Portland parrot “Kyara” loves her coffee:

A fungus is ravaging the coffee crop in Central America. Coffee Rust is especially deadly to Coffea Arabica, the plant that produces Arabica beans used in most high-end coffee.

Washington estimates that production could be down anywhere from 15 percent to 40 percent in coming years, and that those losses could mean as many as 500,000 people could lose their jobs. Though some countries have brought the fungus under control, many of the poorer coffee-producing countries in Latin America don’t see the rust problem getting better anytime soon.

Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Panama and Costa Rica have all been hard hit.

What’s this mean for us, the discerning coffee consumer? Higher prices at the pump, er, coffee shop, most likely.

For a little over a year, I’ve been running my own business. It is a solo operation. I do everything from interviewing new clients to running the mail to the post office.

I’m also in charge of the coffee.

H. has convinced me that life is too short to drink bad coffee. Unfortunately, I don’t live in a fresh-brew Mecca like she does. Instead, I have my choice of two coffee shops in town. One is more of a breakfast and lunch café, but they serve their own custom roast. Both are several blocks from my office. I’ll review them both in time.

What is a small business in the hinterlands that are Central Pennsylvania supposed to do?

Order fresh-roasted coffee from California, of course! Enter Tonx.

On the internet, everywhere is local

Tonx is a high-quality coffee sourcing and roasting operation. Their products are available exclusively online. The selection changes every two weeks, at which time a new coffee is released and shipped to subscribers. The beans are shipped whole in special resealable plastic pouches with one-way vents to prevent oxidization. They’ll ship you as little as a six-ounce half-sack ($12), but the standard size is 12oz ($19), with monthly billing for two shipments at a time. If you have a lot of hungry mouths to feed, they scale up, too. Currently they list a 15lbs package for businesses ($259). But really, that’s a lot of coffee.

I’ve enjoyed nearly every one of their coffees. I find I particularly like the ones sourced from Ethiopia. Each coffee has a unique flavor and character. Tonx even includes an information card about each coffee, with details about where it was grown, some facts about the farmers who grew it, and tasting notes to give you some idea of what you can expect in your cup.

All good things…

Last month, Tonx announced that they are being acquired by Oakland- and Brooklyn-based Blue Bottle Coffee, an upscale specialty roaster and retailer. So far there have been no changes in Tonx’s mail-order business, but in the coming months Tonx expects to be completely subsumed by Blue Bottle’s operation. It remains to be seen if the quality continues to be top-notch after the merger.

Tonx is an Internet-based coffee subscription service. Visit them online at www.tonx.org.

With so many coffee shops to start with, and would probably be a better place to start, I begin my writing here, at the Last Drop.

I currently reside in Philadelphia. The home of Brotherly Love (the love is optional these days), Liberty Bell (which you can’t touch anymore), Hoagies (grinders, subs, depending on your part of the country), Pat’s, Geno’s (avoid both. For my money, you want Jim’s on South), and a seemingly exploding coffee scene (true).

And while it might be best for me to start at a place such a La Colombe, a joint where the kids are seen and want to be seen, I am choosing to start with The Last Drop. I’m a sucker, what can I say?

For starters, there will be no Starbucks reviews here. I would suggest using Yelp for those searches. If you’re up for something a little better, you’ve come to the right place. Burnt coffee? No. Tasty coffee? Yes. And for the record, i have lots of places in mind. Over the years, many of them have come to mean something personal to me, in my journey through a city that can be difficult to navigate. I want to invest in that personal touch. I’ve probably lived here long enough to have a few things to say, but I am no expert. Just a girl, taking the city by storm, one cafe at a time.

Not to worry. I will get to La Colombe and all it’s goodness. I’ll also discuss about the little cafes that are perhaps less obvious. To talk about the little guys and give them some money. Keep the poverty levels down, right? We can all help each other.

I first went to the Last Drop when I moved to Philadelphia about five years ago. I was in need of a late night coffee and a quiet place to work. Much to my dismay, i was still underemployed, still working on photos to kill some time and try to become a fashion photographer (more on that later). But mostly, I was bored. So I went to the Last Drop.

My first time was not impressive. The barista was rude. The coffee was weak. The place was weird. The music, awful.

I didn’t go back for a while. A long while.

Truth be told, I didn’t start going back again until I moved away from Center City. One day I just biked by and found myself there. Just like that, i was back. And just like that, I found myself there again and again.

I think it’s the atmosphere that captures my attention. Think cafe meets old historic house meets garage band. Basically, it’s really cool, if you’re into that sort of thing. Underground might be a nice word to use. There are always adverts for local bands playing at the MilkBoy or The Boot and Saddle on Broad.

I can think of many people who actually wouldn’t like this place. This isn’t a scene. Not a place to be noticed. This is nice neighborhood cafe. Perhaps that’s why I started going again. I want to be alone to be left alone. To think. To ponder.

Here I got into reading ‘The Flowers of Evil’ (Baudelaire), ‘The Last of the Mohicans’  (Cooper), and ‘Arrowsmith’ (Lewis). I downloaded some Hitchens on my Nook as well.

It’s a nice place to get serious, without actually getting too serious. There are some comfort levels which make it quaint. Always a pleasant breeze coming through the door (during the warmer months) and it’s cozy during the cooler months.

As for that first night, it’s a memory. Perhaps the barista was having a bad day. Maybe they were in a permentantly bad mood. Who knows? It doesn’t matter anymore.

The Last Drop Cafe is located on 13th and Pine in Center City. http://www.thelastdropcoffeehouse.com/

I’m not a big fan of mainstream Mysteries, but I do like detective fiction. I just need my detective stories to have an odd quirk and to be more than another procedural thriller. Tartan Noir. Appalachian or Country Noir. Hardboiled. These are a few of the subgenres that grab my attention.

I grew up reading science fiction. As a child, I discovered the classics at the local library, and I read several things I was definitely too young to be reading. I devoured everything by Ben Bova I could get my hands on – somehow I didn’t turn into a raving libertarian – and I credit his realistic space novels for my continued fascination with and zealousness in support of space exploration. I still read a lot of science fiction. I don’t read as many short stories and magazines as I used to, but I read several novels each year.

I didn’t read a fantasy novel until middle school, when I bought – on a lark – a three-pack of Terry Brooks’ Shannara series at a discount bookstore while on vacation in Ocean City, Maryland. Somehow my will to read fantasy survived reading those three novels. (They weren’t that bad for what they were; the real bad stuff came later in the series.)

About a week ago, my wife suggested I read Seanan McGuire‘s Rosemary and Rue, the first novel in her October Daye series. She pointed out that McGuire’s sense of humor is a close match to my own. I was hesitant at first, but she spent the next day scouring the house for the entire series (seven books so far). She couldn’t find Rosemary and Rue itself, but she found all the rest and the bookshelves are now much neater. So I downloaded the Kindle edition.

I’m a third of the way into it and I love it. Gritty setting? Check. Likable protagonist? Check. But not too likable, and not entirely sure of herself. She isn’t preternaturally competent; she screws up, and her screw-ups have consequences. Supporting characters who aren’t just NPCs but have their own needs and motivations? Check. A plot that is about more than collecting Tokens and beating the Big Boss? So far, so good.

And fae. A healthy dose of fae – real fae, inasmuch as there is a “real” fae – that follows the lore and traditions. That’s what hooked me. McGuire obviously understands her source material, and has brought the old stories back to life in a modern setting, all without losing the timeless and confusing nature of the creatures of faery.

What’s not to like? I’m looking forward to reading the rest of this book, and all the rest in the series.