Cup of Joe - August 9, 2026

by Joe McKenzie

Forward: Had a latte that was described as milk-forward. Had an IPA that was labeled as hop-forward.  I suppose those descriptions are accurate. What are we putting forward in our daily actions? Hard work,; family-forward has a nice ring; green grass, 3 car garages are often forward; kindness, beauty, security, faith, winning, fear-forward? I’m sure we are not always conscious of what we put out in front for us day to day. We have choices. We wear tattoos and t-shirts that spell it out for others to see what we value or how we approach the world at this point in time. It changes, but we can usually make a choice. Let’s try kindness-forward.

1,303: I use google to estimate distances between cities in planning travel. I grew up 1,303 miles from where I ended up living. Seems like a lifetime away. A mere 20 hour drive. How about you? Distance can be measured in more than miles or in time of travel. It can be measured by the heart. People can be close physically, but emotionally be a million miles away. Age? Beliefs? There are so many ways we stay close these days, and Salina Municipal Airport helps with one of them. We can all use help in closing gaps to strengthen relationships. Road trip? Flowers? Phone call? Is it really a small world?

Rev: Not the Reverend, but the engines revving in summer. I hear them most days and every evening. Usually young men on bikes. I should invest in a decibel meter. What I don’t always hear is the energy of the riders or car and truck drivers who are loudly celebrating their American freedom on a Salina street. The energy is incredible. They are joy out loud. Riders need to ride. They feel it more when it is loud and fast. The engine revving is a sure sign of life or something about to explode. If and when those sounds pass and there is more or less silence or crickets, I can hear myself think again, but I’ve heard my mind at work before and it too can be intrusively loud.

Fragmentada: Atencion! We are living in an “age of fragmented attention, shaped by algorithms,” according to the curator of the current exhibit at The Salina Art Center. Stay with me now. You can do it. The artists, from around the midwest, look closely at land and community. We all can do that. We can also feel that occasional or steady inability to focus - unless it’s a donut, a death or a birth. A good book can beat the fragmentada, but, that’s right, most adults do not read books. What a challenge it has become to put our devices down for an hour and focus our atencion on the people and the places right in front of us.

Half-stars: Can’t decide to give a restaurant or a service or a movie 3, 4 or 5 stars?  Many places average out in half-stars. It’s serious business. You want to be fair. You want to get it right. The restaurant might have passable/good/okay food, but the service is kind of iffy - slow refills on the water. Yikes! It happens. You are nearly satisfied and a bit disappointed all at once. This is the occasion for the half-star rating. It gives the entire staff and operation something to work on - your pleasure and that pesky dark half of your star. It’s okay. The review will mostly be read by other serious raters. Keep in mind that most of us are essentially stardust and be generous. Try not to use the over-used word - amazing.