Wednesday, January 28, 2004


yoga utility & the mexican chocolate macchiato

everyone who's into yoga at some time or another struggles with a simple fact: carrying the mat. there are many ways to do it: simple strap harness-type systems, fancy $$$ designer bags toted by former supermodels, plain rip-stop nylon, thin bags made of bright chinese or batik cloth.

the problem is one of size, weight, shape. it's hard to find a non-bulky, easy-to-carry, and good-looking yoga bag that's large enough for the big mat as well as a change of clothes, even tho' yoga clothes themselves are small and lightweight.

so far there's just not been a stylish, useful, and reasonably priced solution. a new entrant into the mat-bag arena is the intent bag.

this looks more like a guy-bag to me; it's not far removed from locker-room roots. but as more guys are getting into yoga, i guess the little batik-cloth bags aren't going to cut it for them. . .those do look a tad girlie. . .

more on the recent southeastern barista competition front: as i reported yesterday, non-barista darren of counterculture won in a surprise finish. he completed the required drinks handily, with more than a minute left over.

his specialty drink: a mexican chocolate macchiato, made with ibarra chocolate melted with hot water. as described to me, this glazed the bottom of the cup.

then a normal-type doppio macchiato went on top, prettified with latte art. darren garnished the drink with thin strips of home-made candied orange peel.

citrus usually is said to work more against coffee than for it, but apparently he made the peel quite sweet, so it worked out, esp. with the hints of cinnamon and almond found in the ibarra.

there is a locus of meaning in coffee drinks and the material culture of coffee. trust me! if not, see this interesting anthropological study of the coffee cup. . .

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