People-watching

Watching people take the first sip of coffee is fascinating.

They tip the travel mug or to-go cup slowly, slowly, waiting for the scalding liquid to ease into their waiting mouth.

It appears the cup was not as full as they originally thought. Tip more. Faces scrunched in almost fearful anticipation.

They've all experienced this before. That one time when they misjudged the distance from the rim of the mug to the surface of the coffee, and they couldn't taste their lunch, nor their dinner because of swollen, burnt taste buds.

You need to go slow. Because if you tip the mug slowly, you can feel the heat before it actually hits your tongue, and you can stop it. You can set the mug upright and wait 3 minutes. Or add an ice cube.

Sometimes it's a twitch, barely noticeably with the coffee has reached its destination. For others, it's a full-blown facial convulsion. My reaction tends to lean towards the latter.

There is still steam coming from my cup of tea. With only a small opening on the top of the to-go cup to allow for the release of heat, I know that it would be quite dangerous to attempt to drink it now.

Perhaps I'll wait 3 minutes. Or add an ice cube.
You never know who might be watching me.