Napoleon Bonaparte is often credited with the quote, “An Army marches on its stomach.” With that, he acknowledged that food is one of the most essential elements to survival.
Nowadays, the coffee machine at Casey station is part of that same survival element, it is used on a daily basis by most of the station. If it ever breaks down there is an almost instant collapse of morale. If maintenance work is to be carried out on it, notices need to be posted days in advance so people are aware there will be no coffee. The coffee grinder wars go on, where people will adjust the grinder to get the preferred coarse or fine grind.
The station is unable to function without its morning coffee.
Over the course of this season the coffee machine has had a few stories to tell. When we first arrived with a full summer cohort, it was struggling to keep up with the demand. After a lot of breakdowns, the plumbers and electricians got together and changed out some components and it held up for some time. It finally gave up the ghost part way into winter and the plumbers swapped it out for a new one. The new one has been working well since.
With the current kitchen refurbishment, the coffee machine and the whole breakfast area has been shuffled around while walls are painted and new power points installed. This area will be streamlined to make better use of the space and the coffee machine’s new home will be closer to the window. Who knows how long it will be before it moves again, but for now with new pipework and drainage it should be there for a while.
And so, each morning the Casey cohort keep marching straight to the coffee machine for that morning pick-me-up and the sweet nutty smell of freshly ground coffee.
Billy Merrick
Casey Plumber