The Debriefing is a series of blogisodes wherein I, Anton Beza, discuss what I’ve learned, loved and not-loved-so-much after the completion of a user-created mission from the app Checkverse. To go on your own adventures download Checkverse for iPhone today!
I write by monitor light, it’s my company tonight. Yup, I’m still up. Wow, it’s past 1am now and I’m still wired. Toooooooo much caffeine today. This week’s mission is to blame. I drank about 5 and 1/2 cups of coffee to finish off “Coffee World Tour: North America” by checkverse (me). I didn’t do the whole mission today, I just made too much Puerto Rico because I have no restraint.
This mission was a 5-stop coffee-hop around the continent I call home. Here’s the proof I did it:
Each cup’o Joe was prepared at home using a French press. We first bought le Press du Français about a year ago because the folks I worked with were touting them. I don’t know if it makes better coffee, but it’s more fun to prepare cause it feels like you’re really doing something. Despite the added fun, there is one major drawback to the French press: how are you supposed to empty it? First we dump it into a bigger container and then we filter out the water from that as best we can and try and scrape it into another container: the garbage. Then Alyssa takes off her hat to reveal a Little Alyssa A who takes off her hat to shed light on Little Alyssa B...
If someone knows of a better way, please lemme know.
The Debriefing
What did I learn about coffee? Not a whole lot. I drink coffee black and I don’t really have much of a discerning palate. An old (as in past, not ancient) roommate once told me that Hawaiian Kona coffee is less acidic and easier on your stomach, but I haven’t really researched to verify the claim nor paid enough attention to my own digestion. So nope, I didn’t get much out of drinking the different coffees. However! I bet if their differences were highlighted by a coffee connoisseur, I’d have something to hang on to to tell them apart going forward. Kind of like how you more appreciate a painting after watching an analysis of it.
Well if I didn’t get much out of the coffee itself, what did I learn?
Sadly, geography.
You see when I made this mission on behalf of Checkverse, I looked at the major coffee-making territories around the world, and in doing so I learned a bit about the countries involved. As a result, a long held belief that I’d known since I was a little boy, died suddenly in my arms. Goodbye:
“North America is a super-special continent compared to the others because it only has a small number of countries, three to be exact: Canada, the United States and Mexico.”
I’ll miss you incorrect fact (now that’s an oxymoron).
Yup I learned that the continent I have always lived on is not what I thought it was. How did I find out? Well let’s just say it turns out Guatemala is not part of South America…
So yeah, this whole revelation was kind of a bummer. I thought I had North America locked down! I thought I was quasi-worldly! I was even selected to be in my high school’s Geography Bee! My team didn’t win, but I must have done well enough to qualify for entrance! Also, my mom is a history teacher and I’ve had a globe in my bedroom since I was like 5!
Finding out that North America has more than three countries when you’re 30 years old makes you start to rethink your life.
So which countries are in North America?
- Antigua and Barbuda
- Bahamas
- Barbados
- Belize
- Canada
- Costa Rica
- Cuba
- Dominica
- Dominican Republic
- El Salvador
- Grenada
- Guatemala
- Haiti
- Honduras
- Jamaica
- Mexico
- Nicaragua
- Panama
- St. Kitts and Nevis
- St. Lucia
- St. Vincent and The Grenadines
- Trinidad and Tobago
- United States of America
Turns out there are 23 sovereign states. Of which, I highlighted the 4 represented by the North American coffee tour. Puerto Rico and Hawaii are part of the United States (at least I knew that already).
So in conclusion, I knew almost nothing about the geography of the continent I’ve lived on my whole life. Thanks to Checkverse, I know a little bit more. The big take-away is that I should probably start revisiting some of the things I feel certain about.
Till next time,
Your pal,
Anton
Like The Debriefing? If so, tap the little heart in the corner to make it easier for other folks to discover! To go on your own adventures, get an invite for Checkverse today. Or, for more of mine, here are the previous blogisodes:
