If "to err is human" well, then, I am like king of human ville, or at least a very prominent figure...

So...Pretty embarrassing here. Last year for christmas, Wifeshow bought me an espresso machine. It is a francis! francis! machine and is super cool looking. however, for the last 11 months, I had been less than pleased with the drinks I could produce. I was attributing it to the fact that It was a pod machine, but I know now that it has more to do with the fact that I am an idiot. You see, there are three settings on the machine, and you turn the portafilter farther to the right to achieve each setting. I never did this. So while I was thinking that I had been making lattes, cappucinos/ macchiatos, etc. I had just been making...coffee. Not that it was bad, but I was disappointed in the amount of crema I was getting. Such a moron. So, now, that I actually went back and read the manual, I am getting some pretty great drinks out of this little guy. This is a pic of a macchiato I had at breakfast. Milk is a little bubbly, but I'll get the hang of it. and for all of you elitists out there, I know that a machine that uses ground coffee over pods produces a better end cup. but the fact is, you need an excellent grinder for those results, which I don't want to spend the money on. I have no plans on becoming a great barista (I rely on tams for that postition:), I just want to have an espresso ( or two) at home once and a while. So, for the espresso lover that doesn't want to trek all over town for the perfect cup or shell out a month's wages. I would totally recommend the francis! francis! line of stuff. Just make sure you read the directions:)

ALSO: learned something new from my friend karina. She made reference to an "ibrik" used for making turkish coffee. turkish coffee is quite delicious. here's some info for the curious.