irish-woven company of beer drinkers and songsters. I love the Keegan.

Here’s the list of items we managed to corral during our Wednesday night visit to Sur La Table: a sifter, 9” tart pan with removable bottom, portable/travelable cutting ‘boards’, two jars of sand (don’t ask, I can’t explain), a reusable gold drip coffee filter, and a single cup drip coffee rest on-top-of-your-cup maker holder thing. The last item was the cause for our trip but it inevitably turned to more than just the mystery of the world of single cup coffee makers. Speaking of coffee makers, we now have in our house: the single cup maker, a French press, the Eva Solo, a Mokka cappuccino maker, and some frozen instant. I think we’ve got all the bases covered – and we don’t even drink that much coffee. Have I told you yet that I’m horribly intrigued by a vacuum coffee maker? More on that at a later date.

I just found this coffeeblogbattle while searching the D.C. area for a local coffee bean roaster. Murky Coffee in Arlington, right near our old place, is my second favorite coffeehouse ever (the first being Bibo in Reno). This tussle is why we can look at life and laugh like hyenas. Here’s the blog written by the customer, the open letters from the owner of Murky, and the WaPo story that came after the explosion in the coffeeblogosphere. It’s hilarity on every level. I cannot get over the closing of the owner’s letter on July 14th, “I’ll punch you in your dick.” That is highly quotable.

Friday.