It’s not the coffee that carried him off…
A month or so ago I had Flu Classic (as opposed to Man Flu or Swine Flu). One of the effects of this was that I also started coughing. When I get a cough it lingers, and when I say ‘lingers’ I mean lingers like an unwelcome squatter that arrives in your house while you’ve gone out to post a letter and refuses to leave for three months during which time he (or she) makes a mess of all the rooms in your home and alienates your friends and family. That kind of lingers.
The cough irritated my throat so much that I avoided everything that would cause any further bother. So, alcohol and coffee had to go. Once I was better I celebrated with a glass of wine but I’ve stayed off coffee ever since.
This week I had to ask myself why I still wasn’t drinking coffee. I love coffee. Coffee is my hard drug of choice (the withdrawal symptoms were not pretty) and although I feel better for not drinking the stuff I was also missing the taste and pleasure of setting up a stove top dalek for a shot of espresso.
Coffee for me is like smoking is for others. It’s not just about being pointlessly addicted to a substance; it’s about all the actions that go with it. I don’t miss instant coffee (which I assume people only drink because it’s such a stunningly easy drink to make) but I do miss a well made cup of the black stuff. I don’t miss being constantly hooked to the caffeine, especially when I know that my baseline level of energy is the same with none of that drug in my system as it is after how ever many cups I’ve had in a day. However, I do miss the buzz, whether or not it’s of any real benefit.
So, after a healthy but dull period of abstinence (and despite being stuck in a building which only offers decaf instant) I’m ready to fire up the stove top pot and enjoy the bitter black water again. Let’s all raise a tiny cup and celebrate.
The cough irritated my throat so much that I avoided everything that would cause any further bother. So, alcohol and coffee had to go. Once I was better I celebrated with a glass of wine but I’ve stayed off coffee ever since.
This week I had to ask myself why I still wasn’t drinking coffee. I love coffee. Coffee is my hard drug of choice (the withdrawal symptoms were not pretty) and although I feel better for not drinking the stuff I was also missing the taste and pleasure of setting up a stove top dalek for a shot of espresso.
Coffee for me is like smoking is for others. It’s not just about being pointlessly addicted to a substance; it’s about all the actions that go with it. I don’t miss instant coffee (which I assume people only drink because it’s such a stunningly easy drink to make) but I do miss a well made cup of the black stuff. I don’t miss being constantly hooked to the caffeine, especially when I know that my baseline level of energy is the same with none of that drug in my system as it is after how ever many cups I’ve had in a day. However, I do miss the buzz, whether or not it’s of any real benefit.
So, after a healthy but dull period of abstinence (and despite being stuck in a building which only offers decaf instant) I’m ready to fire up the stove top pot and enjoy the bitter black water again. Let’s all raise a tiny cup and celebrate.
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