It’s been two weeks since I’ve consumed a cup of coffee.
TWO WEEKS!!!
If you regularly stop by, then you probably know that coffee is my cheap, non-complaining, no strings attached, legal drug of choice (caffeine inspired posts I’ll never again be able to replicate: 1,2,3,4,5,6,7). A day without coffee is rough, and work isn’t just boring, it’s [F]ucking unbearably boring. Why?
Coffee washes dangling neurons with a chemical inspired profundity that sends my imagination on a tripped out spirit quest. Disparate ideas are connected. Inanimate objects become animated. People morph from insufferable portable storage devices into inspiring curiosities.
For instance, after two cups of coffee, a wet brick in a sidewalk becomes a grumpy, petulant, vindictive brick struggling to remove the leaves slathered across its body by tripping innocent humans. A series of monotonous mouse clicks become a thirty minute tango. And attractive women become attractive women – that aren’t [F]ucking crazy.
If I sound despondent or too *reminiscent*, it’s because I’m not jittery and shaking with coffee inspired epiphanies. Tea just doesn’t have the same effect! So as I sit down and map out my spirit quest word by word, under the influence of tea, I’ve gotta ask the following.
How long can I refrain from coffee? And should I? Do you?
I don’t drink coffee. At all.
I have, on occasion. When I started this job and I was still commuting down from north of Baltimore, yes, I tried drinking coffee. That lasted about a week.
I’m proud to be coffee free.
I’m not a coffee drinker, either. I’ve thought about changing that, but from everything I hear from coffee-drinkers, it would be like living a completely different life.
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It’s a life of escalating, jittery thoughts!
15 days in and I’ve got a newfound respect for (what I think is) the natural energy levels of the non-coffee drinker! Rock on snay.
But do you indulge in black tea, or some other caffeinated beverage?
I see no reason to stop drinking coffee. I have done it many times in the past against my will, e.g. while on a camping trip or in a situation where it otherwise wasn’t available. Yeah, it’s doable, and the withdrawal only lasts about a day. I’ve never even found that process especially unpleasant.
But why? Coffee tastes good. It makes you feel good. It doesn’t really have any significant negative health effects for most people.
If you like coffee, depriving yourself of it is simply an exercise in self-flagellation. It would be like wearing grey sunglasses all the time because you know you can live without color in your life. Sure, you can do it, but why? I’m certainly have no desire to live my life like a monk.
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I agree. Why stop drinking coffee if you don’t have a good reason?
I mentioned some of the advantages of coffee above, but the disadvantages, and the reason I’m taking a coffee break, include:
1. odd sleeping patterns
2. caffeine crashes
3. as a runner, coffee isn’t the best way to hydrate
4. and spending ludicrous amounts of money on coffee
I only drink coffee at AA meetings. Weird, huh?
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Not at all. Hopefully it’s good coffee!
I refrained from coffee one lent…and my friends all asked me to never do it again. I think I did it to prove to myself that I COULD. And now I have no reason to ever do that to myself again.
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You’re an inspiration to all coffee addicts trying to kick the habit! (minus that last sentence)
There is no way I am giving up coffee. I still haven’t found any convincing evidence that is bad for you in any way, moreover I have read some stuff that says it may actually be good. I don’t think I should give it up.
Aside from that, I don’t understand the concept of decaf. What’s the point? Caffeine is the best part of coffee (talking like a true addict, I am)
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Yeah, I’ve heard as many good things as bad things about coffee. I’m always reminded of that NASA study about spiders and their webs produced while under the influence of various drugs – guess which drug resulted in the worst spider web?
And why do people drink decaf coffee? There’s no point, aside from habit!
I’ve gone without coffee now for oh… hm… about 5 months + now. It was tough. Really tough at first, but I did it because my stomach was throwing major tantrums and coffee was just another acidic thing to throw into the mess. Did you know that even decaf coffee makes you create more stomach acid? Boo.
