The moka pot begins to bubble.
It was not far away, but I waited for a moment because I wanted to finish the page I was reading before getting up. The book was Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World. I had recently finished the second volume, and now I was reading the first volume, which I had barely managed to find. There were only a few lines left. Since I was reading a novel rather than an informational book, the rhythm mattered. Essays need rhythm too, but with novels, if you skip over the things planted here and there like clues, you can find yourself lost later, so you have to follow the contents a little more carefully.
Usually I sit in front of the moka pot and turn off the heat as soon as it boils. Or, if I am reading a book or looking at my phone, I get up as soon as I hear the bubbling sound and slowly walk to the stove to turn it off. Today, though, even while hearing the sound, I read past that page and finished the sentence that continued into the first line of the next page before slowly standing up.
I turned off the gas, picked up an espresso cup and slipped it over my index finger, then lifted the moka pot by the handle. Feeling its weight, I turned around again and, with my other hand, took down a cork trivet hanging from the shelf. It was a round trivet with a round water-jug shape on it, the kind that might have been found in an old European cave. I placed the trivet at the edge of the table, set the moka pot on it, and put the espresso cup beside it.
The light sound of coffee pouring spread through the room. The aroma had already been spreading from the moment the coffee began to boil, and now that it joined the sound, it truly felt like time for coffee.
Without opening the book again, I take a blank sip of coffee. I think of nothing, forget everything I had been reading, and concentrate on the coffee itself. Then…
A moment later, before I know it, I stand up and take out the keyboard. It is a portable mechanical keyboard, so I open the cover and fit the phone into the groove in the lid so it stands properly. The e-reader I usually use for writing is charging, so I open the writing app on my phone and sync it with the keyboard. Since it is a Bluetooth keyboard, that part is quite convenient. I set the keyboard connection to the second slot. The first is the laptop, the second is the phone, and the third is the e-reader.
Sunday afternoon. A day full of leisure. I write with a cup of coffee. The Starbucks app has sent me a message saying I have earned a coupon after twelve drinks, but I will use it someday. Coffee brewed at home has its own feeling. Unlike a well-arranged cafe, it can be drunk while sitting any old way, and even in an espresso cup it does not feel burdensome. After setting the mood like that, I press the Korean “ㅇ” key three or four times to check that it appears in the app, and then I begin to write.
“The moka pot begins to bubble. It was not far away, but…”
Original Korean article: 모카포트에서 보글보글 소리가 들린다