Coffee (the sequel)

A little while ago, I wrote a post about coffee. About how I had tried, and failed, over the years, to like coffee. I'd worked with it for ages. I knew exactly how to steam the milk and run the coffee so that it might appear more tasty. But none of it had worked. I was quite definitely a tea drinker.

So then we went to Rome, where I made a concerted effort to fit in with the locals and stand at espresso bars sipping on a granita or getting straight in there with a ristretto (not sure about spelling, it means a really short, really strong espresso). And actually, I think it worked. The coffee tasted different there. I'm not sure if there's something different about the way they roast their beans or whatever, but it's different. It didn't make me too hyper. It was bitter, but the coffee taste itself was the overriding memory I have.





Back in England, I've found that the coffee is more bitter. That's the overriding taste, so that only if I'm really concentrating, can I taste the actual coffee in the background somewhere.

So I thought I'd seize the moment, on arriving back from Rome and start drinking espresso. I've been having one a day, mid morning ish. I have it quite short, about half the size of a standard espresso, with nothing in. No milk or sugar.

What fun! I'm so Italian! Look at me everyone! Look! Look! Watch me drink coffee like a grown up! Look, I'm one of you guys, a grown up. Look!

I'll admit now, it was mostly for show, my self-imposed coffee habit.





So then, I started getting headaches. Dammit. I found out, through various experiments, that if I drink shedloads of water beforehand and make sure I have some food in my tummy, then I'm ok. If, however, I drink it before I drink water or eat anything, then I start to talk very fast for a while, before suddenly feeling tired and getting a bit headachey.

The headaches seem to have passed now, although I am tired a lot. This could be many things, not the coffee. Maybe I didn't get enough sleep last night (although sometimes I do get enough sleep but I still feel tired), maybe I'm partaking in lots of exhausting activity (not really).....





I'm not sure. As a newcomer to the world of coffee, I'm unfamiliar with the initiation ceremony. Is this how it goes? Headaches first, then the tiredness, then what....?

Is this the normal route to developing a coffee habit? Can any coffee drinkers out there tell me what to expect next?

Or should I stop now? Stop now while I'm just at tiredness? I mean, it's not like I even notice when I don't drink them. As I say, it's all for show. I'm a bit too lazy to have any kind of actual addiction to coffee.

I should probably just let it go now, hey?