original text:
A most seductive bean (an excerpt)
(from La Dolce Vita book series – Coffee)
Coffee was always an exotic drink and so it remains today. Smouldering passions crowd television commercials over cup after cup of rich, dark coffee, sipped wistfully on a dusty desert train journey, or savoured aboard a yacht on a romantic tropical night, until a solo cup becomes a delightful duet.
Today, the aroma and taste of a cup of coffee are enjoyed the world over, though the story of coffee begins in East Africa.
Legend has it that in the depths of the Abyssinia, today’s Ethiopia, sometime around the middle of the ninth century, there lived a sober goatherd called Khaldi. one day his normally lethargic goats pranced home in an agitated state. Curious at their antics, he followed them and discovered that they had been nibbling the red berries of an evergreen tree.
Khaldi decided to try some himself and was soon in a state of euphoria. In his excitement, he dashed off to broadcast his find and soon came upon an elderly Moslem mullah, who was depressed by his tendency to nod off during prayers.
Khaldi let him into the secret of the red berries and coffee took its first step towards becoming one of mankind’s favourite pick-me-ups.
Being of a more academic frame of mind than the goatherd, the mullah experimented with the berries and eventually hit on the idea of boiling them, turning the raw fruit of the coffee tree into a fragrant and delicious beverage.
Which style do you like best?
~*~*~*white out versions~*~*~*~
most seductive exotic [s]mouldering passions rich, sipped wistfully on a romantic tropical night delightful duet.
Legend, sober pranced home in an agitated state.
Curious antics, nibbling red soon in a state of euphoria.
In excitement, secret, one of mankind’s favourite academic frame of mind, experimented, turning raw into fragrant and delicious.
~*~*~*~OR:~*~*~*~
most seductive an (an excerpt)
Coffee was always an exotic drink and so it remains today. Smouldering passions crowd television commercials over cup after cup of rich, dark coffee sipped wistfully on a dusty desert train journey, or savoured aboard a yacht on a romantic tropical night, until a solo cup becomes a delightful duet.
Today, the aroma and taste of a cup of coffee are enjoyed the world over, though the story of coffee begins in East Africa.
Legend has it that in the depths of the Abyssinia, today’s Ethiopia, sometime around the middle of the ninth century, there lived a sober goatherd called Khaldi. one day his normally lethargic goats pranced home in an agitated state. Curious at their antics, he followed them and discovered that they had been nibbling the red berries of an evergreen tree.
Khaldi decided to try some himself and was soon in a state of euphoria. In his excitement, he dashed off to broadcast his find and soon came upon an elderly Moslem mullah, who was depressed by his tendency to nod off during prayers.
Khaldi let him into the secret of the red berries and coffee took its first step towards becoming one of mankind’s favourite pick-me-ups.
Being of a more academic frame of mind than the goatherd, the mullah experimented with the berries and eventually hit on the idea of boiling them turning the raw fruit of the coffee tree into a fragrant and delicious
Whited out for Black Cat’s WOW #3 (image: pixabay.com 705847)
Lorraine's frilly freudian slip 
February 20, 2017 at 10:29 am
I like the first – too much blank space in between is like window blinds…you only see part of the picture.
But I get the white out or black out process and understand that those wholes can be stimulating too.
I’ve actually started just have the whole piece on a page and then picking out in order the words I want and putting them together in sentences to then later maybe edit again.
I like neat and tidy. Though I am far from being such a being ;)
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February 20, 2017 at 1:04 pm
That’s an interesting way of working on the white/black/block out process.
Sometimes our logic in one area is overcompensated for lack of some where else. Smiling.
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February 20, 2017 at 1:06 pm
I like the tightness of sentences — seems like a story — but space can work to the piece’s advantage. I tend to white out large chunks; less window blinding would make look more pleasing, and “read” easier, I suspect.
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February 15, 2017 at 10:28 pm
I liked the last version. I just read it different, it flowed better in my mind.
Cool fun.
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February 15, 2017 at 10:38 pm
Thanks — I thought I’d play both ways. It’s interesting that you read it differently — how important, then, the spacing and the blanks are to the flow.
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February 15, 2017 at 8:21 pm
You’ve obviously had far too much fun with this Lorraine, I like all the efforts you made, I did tend to go more for the short and succinct though….maybe I’m a tad lazy…
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February 15, 2017 at 11:15 am
thanks for playing Lorraine – and WOW!
I tell ya, I’m like a little kid let loose in the best “junk curiosity” shop where I don’t feel like I can’t touch anything – without the sense of “hesitancy” …. I love reading these :)
I love how you’ve played and selected …. injected and infused, brewed up something quite different and new in flavour :D
As for the formatting?
That *is* a tough question – I wrestle with it myself, each time.
It’s certainly far easier to read it through when the pieces have been “assembled” closer together – but in my mind, I still really enjoy reading the “negative spaces” from the original – because those “odd” breaks – they force the mind to see the space, breathe, and then read through the words, as they are grouped, or left trailing alone, dangling in place – and this adds another layer, depth – dimension – so honestly, I can see “both sides” and appreciate what each offers. I mean, when you re-format it brings a certain cohesion to it all – even if it’s not quite “up to sense” (I’ve tried this with my own efforts) and often, I have a copy kicking about with the “whited out” – just so that I can sit with it …..
So sorry, can’t tell you which is “better” – so, play as you think it works best for you – and you can always offer it up on whatever silver/white platter as best suits you. (In the last one, Michael “whited out” using “blue” – and it was okay too – so whatever ways that creatively work for you – on any given day, is great; after all – this is play time – and the rules are flexible – so be free to enjoy as works best :)
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February 15, 2017 at 12:34 pm
I was curious as to which “worked” better for the reader. I think I would rearrange the spacing — tighten it in this case because of the distance between thoughts I left in black.
I’ve wondered about whiting out my own writing and see what new comes from the old. Maybe to kick the writer’s block on a piece of writing. Or just to play.
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February 15, 2017 at 1:50 pm
Ahhhhaaaa …. you’re catching on!
I refer to your thought of “whiting out” your own stuff – and seeing what happens.
I tried that the other day – with some personal “brain spew” ….. and it yielded some really interesting thoughts from which something new and interesting is stewing. And I’m talking about the most “mundane” stuff – like a general blah blah blah about the weather whipping me out etc. So it’s funny how things can be turned up and inside out – so by all means, allow yourself the space to just play – and not worry about the “end results” – besides, no one is “keeping score” here – just ourselves, and we don’t need that kind of pressure.
And yeah, I think you’re right – sometimes the spacing can be too broad once the original white out is done.
Personally, I haven’t decided yet which way I’ll take it. I’ll just sit with some more and let it speak to me when it’s ready. :)
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February 15, 2017 at 2:09 pm
Good plan to let the piece speak to you about spacing — sometimes it might be needed, other times not.
Interesting that you tried the white out with your own stuff and the results were new and exciting. Gives me more incentive to take a look at my stuff that way.
I like the term brain spew — that’s what my free flow free form stuff is. In fact a lot of what I post is really brain spew — I fired my self-editor because she was too limiting.
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February 15, 2017 at 5:57 pm
well sometimes it’s necessary to do the dirty work of firing – maybe temporarily retired; pull her out when truly needed ….. but apart from that, permission granted to play …. and why not …. sometimes it’s hundreds of sketches and hours before something really sparks and that piece comes together …. and that’s okay. :)
I was quite surprised at the results myself …. it was rather unexpected and interesting …. so it’s now a wait and see what, if anything I do with it. :)
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