In pubic, I believe in drinking a short Americano--8 oz of hot water and espresso--and maybe a splash of half and half. At Starbucks, short isn't even on the menu any more but you can still order it. You just have to know that you can. It's the perfect drink because an Americano is always hot (as opposed to the many, many cappuccinos and lattes that I've had over the ages) and the short cup is the perfect fit for the curve of your hand.

At home I have choices: I have a drip coffee pot, a stove top Italian espresso maker and a Turkish coffee pot.
<a title="Coffee by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/12290732265/"><img alt="Coffee" src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3758/12290732265_24d28f4767_z.jpg" width="100%"  /></a>
About half of the time I use my drip coffee pot and I drink this coffee from a 10 or 12 oz coffee mug. I like that the drip coffee allows me to drink coffee all morning. The coffee is kept reasonably warm and I can enjoy coffee until late in the morning. The first cup is always the best, but I wouldn't expect it any other way.
<a title="espresso pot and coffee by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/12291166764/"><img alt="espresso pot and coffee" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7318/12291166764_efd2d0f8ca_z.jpg" width="100%"  /></a>
The other half of the time I drink espresso which I've made in my stove top espresso maker. This coffee is no harder or easier to make than the drip coffee. The big difference is that a pot makes many fewer ounces of coffee and the flavor is richer.<!--more--> The draw back is that there is really no way to keep the coffee hot once it has been made. So there is no enjoying this coffee all morning unless you happen to like cold coffee or are willing to make multiple batches.
<a title="Coffee cup by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/12290967343/"><img alt="Coffee cup" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7382/12290967343_758156eeed_z.jpg" width="100%" /></a>
I've come to love drinking my espresso out of a porcelain or ceramic cup--usually tea cup sized. Why? It feels fancy and it brings me joy. That's enough for me most mornings.
<a title="Espresso and coffee in the background by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/12291325036/"><img alt="Espresso and coffee in the background" src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3699/12291325036_6047129ae0_z.jpg" width="100%"  /></a>
Then there's the Turkish coffee pot. I picked this up in Bulgaria when I was living there and teaching English. Bulgarians traditionally drank a lot of Turkish coffee due to the Ottoman occupation of Bulgarian for centuries. It has fallen out of favor with many Bulgarians but you can still find it on the menu in a few cafes around the capitol Sofia and most traditional Bulgarian restaurants--mehanas--also offer Turkish coffee.
<a title="Polka dots by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/12291389326/"><img alt="Polka dots" src="http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2811/12291389326_eaea030c93_z.jpg" width="100%"  /></a>
I've never made a cup of Turkish coffee at home that I love or more often than not, cup of Turkish coffee that I want to drink.  <em>Grimace</em>. I am not giving up. I'm just pretty convinced that Turkish coffee is never going to be my go-to morning cup of coffee and that's okay.
<a title="espresso pot by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/12291337686/"><img alt="espresso pot" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7381/12291337686_a2030a5545_z.jpg" width="100%"  /></a>
The polka-dot coffee cup and saucer is one of a pair that I found at a flea-market outside of St. Petersburg. I paid 50 ruble for the pair and I did the whole negotiation in Bulgarian with a hopeful-apologetic smile. Luckily Russian and Bulgarian share some basic similarities especially in the numbers. Based on the markings and the red-orange color, I guess these were make in Russia during communism in probably the 1970s.
<a title="holding a cup by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/12290757955/"><img alt="holding a cup" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7307/12290757955_9d869dc9c1_z.jpg" width="100%" /></a>
The espresso maker is Italian, Bialetti, and a gift for Christmas from my parents ordered from Amazon. I made sure that I could buy parts for it at the local kitchen goods shop because I'd always prefer to buy locally. The potholder is handmade and vintage. I spotted two of them ages ago at a yard sale. The grey placemat is actually the opposite side of <a title="Placemat" href="http://carolynemigh.com/rolled-oats-a-beautiful-bowl-and-a-good-morning/" target="_blank">this one that I picked up in Helsinki.</a>