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Mpls, MN, United States

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Tuesday, March 04, 2008

Tea time

I love coffee. I love the way it smells and tastes and I used to love the way it made me feel. Lately, however, I'm wondering if it has stopped loving me back.

Ever since I went off it (and all caffeine) over Christmas, it has affected me strangely--or maybe I've just been better at noticing its effects. Last week, I realized that two nights in a row, I'd had trouble falling asleep. If there's one thing I've always been good at, it's sleeping, so I found the situation rather disturbing. Both days, I'd had coffee in the morning. The next two days, I didn't--and didn't have any trouble sleeping.

So yesterday morning, wanting a little morning lift, and craving the taste--but not the jolt--of an Americano, I instead ordered tea--Mighty Leaf's Vanilla Bean. And my goodness, was I impressed. Ordinarily, I order tea (herbal) when I'm at the coffee shop at night and don't want any caffeine; I'd never ordered it in the daytime. But I did it again today, and think I may be a convert. I definitely experienced a nice lift, and felt energized without the jittery-ness and distractability that coffee seems recently to induce. And I floated down gently, imperceptibly, without the malaise that comes with a coffee buzz wearing off.

I've heard tea-drinkers talk about these things--as I've sipped my coffee. Somehow the little tea bag tag poking out of their to-go cups always seemed a little pretentious; I don't know why. I do think, however, that it may be time to extend my pinkie finger and join them.

7 comments:

David said...

Welcome to cult. I switched to tea about a month ago and haven't touched coffee since. Check out adagio teas for a great online tea resource. I bought a little teapot along with a few different blends and I highly recommend their site and their tea.
Thank goodness for the instant hot faucet in the office kitchenette.

strovska said...

i like both: coffee for when i need more serious help, and tea for when i need a little less. tea is also nice because if you time the intake right you can float along alert for a longer period of time without getting jittery.

Ern said...

You know what's good for the coffee buzz wearing off? More coffee.

m said...

i extend my pinkie finger no matter what i drink. i don't know why, i just always have.

i love tea infusers. i haven't seen a tea shop out here but back home there is this greatplace that has all kinds of tasty loose leaf teas and it makes me feel so proper.

Unknown said...

Drinking espresso in the evening after being off caffeine for several weeks had a similar effect on me. I really do love coffee though, and am enjoying my chemical-free decaf. Of course, I love tea as well. Mmmm, Chai.

Leah said...

I think we can live in both worlds. I agree with Strovska--tea sometimes and coffee sometimes.

Have you thought about other causes for your sleeplessness? Stress, changing weather, noisy neighbors?

Ashley Barber said...

I am married to a coffee snob so became converted quickly and then just started feeling bad. Headachy, twitchy, maxed with stress, and sleepless.

So, I'm back to tea and feeling much better these days. I'm completely in love with coffee but am happy to have made the switch for the general well-beingness. I can't explain it any other way, I guess!

Please forgive my behind on the times catching up here, Ceri.