Perk me up Friday!
 
 You ever drift through your day feeling as though you’re caught up in a fog? You’re not quite sure how you got from one place to the next, how the list you set out to tackle has grown shorter, and there is no definitive impression as to how or when you actually got those boxes ticked off?
  Well I’ve been feeling that way lately, like crazy. I’ve not been sleeping well, or some nights literally at all, for the past month. Apart from the obvious tired feeling, it’s exhausting to not sleep. My brain refuses to focus, my body feels like a floppy mess, I forget whole conversations, and though my eyes are focused on you when you speak, I’m likely somewhere else altogether.
  It’s a problem!
  I’ve tried as best as I can to stick as close to a daily routine as possible, but that has been a challenge.
  I’ve forced my jumbled, floppy-jalopy bones to exercise, not only to exhaust my weary muscles, but also to clear my overactive mind, and to do something that feels “normal”. To no avail though, my hands continue to wave in front of my face unseen as through a fog. Sleep has escaped my seeking grasp.
  So as a final and exasperated attempt at attaining those precious yet lost hours of floating through oblivion, I’ve gone extreme.
  I’ve tried. I repeat, I’ve tried, and failed miserably at cutting out caffeine.
  There are several “reasons” for this grand failure. Reasons is how I’m choosing to phrase it, because let’s be honest here (that is another thing I’ve been working on!) they’re all just neatly packaged excuses!

A slightly skewed Top Ten

Reasons it is hard to cut caffeine

~ holding the mug/paper cup/chilled plastic container in your hand is a treat in itself
~ my eyes don’t like to open in the morning without it
~ I’m making a statement to myself by turning the coffee on in the morning before I do anything else. What is that statement? I know you’re curious, and it is profound! I am important too! -- I’m not just your launderer, your own personal chef, your chauffer, your bank machine. Indeed I do all those things and so much more, but to start my day, though it is an action that will accomplish little, it reminds me that if I do nothing else for myself for the rest of the day, I was important enough to put myself first in that single instant.
~ it’s some sort of right of passage. It is available everywhere you go, and whether it be in a meeting, a casual gathering, while you wait for your oil to be changed, or sitting in the chair at your hairstylists, it is always offered. Can I mention as well how when the person next to you is holding a cup and you’re not, it’s all that you can think about
~ the headache that lingers days after you’ve had your last cup doesn’t seem worth it
~ it’s hot, and if you’ve chosen to live in the climate that I do, sometimes hot is the only thing that helps
~ it really smells good. Comforting, soothing, inviting, and consistent. I wonder if it can be compared to the friend that is always there, never judges, and forever perks you up when you need a bit of a boost
~ it changes with you as your mood desires. I’m a milk or cream kind of gal, but should you desire to spice it up, it’s as easy as a shake of cinnamon, a drop of syrup, or a dollop of whipped cream. The options are an endless and confusing list of choices, all of which likely hit the intended target with a vague perfection
~ I don’t really want to cut out caffeine…..I just want to sleep
~ It is plain and simple, good. It wakes me up and there’s nothing else like it. It’s one of my favorite things

Happy Friday!