“Quieres Cafe?”
“Si,” I nod, and he places the dish on the barbecue’s flame and begins my education.
Brandy, rum, lemon and cinnamon are all added with a flourish, followed by a single mug of fresh-ground coffee, thick as syrup and the colour of molasses.
He stirs the brew vigorously then sets the pan ablaze with a slender taper. We wait, tiny flames sparkling in our eager eyes. The flame at last exhausted, he pours quickly into tiny ceramic cups.
“Salud!” we say as one, clink, and then drink, and I am bound forever by the magic of Catalonia.
End.
I have thought a lot about whether to do another FF, not because I don’t want to, but because of the commitment it represents. I very much enjoy the writing of these stories, reading some fiendishly clever or outrageously funny stories from other contributors and the feeling of belonging to a friendly writing community. But the truth is that I am finding it extremely difficult to find the time to get around to reading all those stories and I don’t want to offend people by not extending the courtesy of responding to comments and reading other peoples offerings.
I have decided that I will have a few simple rules to help me out here. I think that if someone takes the trouble to write a comment on my blog or leave a ‘like’ to let me know they were here then they deserve a reciprocal visit.
I hope to find time to read as many others as I can, but I know that won’t be all of them, so I am going to start by prioritizing you, because you are special to me. 🙂
THE CHALLENGE:
Write a one hundred word story that has a beginning, middle and end. (No one will be ostracized for going a few words over the count.)
THE KEY:
MAKE. EVERY. WORD. COUNT.
Cremat (100 words)
jwdwrites 
Nice to see you back again, James, and after just reading a horror story, your story made me want to raise me glass as well (after going to Catalonia, of course), sit back and relax. This could be a snippet from a travel book.
janet
LikeLike
Ha ha, thanks Janet, I am looking forward to going back in the summer again with my family. My wife is half Catalan but her mother left Spain in the time of Franco when they were forbidden to speak their own language, consequently my wife, though a native Spanish speaker never learned the language.
LikeLike
What a shame! Franco had so much to answer for, didn’t he? Have a great time, though. Should be wonderful.
LikeLike
That sounds delicious. And a nice, romantic way to spend an afternoon.
LikeLike
My wife and I spent a memorable afternoon with a Catalan family in 2007 and we were introduced to this wonderful traditional method of coffee making, or to give its proper name, Cremat. Thanks for reading. 🙂
LikeLike
The second paragraph was truly mesmerising. My mouth was watering.
LikeLike
Thank you Sandra, it’s always nice to know that someone likes something I’ve written. I wasn’t sure about this prompt, the story that came to me is of course based on real life experience but it isn’t the kind of thing I usually write and I felt a little out of my comfort zone. That said, it was what the picture conjured for me so as a prompt it did its job. Thank you for your comments. 🙂
LikeLike
I could taste this in my mouth, and it was delicious. And this is saying something because I really dislike coffee, haha! But the description, the warmth, the realness of it all…very comforting. It transported me to that moment, and I didn’t want to leave.
LikeLike
Thank you so much for your kind comments. 🙂
LikeLike
Your story took me back to Barcelona….24 years ago…was it that long? Oh my…
Delicious reading.
LikeLike
Thank you, I’m so glad you liked it. 🙂
LikeLike
The simple, step-by-step process of this really draws me in. I can almost taste it in my mouth.
By the way, I’m glad I’m not the only one: the first paragraph of your introduction mirrors my thoughts exactly when it comes to this group. It’s addictive and I love it, but sometimes I don’t feel I’m up to the time commitment for reading and I don’t want to offend people, especially those who read my stories.
LikeLike
Hearing someone else echo my thoughts makes me feel better about the constraints I write under. Thanks for the feedback 🙂
LikeLike
I’m licking my lips – I want some of that Catalunyan coffee 🙂
LikeLike
Ah. yes I would usually go for a cortada .. but your coffee is a great way to spend your time in Catalunia.. and yes I agree reading through 100 stories every week is sometimes a little bit too much… but this week I will try to go through every one.
LikeLike
You are a better man than I. 🙂
LikeLike
See if I’ll make it… Rarely does.
LikeLike
Sounds delicious. And even better for seeing it made in front of you. This was a nice change from all the horror and death this week (mine included)!
LikeLike
Dear James,
Take it from one who knows about the commitment Friday Fictioneers takes. 😉 I never dreamed when I begged Madison to let me take it when she decided to move on that it would grow to triple digit proportions.
As to your story…delicious. You put me there and wanting another cup.
Shalom,
Rochelle
LikeLike
I agree that the drink sounded delicious. It probably wouldn’t be the same if someone who wasn’t an expert did it. I love coffee but I’m among tea drinkers here so don’t drink much coffee any more. I travel little these days but reading a story like this is the next best thing. Well written.
LikeLike
Hi, thanks for the visit and for taking the trouble to comment. I popped over to read your story but I was prohibited from commenting! 🙂
LikeLike
Tiny flames sparkling in our eager eyes. MMMmmm . . . is love in the air? Well done!
LikeLike
And I agree – it does get hard to make a comment on every post. This is my third day and I’m still working on it. Thanks for bringing that up.
LikeLike
That was fun. And informative. I may well try it myself especially asd I have a streaming head cold. maybe it’s a miracle cure.
LikeLike
Can’t hurt to try it Patrick. Thanks for reading. 🙂
LikeLike
Very well written-I could almost see and smell the aroma:-)
LikeLike
Thank you. 🙂
LikeLike