March 3
...serving up your daily dish.
... Caffeine Awareness Month. And according to the Caffeine Awareness Alliance (an organization of the caffeine-free industry), New Jersey is one of three states whose governors have actually declared it.
According to these caffeine nannies, drinking too much coffee can lead to moodiness, insomnia, anxiety, heartburn, tremors, depression and irregular heartbeat. And they have pictures on their website of people in white jackets wearing stethoscopes.
Downer, man.
In our experience, drinking too little coffee can lead to headaches, listlessness, sleepiness, depression and not getting a damn thing done all day. When it comes to coffee, who you gonna believe: some fake doctor or your Barista?
It swings both ways. In fact, just yesterday I found myself nursing a long-lasting headache induced by what I call a "caffeine imbalance" (caffeine being a naturally occurring substance in the body, of course).
I usually drink half-caff to avoid this sort of thing, but every once in a while I pick up a can (i.e., plastic container) of full-strength as a treat. Well, two mornings ago, I drank half a pot of half-caff -- except it actually was the real deal (the labels are dangerously similar-looking).
Wednesday, I was hurtin'.
But, damn, did that coffee taste good!
Posted by: Chris | Mar 3, 2005 6:15:55 AM
wow, when I read the headline, Caffine Awareness, I got excited thinking it was extolling our delicious drink. I am fond of telling my 9 year old that one his first words was "coffee" since mom was always stopping in somewhere for one!
Posted by: debbie g. | Mar 3, 2005 8:06:40 AM
One of my kids once asked me if grownups needed coffee in order to live. I answered, "Yes!".
I have given up sugar, white flour, potatoes, white rice, and way too many other things to count. No way I am ever giving up coffee.
Posted by: sue | Mar 3, 2005 8:23:38 AM
My first year in high school I got myself addicted to caffeine by drinking a huge mug of black tea when I sat down to do homework. I realized it on the occasion when I forgot to get my tea and woke up an hour later slumped over a grammar book. For the next three days, I just took a nap at that exact time when I usually had tea, and after that it was over--I could drink tea or not as I liked.
Now, however, I drink a ridiculous amount of very strong tea and coffee on a nearly incessant basis, yet it does nothing! I can go a day without perfectly easily; I can drink two cups of coffee so dense you could get a spoon to stand straight up in it right before going to bed, and it doesn't matter. Am I just weird?
Posted by: Marshall | Mar 3, 2005 8:47:12 AM
Who has the pool on when the lawsuit against "big coffee" is filed? I want the August box.
Posted by: Lex | Mar 3, 2005 9:12:57 AM
Result of lawsuit:
"This Venti Mocha Soy Skim Frappucino Latte could be hazardous to your health."
Posted by: Marshall | Mar 3, 2005 9:44:24 AM
No way am I giving up my 2 cup a day habit.
I actually heard that coffee in moderation is good for you, has plenty of anti-oxidants.
IMHO, Dunkin' Donuts gets my vote for the best java.
Posted by: Miss Martta | Mar 3, 2005 11:43:28 AM
Hey, the "Marm Police" are out again!!
When you can't think of a valid response, just throw out marm accusations!
Posted by: butchcjg | Mar 3, 2005 12:13:24 PM
I"ve been addicted to caffeine in the form of diet soda. (I dont drink coffee except maybe a mocha once or twice a year).
But, now the aspartame makes me have a headache really bad...
But NOT drinking the caffeine makes me have a headache.
So now I've been drinking regular soda, but hate the calories. I've been drinking tea too, but advil is my lifeline right now!
Posted by: butchcjg | Mar 3, 2005 12:15:21 PM
And I've been wondering when, oh when, are we going to get a drive-through Starbucks?
A must for those moms who just can't be unbuckling and buckling multiple small children and juggling hot coffee at the same time.
And who needs the caffeine more than a mom with young children?
Posted by: Amy | Mar 3, 2005 12:45:16 PM
Medical researchers have been trying to years to find something wrong with coffee, but they've had no luck. If you drink like 100 cups a day, you might be more prone to heart attacks. It's one of the few vices left that are more or less harmless.
Posted by: moe | Mar 3, 2005 5:10:13 PM
I have been drinking coffee since I was 12. When I was in junior high, I would hope every day that my mother would not be home when I got home from school, so that I could indulge in a contraband cup or two. Fortunately for me she was often out and about...she was also none the wiser, as my father was a coffee fiend too (has since had to give it up, poor man)so she thought he was the one who was using up all the coffee. Many, many, many years later I cannot live without my daily several cups. No way I am giving it up. Ever. Don't care what anyone says.
Posted by: Julie | Mar 3, 2005 8:36:29 PM
