caffeinication

I did an amazing thing in the year 2003. I gave up caffeine. From March 2003 through December 2003, I didn't have any coffee, tea, chai, Diet Coke, nuthin'. And I slept well and functioned just fine, and lived happily ever after.

And then I started grad school. Suddenly I discovered new meaning behind "freaking exhausted". And the coffee has flowed freely until the present time.

The problem is that I'm really sensitive to it. I'm aware that decaf coffee still has 3% of the caffeine left, and my body has wonderful ways of finding it, and proceeds to keep me up at night. So right now I'm in a vicious cycle where I'm tired in the morning, so I have coffee, so I get no sleep, so I'm tired the next morning, etc. That's how it works.

Today? Peppermint tea. Still has a stimulant property but it's more herbal. I'm trying to cut back on the coffee but it ain't easy. I have an addictive personality so I suffer more from "coffee compulsion" than actual physical withdrawal symptoms.

Will the office go out to Starbucks this afternoon? Probably. Will I join them? Probably, like a big idiot. I did decline the morning coffee run, though - big step! Good thing I had my tea.

Oh, and my favorite espresso drink? The Starbucks caramel macchiato. (These days, decaf & nonfat.)