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The History of Coffee Author: Jennifer Jordan   Many cigar smokers enjoy a stogie with a nice bottle of wine or a full glass of whiskey. Others enjoy pairing a stick with a strong beer or setting a cigar up with a sweet girl named "Brandy." Then there are those who simply think cigars and coffee are the ideal combo: move over Wheaties, there's a new breakfast of champions. This may seem odd, coffee and cigars are so different. Yet, this is often the case when it comes to consumption. From eggs and ham to French fries and chocolate malts, from wine and cheese to peanut butter and jelly, the world is full of very different things that enhance each other. Though it may seem to be a recent trend, the coffee and cigar match up has been brewing for years. It is no coincidence that history saw tobacco and coffee gaining popularity at the same time: people knew from the start that cigars were good with a cup of Joe. However, seeing how we have already detailed the history of the tobacco seed (hi, Christopher Columbus), this article will talk about the history of the other. Coffee, this mug's for you. Your Cup Runneth Over Throughout the ages, coffee has been good to the last drop, the best part of waking up, and filled to the brim. For many of us, coffee is conducive to our morning functioning: we can't leave home without it in our system. This aside, most of us don't really know that much about coffee, other than how we take it. Not only is coffee rich in flavor and aroma, but it is also rich in past. From the cafes of centuries of yore to present-day Starbucks, where exactly has coffee bean, er, been? Grinding Out a New Drink The history of coffee goes all the way back to the 9th century, perhaps even further. No one is completely certain how it was discovered, making the way for several legends. The most well-known legend involves an Ethiopian goat herder named Kaldi who spotted goats eating coffee berries in the highlands of Ethiopia. He noticed that after the goats ate the berries they possessed more spunk and alertness. Kaldi followed the goats lead and ingested the berries himself: he immediately felt more energetic. From Ethiopia, coffee was distributed to Yemen, Egypt, Turkey and Persia. Despite its dispersal - and the opening of the first coffee house in 1457 Constantinople -coffee was not well received, at least not at first. By 1511, the rulers of the court in Mecca deemed it forbidden, believing that its stimulating effects were sinful. Coffee, however, had a great amount of fans and just 13 years later, the ban was removed by Ottoman Turkish Sultan Selim I. In 1532, Egypt saw a similar ban as places that served coffee and warehouses filled with coffee beans were destroyed. The Ethiopian Orthodox Church also banned coffee around the 17th century, believing its consumption mirrored some sort of pagan ritual. Coffee, as a word, is believed to have been derived from the Italian word caffe sometime around 1600. Filtered throughout the ages, the word caffe was produced using Turkish and Arabic words, words that translated to mean "the wine of the bean." Europe of Bust From the Middle East, coffee made its way to 17th century Europe where it quickly gained popularity. This momentum was spearheaded by the Dutch, who started to import coffee in large quantities and grow it in Java, an island they (at the time) possessed. Coffee was not only thought of as a stimulant, but it was also thought of as everything from a medicine to a luxury.   Coffee came to the American colonies from Europe. Here, it was received with less than open arms: the colonists preferred alcohol. This opinion, however, changed when the rest of the world changed: during the American Revolutionary War. As Americans fought British forces, the demand for coffee skyrocketed. This demand was largely do to the reduction of available tea (compounded by the 90,000 pounds thrown in the Boston Harbor). Once Americans began to replace tea with coffee, they developed a liking. The taste buds of America looked even more favorably upon coffee during the 19th century. This was catapulted by both the War of 1812, in which access to tea was cut off temporarily, and the Civil War, where coffee reached one of its highest demands. As the Americans were perfecting their taste for the bean, the Brazilians were perfecting the bean itself. In 1727, Brazil built the first coffee plantation and, by the early 1800's, their coffee was quickly becoming some of the best in the world. They took it from being a stimulant, to being a drink for the mouths of the masses. Today, in America and otherwise, coffee flows like water. Not only is it produced in a variety of regions, but it is a major economic staple for many countries, particularly third world countries, and has succeeded in going from being a drink to being the center of many social gatherings. In the US alone, over six billion gallons of coffee are consumed annually. This amounts to over 22 gallons a person, leaving drinkers both awake and in need of a bathroom. About the author: Jennifer Jordan is an editor and staff writer for http://www.whatsknottolove. com. At home in a design firm in Denver, Colorado, she writes articles specific to the finer things in life.

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History and Origin of Kwanzaa Author: Caitlina Fuller The African American people celebrate their history and their culture with the festival of Kwanzaa. The holiday was created to reflect, congregate within the community, and celebrate. The Festival of Kwanzaa starts December 26th and ends on January 1st, which is New Year's Day. So the festivities are a week long. The reason these specific dates were chosen were to take advantage of the holiday spirit during this time frame and to coincide with the other American holidays. The Kwanzaa celebration begins the day after Christmas to avoid the holiday buying period. The way Kwanzaa is celebrated varies somewhat from family to family, but the basics are always the same. For example, every night of the holiday a family member, almost always the family's youngest child, will light a candle and talk about one of the Kwanzaa principles. There are seven Kwanzaa principles to be discussed and the candle lighting and discussion is very similar to Hanukah. The last night of the holiday, which is on New Years Eve, is the night when friends and family get together and enjoy a meal and celebrate the New Year as well as their culture and history. Many times the end of the year feast is accompanied by candy and chocolates too. Kwanzaa has not been around as long as many of the other holidays that are typically celebrated. In fact, Kwanzaa has only been around since 1966 when it was created by Dr. Maulana Karenga. The holiday was created during a very disruptive time when African Americans were struggling with civil rights and living in a very tumultuous time. The holiday helped to bring African Americans together so they could gain strength from one another as well as honor and remember their heritage. There were many reasons behind Dr. Karenga deciding to create a new holiday for African Americans. The biggest reason was that they simply needed a time to come together as one and enjoy their culture and history. Dr. Karenga was inspired with the many harvest festivals that take place in Africa and decided to implement a holiday based on that fact in the United States. The name of the holiday also is a spin off from the African harvest festivals that celebrated the first fruits of the season. In fact, kwanza means "first fruit" in Kiswahili. Although there are many African languages, Kiswahili is the most common spoken language in Africa and that is how it became Kwanzaa's official language. If you noticed that in Kiswahili the word "kwanza" only has one a then you were very observant and it was not a typo. The additional "a" was added for the holiday by Dr. Karenga to give the word more emphasis. The Kwanzaa celebration is based on several qualities that the harvest festivals in Africa embodied and that Dr. Karenga thought were important. These included that the people gathered together to thank their creator for the harvest, that the culture, ancestors and history was celebrated, that the actual harvest was celebrated, that the new year, history, culture, and creator were celebrated, and that individuals could recommit to the community and become better members in the future. The qualities were about thankfulness for the past and the future and the opportunity for members of the community to become even better stewards of the land and their community in the future. These qualities were the basis for the seven principles of Kwanzaa. These include faith, cooperative economics, collective work, unity, self determination and responsibility, purpose, and creativity. This is what Kwanzaa is based on. About the author: Caitlina Fuller is a freelance writer, The Kwanzaa celebration is based on several qualities that the harvest festivals in Africa embodied and that Dr. Karenga thought were important.

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