Coffeeholics Anonymous is now in session. Hi, I’m Kathy, and I’m a coffee drinker.

I can skip breakfast entirely, but never my coffee. I also drink one cup of coffee right after lunch, just to perk me up in my lowest energy state in the afternoon. I try to limit my coffee intake to two cups a day. But sometimes, when my coffeeholic sister would brew coffee at night, I would find myself drinking a third cup. But that’s just about it for me. On usual days, anyway. 🙂

Baggy and I are also frequent Starbucks customers. I’ve got a “coffee bean point card,” on which I get points for every purchase of coffee beans I make. After I collect a certain number of points, I get one pack free! 🙂 It must be the familiarity with the taste or ambiance, that even when we go abroad we find ourselves exploring the neighborhood for a good ol’ Starbucks store. You could imagine how happy I was when I was in Seattle (for those who didn’t know, the very first Starbucks was opened at Seattle in Pike’s Place Market). There seemed to be a Starbucks store in every corner, including one located right smack at our conference site.The question is, is drinking coffee good or bad for your health? According to a press release by Harvard Health:

“The latest research has not only confirmed that moderate coffee consumption doesn’t cause harm, it’s also uncovered possible benefits. Studies show that the risk for type 2 diabetes is lower among regular coffee drinkers than among those who don’t drink it. Also, coffee may reduce the risk of developing gallstones, discourage the development of colon cancer, improve cognitive function, reduce the risk of liver damage in people at high risk for liver disease, and reduce the risk of Parkinson’s disease. Coffee has also been shown to improve endurance performance in long-duration physical activities.”

Other health benefits can be found in this article. One excerpt that I found particularly amusing:

“While not technically addictive, caffeine increases the production of dopamine, a brain chemical crucial to pleasure and motivation.

The brain cells that make dopamine stop working in Parkinson’s disease, and studies using animal models suggest caffeine wards off Parkinson’s by protecting these cells.

The dopamine connection may explain why both the Kaiser Permanente study and the Nurses Health Study found that coffee drinkers were significantly less likely to commit suicide.”

Ergo, drink coffee and live longer, happy and contented lives. 😛

All of this is not to justify why I drink coffee. I’m sure that there are also health risks associated with coffee – palpitations, insomnia, tremors, diarrhea and increased urination among them. I guess the key here is moderation. Of course, the definition of “moderation” differs from person to person. But oh, scrap the moderation crap. I enjoy drinking coffee too much to think about the benefits and risks. As the sign on the coffee van at our workplace says:

There are many good reasons for drinking,
One has just entered my head.
If a man doesn’t drink when he’s living,
How the hell can he drink when he’s dead?

And sheez, I just can’t quit drinking coffee (hmm, not that I really tried to quit). The only time I stayed completely off coffee was when I was pregnant with Aya. And because I’m a “moderate” drinker, it wasn’t that hard to completely cut my coffee intake – I didn’t manifest the usual coffee-withdrawal syndromes that everybody knows about. Right about the time I was weaning her, I was only too happy to drink my first real cup chock-full o’ caffeine.

And besides, what single drink can be prepared and enjoyed in various forms? Coffee, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways:

I got a snowman on my cappucino. Look, he’s grinning at me.

This is the cappucino that makes you go, “Awww….” before you glug it up.

Whipped cream and chocolate syrup on coconut-flavored cafe latte. This is the coffee that makes you just want to stare at it. Drool! And when I finally couldn’t contain the urge, I was rewarded with such a heavenly taste!

And hey, this is Japan. There are dozens of coffee drinks that one can buy in vending machines. I’ve lost count of how many brands are out there already (available hot or cold!). But this one stands out from the rest:

“69” Shot & Shot by Wonda. So, is this guaranteed to keep you going and going like the Energizer rabbit?

Care to enlighten me on why they chose to name this coffee drink “69 Shot & Shot”? Why 69? I don’t know. To me, it’s just a number. :P(Yeah, right!) Anyway, what the heck, just sip it and enjoy! 🙂