I can’t figure out the coffee pot

I woke this morning to the sound of surf. It was 7:37, and diffused light from an overcast sky seeped around the edges of the blinds. My body wanted to go back to sleep, but I wanted to see the beach. My girlfriends and I arrived at Folly Beach, South Carolina, yesterday evening around 6 o’clock, it was drizzling, and we needed to set up the bar and put groceries away for our annual girls’ weekend. Then it was dark, and we were too busy hanging out, drinking, and ordering fish tacos to do anything like walk the one block to the beach.

We stayed up late, of course. So despite probably needing a lot more rest, I was happy I at least slept this morning beyond my normal 5 am wakeup. Nobody else in the house was awake, and I couldn’t lie there in bed listening to the ocean and not go see it. I brushed my teeth, gulped down some water, pulled on a pair of jeans, and walked barefoot across the street to the beach. No coffee yet, I wanted to get out there immediately.

Now I’m back, sitting on the porch, and everyone else still sleeps. I’m listening to surf pound, processing my photos, and desperately hoping someone else will wake up soon. The coffee maker is this tremendous combination 12-cup pot / single-cup Keurig type deal, where it tries to do everything, and as a result can’t do anything. After 15 minutes of filling the water thing, pressing all the buttons, taking stuff out, putting stuff in, holding buttons down some more, and doing all of those steps multiple times, I can’t figure out how to make a simple cup of coffee.

I really really want a cup of coffee.

I want a cup of coffee and a piece of the key lime pound cake one of my girlfriends brought. I’m trying to buy time, but I don’t think I can last much longer. If nobody is up by the time I post this, I might need to get in the car and go find a cafe.