We caffeinate with another member of our editor’s lineup… Tiffiny Rose Allen brings us coffee, carnival and 80’s movies.
Writing by Tiffiny Rose Allen
Art by Jesse Davis Karshner

80’s & Coffees
Here is my tale of grandeur, my tale of myths and lies and truths. Envision an 80’s television, something to sink one’s teeth into, a colorful carnival of multifaceted gems and tarot cards pulled for favor and misfortune. Won’t you turn my cup upside down? Won’t you whisper to me what the coffee grains have woven and envisioned for my path?
I had a clandestine circle of expertise, a cheese board–charcuterie, the luxury of simplicity and all the acrobatic magic of the trade. My Valentine gave me dead flowers and oh how I loved them for they showcased the mundane, the fragility of complexity and the sincerest meaning of love. To love so much that the flowers died, how lucky to have loved longed enough for the petals to wilt together. My lucky card, my bingo card, my poker card, my chips being thrown as I win the lottery or the pot or whatever they call those things. I don’t gamble much you see, except when it comes to my morning coffee and my bagel, or my bowl of fruit when I’m feeling fancy.
Can I have five more minutes on the clock? Can I roll over without my cat’s paws jumping on my face cause she wants her breakfast? I scribbled something down and hid the note somewhere, oh well I guess I’ll find it when I’ve forgotten about it. My reminder that it doesn’t matter, except for when I find it, cause in the future it will be now. Present tense means so much when we take a minute to truly live in the present tense. My cup of coffee is running out. I need another one, no it doesn’t matter that I’ve already had three. Can you tell by my words how much coffee I have in me?
My mind is a merry-go-round. I want to go on all of the rides and get all of the plushies and eat all the funnel cakes. I want a strawberry dessert, one that’s not too sweet and I think I’d like to hang out with my friends, the good ones, the ones that have showed up for me and cheered me on. So many are faced with resentment and bitterness and I’ve had my fill of all of it. Maybe that’s why I keep filling up my coffee and typing too fast and thinking too fast and being too fast because I want to jump to the good part, the part where I can be like hey! I’ve put in the work to surround myself with the most beautiful things. Not in an aesthetic way, but a way where mutual appreciation and companionship have proven true.
Is it time to change the 80’s television screen yet? I had Ferris Bueller’s Day Off playing in the background, and you know we all deserve a day off sometimes.
About the Author
Tiffiny Rose Allen is a writer, creator, and poet originally from the state of Florida. She began writing at an early age and self-published her first collection of poetry Leave The Dreaming To The Flowers in 2017. Her poetry is eclectic in portraying her views of the different aspects of life. When she is not somewhere writing, she is either creating something with her hands or working on anything and everything that excites her. Her work has been featured in numerous magazine and anthology publications, including The Elpis Pages, The Feminine Macabre, and Dreamer by Night Magazine. In 2022, she curated her very own anthology, titled Dreams In Hidng and in 2023, her poetry collection At the Beginning of Yesterday was published with Indie Earth Publishing.
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