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my morning cup of coffee

Welcome to All in the Detail… I am so glad you are here! 




cupofcoffee
I have to admit I am a Coffee Drinker. Some people drink tea and some, well, some don’t need any kind of liquid energy to get them going in the morning. Now, the odd thing is - I can stop and start my ‘Morning Addiction to Coffee’ very easily. When I am in my ‘Yes, I drink coffee’ period, I need my coffee before anyone can should speak to me in the morning. But, if I choose to give up this morning ritual, I can easily stop Cold Turkey. I guess I don’t have an addictive personality. I do, however, have an allergic reaction to coffee – when I drink it, it creates very dark circles under my eyes (arghhhh). But once I quit, my circles disappear in just a few days, weird huh?

I think therefore I have had my coffee

And it seems that I am not alone in ‘I’m a Coffee Drinker’ world. In 2013, about 83 percent of American adults drank coffee, the world's biggest consumer of the beverage, this up from 78 percent the previous year, according to the National Coffee Association's 2013 online survey. That's an average of three cups a day per person, or 587 million cups.

So with all this coffee consumption (millions of cups?), I figured it may be nice to share a few wonderful ways to utilize all those used coffee grounds after we enjoy our morning (or afternoon or evening) coffee.

fertilizer

1. FERTILIZE YOUR GARDEN
Coffee grounds contain calcium, potassium, nitrogen, and phosphorus, all of which are highly beneficial to plant growth. Aware of these qualities, experienced gardeners have long known that one of the best uses for coffee grounds is adding it as a fertilizer near acid-loving varieties like azaleas and rosebushes.


furniture

2. FIX UP FURNITURE
Some uses for coffee grounds may seem odd, but believe it or not this trick really works: Yes, coffee grounds can effectively conceal a scratch in dark wood furniture. With a cotton swab, rub the grounds into the scratch (or scratches), let them sit for 5 or 10 minutes, then clean them off with a dry cloth.


snails

3. DETER SNAILS
You learn something new every day: Snails hate caffeine. In fact, if the dosage is a high enough, caffeine can be lethal to gastropods. So, if snails have been sabotaging your flower beds and vegetable patches, try sprinkling coffee grounds at the base of affected plants. Many people say that tea leaves work, too. (But I’m not a tea drinker, so who knows?)


deoderizer

4. DEODORIZE YOUR FRIDGE
Is your refrigerator or freezer getting a little funky? Let a bowl of coffee grounds sit for several hours or overnight. The granules not only absorb foul odors, but also impart their own refreshing scent. If you love the effects of coffee but not its smell, try mixing in a few drops of vanilla or cinnamon extract.


compost

5. ENRICH COMPOST
Coffee grounds make an excellent addition to the backyard compost heap, because they contain nitrogen, which compost can’t do without. Also, coffee grounds attract the earthworms that further aid decomposition. Just remember to balance the nitrogenous grounds with carbon-rich materials such as leaves.


Now this should make us all feel a little better about consuming that delicious, dark, rich magical elixir that has a multitude of purposes. (Can you tell that I am in my ‘Yes, I drink coffee’ period?)

  
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