The Unintended Friend

Coffee and Internet Explorer have two unfortunate things in common:

They are effective in closely controlled doses.
They are addictive, which make their intake hard to closely control.

This morning, I couldn’t step out into the world’s flurry until I appeased my fix for both. Coffee had to be had to endure that exceptionally early morning meeting with my boss. Email checking became the next prerequisite for my day’s successful functioning.

The question of where/when to access coffee and the web subsists as a trusted companion I consult throughout the day. You have become a close friend, Question, but when and how I met you remain a mystery.

*Pause for eye roll.*

We met in college. We met in the information revolution. We met on a sleepless night, in a computer lab, by overhead, fluorescent candlelight. We met in a privileged, middle-class, academic space.

We became close friends on sluggish walks between class and on yuppie dates downtown. We became close friends when final papers no longer required paper and when discussion boards no longer physically convened.

And we became close friends when you became increasingly easier to answer--
at least for those of us privileged enough to consult you in the first place.