The best part of waking up is . .

Last week I got the fantastic opportunity to photograph the former Folgers Coffee plant in downtown Kansas City for Rosin Preservation.

If you've ever been anywhere near 8th and Broadway within the last 100 years or so, you've probably caught the aroma of fresh ground coffee heavy in the air. It was kind of taken for granted by most residents. Well, Folgers closed the plant last year, the building has been sold, and I got to photograph the existing, pre-renovation conditions for historic tax credits.

The one surprise inside was that that wonderful smell of ground coffee has all but left the building, despite there being piles of it found throughout.

You really don't understand the massive scale of production that went on until you see the rooms full of huge machinery. What it all does, though, I couldn't tell you.

So, at the risk of watching the proverbial sausage being made, let's have a look inside . .

The equipment on the roofs (both buildings) is monstrous, with a touch of early NASA thrown in.

This stuff makes the coffee grinder at the grocery store look pathetic!

And all the machinery used simply to move coffee from one place to another . .

I was tempted to scoop up a handful off the floor, but well, it's probably been sitting there for about a year, so no thanks.

So long, Folgers.