In case you were wondering is it only you that cannot leave the house without your morning cup of joy, or even cannot open your eyes properly before coffee (that would be me), or can’t speak to anyone (also me :D), and than thinking how good is that for your health, are there risks or benefits… the answer is – No, you are not!
But reading about these famous and amazing artists and writers with quite an extreme love for coffee, and some of their sayings about that special drink, might put you at ease an make you enjoy your coffee even more.
1. Honoré de Balzac
Honore de Balzac is a timeless writer, but writing wasn’t an easy job. His schedule was so busy, that he slept in the evening by six, and was waking up by 1 a.m., just so he can write all night till the morning, and than to continue all day, with very short naps.
And this pace needs little bit more than few cappuccinos. It’s known that he ate coffee powder on an empty stomach in the morning, and drank about 50 cups of coffee during the day.
Were it not for coffee one could not write, which is to say one could not live.”
Balzac’s “The Pleasures and Pains of Coffee”.
2. Voltaire
Many Frenchman were addicted to coffee in the 18th century, but Voltaire seemed as the most enthusiastic about it in his time.
Once, he was even warned by his doctor that the coffee might have poisonous effect on him, on which he replied “I must have been poisoning myself for nearly eighty years”. Clever, right?
On his obsession for coffee, he once wrote:
On taking this drink one feels the sentiment of well being and hope; melancholy is dissipated; one feels capable of doing, because of a condition of strength. Coffee is truly a brain stimulant.
3. L. Frank Baum
The writer of the beloved Wizard of Oz series, reportedly had “four to five cups of strong coffee with sugar and heavy cream” each morning before he started to write.
The enigmatic writer relied on this morning routine of breakfast and coffee at exactly 8 a.m. in order to start his creative writing.
One thing is sure, he liked his coffee strong enough to
“float a spoon on it without sinking.”
That surely will get you going for the day, right?
4. Margaret Atwood
Margaret Atwood is a powerful writer and also an avid coffee lover—and, in fact, a coffee practitioner.
In her novel Cat’s Eye, she says:
“I don’t even glance at the herbal teas, I go straight for the real, vile coffee. Jitter in a cup. It cheers me up to know I’ll soon be so tense.”
In 2012, Atwood teamed up with Balzac’s Coffee Roasters to make her own Bird Friendly coffee blend. The goal of their collaboration was to help promote the protection and conservation of bird populations in coffee-growing regions around the world.
5. Marcel Proust
Proust, contrary to everyone else, got his energy from his deprivation from coffee. According to his housekeeper, he had two bowls of black coffee, hot milk and two croissants upon waking in the late afternoon, and then consumed little else.
Fun tip (instead of quote): Cafe au lait Proust-style was simply made with hot milk, but if you prefer creamy foam, heat milk until almost boiling, pour into a clean cafetiere and pump until frothy. Tap to remove any big bubbles and stir gently before using.
6. Albert Camus
Albert Camus was a journalist, novelist and author of short stories, political essayist and activist and a philosopher.
For him “There is only one really serious philosophical question, and that is suicide” , and he absurdly compared it with coffee in this quote:
“Should I kill myself, or have a cup of coffee? But in the end one needs more courage to live than to kill himself.”
7. Gertrude Stein
Gertrude Stein is a famous avant-garde writer and she had her coffee prescribed by her doctor.
Of coffee, novelist Stein wrote:
“Coffee gives you time to think. It’s a lot more than just a drink; it’s something happening. Not as in hip, but like an event, a place to be, but not like a location, but like somewhere within yourself. It gives you time, but not actual hours or minutes, but a chance to be, like be yourself, and have a second cup.”
So, what do you think? Have you ever drank an extreme amount of coffee? Do you have a morning routine that includes coffee? Or how much coffee you drink a day?
I would love you to hear from you in the comments.
You can also read 5 ways coffee boosts my writing
Enjoy your coffee!
Readytocoffee 