Served with a Side of Mediocre

I have not one but two fabulously mediocre things to tell you today.

The first fabulously mediocre item is about my new love. Coffee. I know some of you are in complete shock right now as I have been staunchly anti-coffee for many, many years. But a few weeks ago, when I got together with some friends for brunch (a rarity for us), I had a sore throat and wanted something hot to soothe it. I'm really not a fan of hot drinks but it sounded so good. In the past, I've had coffee with a little cream and sugar so I decided to go with that, just enough to take away the bitter taste but not too sweet.

Y'all, that cup of coffee tasted so good that I went back for a second cup. That got me hooked. So two days ago, I bought a coffee grinder and some whole bean coffee and ground my own at home. Oh, the smell was so inviting! My father-in-law, a coffee fanatic, gave us a coffee maker years ago so that he could have some java when he was visiting. I had to figure out the auto feature so I could wake up to a freshly brewed pot in the morning. Oh, it was heaven waking up to the smell of freshly brewed coffee.

This hasn't gone over very well with S, who is still staunchly anti-coffee. But he's learning to love the new me.

The second fabulously mediocre item involves pimiento cheese. It's a completely Southern dish that I love, love, love. A few months ago, Nana brought me some pepper jack pimiento cheese from a little deli near her house. Since said little deli isn't here, I figured I would have to learn to make my own. I got a recipe (thanks, Bunny!) and tried it, substituting the sharp cheddar cheese for pepper jack cheese. It was fantastic. If you like spicy stuff, this will hit the spot. I even added some chopped jalapenos to add a little more heat. It is totally and completely addictive.

And I can't resist this picture of my friend's new puppy. Too cute!