MDDM: Chapter 48 Notes Part I

Mon Apr 15 09:38:17 CDT 2002

Chapter 48 Notes

In case something has already been discussed and I missed it, please accept my apologies and blame it on time (or lack thereof).

466.6  Diurnal Rhythms.

Diurnal: From Latin "dies", day.
Daily, used primarily on the motion of the heavenly bodies. Also, as opposite to "nocturnal", from Latin "nox", night.
Going against normal, natural rhythms? Is this why Mason is so cranky this morning? Or is he slowly turning into an American? He uses the f-word, instead of the d-word, he ridicules English manners ("chirpy"), as well as the common English phrase "good chap", and he prefers coffee to tea. As they work eastward, their shadows in the evening stretch towards the East, the past, England... Just a thought...

466.11  Fucking

Has this been already discussed? Anyway...
This seems like an anachronism. The word has been in use at least since 1503 (according to the OED), but in its literal sense. The earliest indication of its use as a more violent form of "bloody" seems to be in a 1893 dictionary of slang.
See also:
http://www.bartleby.com/61/95/F0349500.html

466.12-14  The Coffee is brew'd with the aid of a Fahrenheit's Thermometer, unmark'd save at one place, exactly halfway between freezing and boiling, at 122°

122oF is 50oC. It seems that if water is kept at this temperature for 5 minutes, it gets cleansed, a useful property at a place and time when clear water could be hard to come by. Also, if the water is overboiled, many of the coffee compounds will begin to break down and the taste will get very bitter. See also:

http://www.gardfoods.com/coffee/
http://www.freshroastsystems.com/howto.html

About Fahrenheit's Thermometer:

http://www.rci.rutgers.edu/~jup/metric/fahrenheit.html

466.19  Egg-shells

Egg-shells were also used to clear the water.
http://homepage.interaccess.com/~june4/eggcoffee.html

467.2  Jamoke

Coffee. Also found as "Jamocha". Said to come from a combination of "Java" and "Mocha".
Could be an anachronism in this form, but the word "mocha" (with the meaning of "fine quality of coffee") was in use in the 18th century.

See also:

http://www.quinion.com/words/qa/qa-jam1.htm
http://www.m-w.com/mw/textonly/wftw/98mar/032698.htm

467.11-12  "Disgusting? this is Tea, Friend, Cha,- what all tasteful London drinks,-- that," pollicating the Coffee-Pot, "is what's disgusting."

Coffee vs. tea, grain vs. grape, Mason vs. Dixon, Beethoven vs. Rossini, Gustav vs. Saure (GR: p.440 onwards). Good friends who spend time together always have something to quarrel about. And their differences makes such duets all the more interesting. True dialectic comes from antithesis. “From things that differ comes the fairest attunement.” (Heracleitus)

467.14-15  "ratio of Coffee to Water or as we say, CTW"

3 ounces of ground coffee for every 64 ounces of brewing water -- or 2 to 4 Ounces of Coffee for Every 1/2 Gallon of Water -- or two tablespoons of ground coffee for every six ounces of water -- or 3.75 ounces of coffee per half-gallon (64 ounces) of water -- or 2 Tbs ground coffee to 6 oz water -- etc.

For a mouth-watering experience, see:
http://www.chocolates-n-coffee.4t.com/how_make_gourmet_coffee.htm
http://www.bunnomatic.com/pages/drpage/drbrew2a.htm
http://www.secondcup.com/thebean/howtobrew.asp
http://www.coffeeinstitute.org/
http://www.pollys.com/discover/brewing_factors.html
http://www.acoffeecup.com/1recipes.htm
http://www.drytoast.net/oldprague/cafetype.html

For tea lovers:
http://www.healthlibrary.com/reading/yod/current/tea.htm
http://www.holymtn.com/tea/Japanesetea.htm
http://www.imperialtea.com/tea/GongfuPrep.html
http://www.japanesegreenteaonline.com/brewing.htm
http://www.inpursuitoftea.com/
http://www.specialteas.com/cgi-bin/SoftCart.exe/mystore/shophome.html?E+scstore

467.22  "the Sacrament being Penance"
In other words, delight is a sin, and all sins are punished. The sweet, aromatic first cup is paid for: ”...whereby the remainder of the Pot, often dozens of cups deep, represents the Price for enjoying that first perfect Cup.” Hmm, delight as a sin ... anything you enjoy with any of your senses, sinful and to be regretted ... sensual delight as hindrance to spiritual improvement... OK, I confess. I’m a sinner.

http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/11618c.htm

Cyrus

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