One of the many unwritten rules in a military office environment is that the first person to arrive for duty makes the initial pot of coffee for the office. The coffee is number one priority. The defense of our nation and combating the spread of communism will not begin for the day until the coffee has been made available. This task is not delegated by rank or position (obviously Generals don’t make coffee), but chronologically. First in was the barista. I am sure that with the abundancy of Starbucks, the task has changed to picking up coffee as opposed to making it, even on foreign soil.
I was a bad team member as I have never been a coffee drinker. When I was the first arrival, the second person in would make the coffee, bitching and moaning all the while. In several different duty locations this become a morale issue. It was very important to some people that coffee be available as early as possible. I not only did not drink it but I did not even know how to make it, nor did I wish to learn. Once at each duty location, I would relent and make a pot that was either the consistency of motor oil or seltzer, depending on how many scoops I chose to include or how much vinegar I added. For some reason, I was never asked to brew again. Sometimes, just to be cruel, I would offer.
