Vanilla Beans?

I went vanilla bean shopping for "Flavoured Coffee--A Different Direction" yesterday before that early dinner with my sons. The guy showed me these long skinny things.

"They sure don't look like beans," was all I could say.

I began to feel the way I did the first time I baked challah. Imagine, I had never seen yeast dough and how it becomes yeast dough until I mixed that smelly grey stuff (yeast) with warm water and sugar and then, when it got all bubbly, with flour.

Next step is buying some vodka. I'm planning on buying cheap vodka, even thought the spice guy tried to tell me that I should buy the good stuff. For the big spoonful here and there I'll be using, why should I invest?

Contrary to the other advice I've gotten, he said that it just takes a few days. I'm supposed to split the "bean" and put the inside in the vodka and the "case" in some sugar. I'm sure that the sugar won't last all that long, so I'll be having spiked coffee b'taam vannil. What a way to start the day...

Must get some vodka.