Coffee fasting: Wimp edition

I ran out of ground coffee about a month ago* and have been stealing mum's instant Nescafe. She pretends not to notice, but never fails to act surprised when a new bottle appears mysteriously on the kitchen counter. I'm not a caffeine junkie per se, but like most people, I might have a slight problem.

Anyhoo, mum went to Japan and returned safely, bearing with her an assortment of green tea-based snacky things, coffee jelly (?), and ground coffee.

I brewed some of it yesterday using the much-vaunted pour-over method (it's what the packaging instructed). Given the time spent without ground coffee, I am fully qualified to tell you why ground coffee will always win out over instant, even though John Scalzi will tell you it all tastes like ass.**

There's nothing mystical about brewing your own coffee,*** although some would make it out to be like that. It's just that as the grounds are steeping, they fill the house with a tantalising aroma that conveys energy and freshness, somehow managing to evoke the sense of purposefulness and renewal that comes with each new day.

Taste-wise, ground coffee is light, clean and, at the risk of sounding pretentious, pure. However, as I was alone at the time, I couldn't tell anyone about how it fairly sparkled on my tongue and woke me up. The aroma lingered all day to boot. 

In contrast, instant coffee seems like something you would use when you're angry with yourself. It's sour and muddy, the bitterness jolts you out of your sleep stupor most unkindly, and it doesn't smell nice. In hindsight, I daresay that work over the last month was decidedly lackluster.

That said, a coffee grinder and a reliable supply of freshly roasted coffee beans are worthwhile investments if you want the best of brewed coffee.

* Got lazy about cleaning up after brewing, yanno?
** Obviously I don't know him personally, but I feel like I know a person personally when I read their blog or whatever (haha) often enough.
*** Everything I use is from Daiso or Tesco.

The real awkward moment

When you're out with your boyfriend and his parents, and his mum makes small talk with another woman, and the woman asks her, "Are these your grandchildren?"

I've been told I look Thai, but this...