Everybody's High

Coffee 'no boost in the morning'

Okay, so what next? Can we redefine hunger as "food withdrawal"? If I have a headache, am I just in paracetamol cold turkey?

It's one of those findings that make you think - okay, very interesting, but what actual difference does it make? Very few people are going to be willing to give up coffee, so most will still need that first kick in order to get going.

I write as an ex caffeine-head who now sips the very occasional decaff americano; but I find a can of Coke hugely invigorating, whether it's my fourth of the day, or my first in weeks, both of which happen regularly. Maybe I should report to a laboratory...?

Naughty Beans

Caffeine Triptych
Originally uploaded by Brainless Angel.

We have a new Costa coffeehouse in Cardiff, which is a good thing, especially as the DotCoffee Boom seemed to be fading to an echo around these parts.

The word "Coffee" derives from "Kaffa", the ancient kingdom in modern-day Ethiopia where then bean was first cultivated, apparently. This I unquestioningly believe, because it came from Wikipedia - unlike the "fact" that an ant can survive for two days underwater. This I don't believe, even though it was printed on the lid of a Snapple bottle. Even my credulity has limits, it appears. I think perhaps some dark part of my psyche regards Education and Refreshment as immiscible. That's why teaching the World to sing, and then buying them a Coke, happen on two different lines.