Now, tea is my bitch. Chai lattes… oh so good, and they fool me into thinking I’m enjoying a delicious coffee in the morning. I don’t crave the caffeine, or have energy ups and downs quite I used to. Although, I do work like a mo-fo when I’m jacked up on java. :/ That’s something I’ll miss.
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Awesome. Not only do you inspire people with crazy travel stories… but now you’re part of the no-coffee-addiction-for-me-coalition of world travelers!
I’m guessing you love the chai (all kinds) found in India????
The longer you stay away from coffee, the more it’ll get to affecting you. Half-life of coffee in my system is about 3 days, and I’m a daily drinker.
But if you can get by without it you should just keep it up! Seriously, quite the accomplishment.
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We’ll see how long this lasts.
A sort of related question: How does coffee affect the way in which you make music?
A long time, or long enough to reach your goal. You’ll sleep better too. Everything is better in moderation. Do I? Nope.
Guess that means I should set a goal, huh?
Yeah. #78 I think.
It’s #76… and the goal in now clear!
I know it’s bad – but I can’t function in the morning without a cup of coffee. When I get home in afternoons I switch to rooibos tea, but at work I drink a lot of coffee. A LOT. I’m also very bad at eating lunch and breakfast so I sub them with cups of coffee when I’m really busy.
Unhealthy = me!
Also – you should try rooibos tea. Really soothing and has no caffeine. Not sure if you can find it in your normal shops though. Maybe? Mmm.
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I was just talking with somebody about the whole “substitute coffee for breakfast / lunch” oddity; when I stopped coffee I thought something was wrong because my pre-10:00am appetite returned in full force!
Oh yeah, we can get rooibos tea here in the states!
I don’t drink coffee, so uh, good luck with this. Ha.
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A reporter that doesn’t drink coffee!?!
When I was a student I’d purposely ‘detox’ from coffee a week before I had to start studying. I thought it might give the caffeine a bit more kick when I needed it.
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I’ve experienced this. Mostly with regards to creative work. And it worked too.
I was a daily coffee drinker before leaving for my year-long round-the-world trip. Only one cup a day, but a very crucial one cup a day.
Immediately on hitting the road, the daily habit was kicked, diminishing ever more with each country visited. Laos was particularly gnarly, they have coffee everywhere but the beans kept back from export are generally a terrible, sour quality brewed in tube filter that resembles a used gym sock – probably why Laotians mix their coffee sludge with Ovaltine.
Since returning to the States, I’ve had at most one cup of coffee a week and usually not even that. My partner makes coffee for himself and I refuse! Gah! Who am I? Did I get lobotomized in China?
Now that the weather’s gotten colder I want something hot and bitter. I may go to homemade chai.
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It’s funny, cause I did the exact opposite – when I was able to do so. I consumed LOTS of coffee while traveling! I also heard that Laotian coffee was … different.
Since giving up the coffee, I haven’t had any real desire to grab a cup of coffee “just because.” And I’ll never turn down a nice cup of chai (looking at you M.) as the weather gets colder here in DC!
I never used to drink coffee. Even in college pulling all-nighters, I never touched the stuff. But when I started having to work a real job and be up in the morning, I can’t really survive without my morning latte. It’s so bad that the baristas at my local Caribou Coffee know me by name and by drink. But I also don’t really see the point of giving it up. Yeah I spend a lot of money on it, but I also bring my lunch to work most days. Its a treat and I’m sure it’s doing terrible things to my insides, but, ya know, I just don’t care.
Also speaking as a fellow runner, I find (and it’s been said by much more expert people than me) that a cup of coffee before a race is actually okay and pretty good for your race, as long as you continue to drink water for the rest of the run.
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I hear ya. I didn’t start drinking coffee till I started college. From then on out it was, mostly, all about the coffee. Until now!!!
And you’re right, when I’m doped up on caffeine, and depending on the intensity of the run, I’m more likely to hit a runner’s high.