Decaf Achiever
Do you remember that 1980s ad campaign that pressured TV viewers to "Be a Coffee Achiever?" It seems like each decade has its signature excesses, and the pendulum swings from stimulants to sedatives and back. To wit: the postwar nicotine and amphetamine craze of the 50s, followed by the giant pot party that was the 60s and 70s, followed by the caffeine/cocaine frenzy of the 80s, followed by "heroin chic" in the 90s, and so on.
Aside: these drug trends seem to map onto U.S. political trends, with stimulants being popular during conservative/Republican times and sedatives being popular during progressive/Democratic times. Gives new meaning to the signature colors of the Republican and Democratic parties, no? From the blues to the mean reds and back again.
Anyway, back to drugs: It seems meth, cocaine, and even caffeine have made a mass comeback in the 00s. Being a user of neither sedatives nor stimulants (unless you count thyroid hormone), I live a boringly mid-range life. It's not that I think drugs are evil, it's that my bandwidth of acceptable excitatory levels is frustratingly narrow. Marijuana makes me wish I were simply asleep, yet stimulants of any kind drive me frantic. A can of Red Bull will keep me up all night. I can't even handle the caffeine in a cup of coffee, which my husband, a devoted drinker of fully-leaded java, thinks is really pathetic. Hence, this commentary etched on the cap of my weekly carafe of decaf:
This shouldn't have surprised me. People who abuse stimulants frequently have behavioral problems.
Aside: these drug trends seem to map onto U.S. political trends, with stimulants being popular during conservative/Republican times and sedatives being popular during progressive/Democratic times. Gives new meaning to the signature colors of the Republican and Democratic parties, no? From the blues to the mean reds and back again.
Anyway, back to drugs: It seems meth, cocaine, and even caffeine have made a mass comeback in the 00s. Being a user of neither sedatives nor stimulants (unless you count thyroid hormone), I live a boringly mid-range life. It's not that I think drugs are evil, it's that my bandwidth of acceptable excitatory levels is frustratingly narrow. Marijuana makes me wish I were simply asleep, yet stimulants of any kind drive me frantic. A can of Red Bull will keep me up all night. I can't even handle the caffeine in a cup of coffee, which my husband, a devoted drinker of fully-leaded java, thinks is really pathetic. Hence, this commentary etched on the cap of my weekly carafe of decaf:
This shouldn't have surprised me. People who abuse stimulants frequently have behavioral problems.
posted by WinterWheat | 11:00 AM
7 Comments:
I am slowly drinking less coffee. As I've aged, I've found I can't have any in the afternoon unless I want to be a jittery high strung mess in the evening. This is something which has caused me to recall with wonder how only 10 years ago, I would drink POTS of coffee during a day visiting with my friend. I mean we'd go through like two pots in a visit, then hit the Fleetwood diner and have MORE coffee late in the evening. Slept like a baby. Amazing what your physiology does as you age.
But I miss coffee. To the point where I have occasionally had a decaf in the afternoon. It never feels like it tastes as good.
You're right, it DOESN'T taste as good. There's a zing to regular coffee that decaf doesn't have.
Speaking of missing things, the Fleetwood!! OMG, the best fries in the world, especially at 2:00am.
*sniggers*
i used to be a little snobbish about decaf but like pfg, i just can't handle caffeine like i used to so i restrict myself to one full-caf coffee a day
oh, and alcohol? same thing - my heart races if i have more than one glass of wine without drinking seven gallons of water
the upside? i am a *very* cheap date, these days
I am so amazed by your observations about the highs and lows of the drugs of choice throughout the years. That is wild and so interesting.
I personally loathe all (illegal) drugs. They are rarely accompanied by anything good.
I drink coffee..but to be honest, I think it is the little girl in me who saw all the adults drinking coffe and being adults and that is what I equate it to. It is like drinking wine....not that I do not love wine--but it is such a grown up thing to do. Does that make any sense?
My DH swears all intended meds work totally opposite on me. Benadryl winds me up like a clock.
UGH.
Lovely day to you and the fam.
my word verification is honkyy. George Jefferson would be proud.
J -- honkyy!!! ROFLMAO -- seriously. You get the best verification words. :-)
PJ's word verfication was "honkyy"? Oh, that's priceless!
Anyway, regular coffee sometimes puts me to sleep. Yes, to sleep! Isn't caffeine used in Ritalin? Well there you go, K: I'm really still a hyperactive child at heart!
Hugs!
[ww: i'm trying to find an email address for you but can't find one on your profile - will you drop me an email sometime at urbanchickadee AT gmail DOT com? no big hurry]
sorry - i've forgotten my MUA login, else i could have tracked you down there, i guess...
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