Coffee Is King

I have been drinking a fair amount of coffee this morning. It has given me a unique kind of clarity on all that would otherwise elude me. If you want to get your blood pumping and your synapses snapping, grab yourself a cup of joe.

After about half a pot, I feel compelled to share this Important Advice:

Drink more coffee.

Yes, yes, I am aware that only a few short months ago I was bemoaning the adverse effects of caffeine. You’re just going to have to find a way to get past all of that. That was yesterday.

This is today.

Coffee is King.

Sometimes - rarely -  I sort of max out on coffee early in the day. I can drink it non-stop for hours. But on occasion, it bites me back. That’s okay. We might be on-again/off-again, but overall, we are able to maintain a good relationship.

I probably wrote this little blues song on one of our off-again days:

TOO MUCH CAFFEINE

It’s like screws at your temples borin’ into your brain                      

Too much caffeine will drive you insane

You get a funny little feelin’ like you might need to gag

You get shaky hands and feet, but your eyeballs seem to drag

You get energy and lethargy all in the same vein

Too much caffeine will drive you insane

Too much caffeine, I’ve had too much caffeine today

Too much of the bean, I’ve had too much caffeine today

It’s that unexpected ailment that starts in the heart          

Makes it race like a motor, makes your mind extra smart

Then it creeps up and sneaks up inside of your head

The next thing you know you could wake up dead

‘Cause caffeine won’t let you leave it alone

Caffeine gets into your blood and your bones yeah

Too much caffeine, I’ve had too much caffeine today

Too much of the bean, I’ve had too much caffeine today

© Laura Lisbeth 2007



I Fall Off the Wagon: Nashville Day 2

You don’t know how long I have gone without making chocolate a part of my everyday life. There was a time, my friends, when I required daily chocolate. I even convinced myself that it was “good for me” and “medicinal” and “if the good Lord hadn’t intended women to eat chocolate he wouldn’t have created PMS” and many other such rationalizations.

About a year ago, I turned a deaf ear to my fattening friend, and, except for an occasional flourless chocolate torte after a nice dinner out, we haven’t had much contact. But on the first night in Nashville, during a quick stop at a Walgreens, I just wigged out and bought a bag of Dove milk chocolates – the ones with the little affirmations printed inside the wrapper. And so it began....

We would devote the studio time on Tuesday to mixing, recording background vocals, and laying down some special acoustic guitar tracks.  I was so happy and grateful to be able to be present for all of this. And I was also a little giddy. Monday had been the hard work day for me – singing the scratch vocals and laying down the vocal tracks – I pretty much sang all day. But on Tuesday, although my input was going to be required, I wasn't going to be doing much singing.

We worked all morning and that stretched into afternoon, and we didn’t really stop for lunch. Thankfully, I had tucked the bag of chocolates into my backpack, and every time I started to feel like I was dragging, I would grab another cup of coffee and some chocolate. And the chocolate would reward me with little messages inside the wrapper, like, "Smile" and "Believe in Yourself" and "You Are Special" and "Don't Let Anyone Give You Any Crap About Eating Chocolate." And it was good.

Hearing the background vocals being added was so gratifying. It really made the project begin to come to life. Then in the evening, the acoustic guitarist, John Willis, returned to lay down a very special set of acoustic tracks. I'll have more to share about this in another blog.  

It was close to 9 pm when we finished on Tuesday night. But due to my steady intake of coffee and chocolate all day, I was wide awake until almost 1 am. I had some microwave popcorn and some more chocolate. Luckily, I was getting close to running out of chocolate.

Tania Hancheroft, Background Vocals

The amazing John Willis, Acoustic Guitar

Senor Coffee Pot - my partner in crime