The next step
After I purchased my roaster, and patiently paid it off with additional costs along the way, I was ready for my next big purchase. During this phase I did a lot of research to ensure I got exactly what I needed, for the cost that I wanted. I met a man at the Coffee Fest in NYC who was great with his conversation, and inspired the image you saw of my mobile espresso set up, but when it came to getting pricing numbers to explore my budget, he was a bit dismissive and unresponsive to my specific questions. This is when I began to seek other options, which then led to me finding Mackenzie of Chris’ Coffee.
I had contacted multiple places that just weren’t speaking the words I was wanting to hear, and then I stumbled upon Chris’ Coffee and Mackenzie, who come to find out was the owners daughter. She went above and beyond to work with me and find my exact needs. In addition she was a short drive from my home in New Jersey. I decided I would make my next big purchase which amounted to nearly $4,000 in buying a modest espresso machine, grinder and all the little things that go with it. I was comfortable with this machine since my purpose was to serve Espresso and Cappuccinos as an Italian tradition, instead a large quantity of lattes and the Americanized junk coffee drinks. The machine was no doubt limited if I grew, but that’s the point I am not interested in being a factory of drinks like the chains. This was the same machine my friends at Portifino’s in Charlotte used for a relaxed experience and environment.
To finish my experience, I decided to take a one day trip to Montreal Canada. Chris’ was in Albany which was over half way to Montreal. I figured why not make a 1 day trip and make the most of my drive. I have wanted to visit this beautiful city for many years. I asked my Italian friend if he wanted to take a trip and we journeyed together. The morning after we found a great little cafe named Mon Cafe which was run by a Lebanese man named Ismael. We loved it so much we grabbed one espresso for breakfast, and another one our way out just to say good bye to our friend.
In close as I continue to learn how to live life, I am always reminded of the biggest difference in my happiness today, verses the many miserable days I had when I was younger. One thing has always been key to my joy, working with what you have. This is sometimes what we misunderstand about God’s will in our lives. We miss the blessings around us, and block the blessings of great experiences wanting something else in a miserable envy of what others have. In this moment, I could’ve wanted a bigger and better machine, like the ones more wealthy businesses have. I could’ve been too lazy to take the long drive with a friend. I could’ve said no to visiting many shrines along the way that also led to some amazing experiences and co-incidents, but instead I decided to go out on a limb, like Zacchaeus, to make an investment, to have a special encounter and in the mix of it all I met many great people along they, and I moved one step closer to a dream come true.
