Unwind and Live!

Unwind from Uptight and Live!

8-16 009I have come to the conclusion that I can’t drink coffee.Β  I like the taste, but if I drink coffee, I get so wired I can pick up radio stations in Argentina.Β 

If I drink coffee near bed time, I can’t close my eyes or go to sleep.Β  I just lay there watching those little colored amoeba things that swim around behind closed eye lids.Β  Then my feet start kicking unexpectedly.Β  Not just a twitch. I’m talking a 60-yard field goal kind of twitch.Β  Once the cat was laying at my feet when this happened.Β  I heard him hit two walls before he hit the floor.Β  Thank heavens I didn’t kick him up into the ceiling fan.

My wife told me I had three options.Β 

#1: I could drink coffee if I let her wrap my entire body in duct tape before I go to bed.

#2: I could sleep in the garage.

#3: I could stop drinking coffee.

I stopped drinking coffee.Β Β  Unfortunately we live in a culture where many people are uptight and wired even when they don’t drink coffee.Β  I know uptight people who are so removed from coffee they think Starbucks is a constellation of deer.

Occasionally I find myself being pushed into an uptight corner. In those times I have to remember a few facts:

  • Being uptight about something doesn’t change anything.
  • Being uptight keeps you from reaching your full potential.
  • Being uptight keeps you from getting down to business.
  • Being uptight is a sign that you have forgotten who is really in charge.

Lighten up!Β  Loosen up!Β  Lay off the caffeine. Live!

[reminder]How does caffeine affect you?Β  How do you unwind from uptight.[/reminder]

Comments

  1. I’M NEVER “UPTIGHT” AS I DON’T BELIEVE IN STRESS { PEOPLE MAKE THERE OWN STRESS)

  2. I had to give up caffeine over a year and a half ago as it was causing an onslaught of migraine headaches. This means no more regular coffee. This means no more chocolate. But it also means a lot less migraine headaches.

  3. Ken, I love my morning cup of coffee. As an experiment, I am caffeine free so far in 2014 and measuring my results.

    Makes it tough on cold mornings such as this however.

  4. A day with coffee is a day without sunshine, I think. It brings back memories of getting up and finding Grandpa in the kitchen of our big, drafty kitchen with a pot brewing on the huge antique green stove. I had a “real”little coffee pot and he would carefully put a small bit of coffee into the tiny basket and brew it also. Then we would have coffee together…though mine was mostly milk. My Dad had a flower shop and greenhouses behind their home and he knew I liked the “Shoppe Coffee” and when I would visit from out of town, he would carry the pot into the house In a blue wicker basket along with the cash register money bag at the end of the day…always smiling and I knew we would sit with Mom and have a cup and a chat. The smell of coffee brings back memories of church events where there was a big pot brewing downstairs and I would know that the “Dorcas Band” women had brought something good.. (A piece of cake with “something wet behind it”) Over coffee in the Student Union during college was where we hashed out issues of faith and course work….and broken hearts. Coffee in the Teachers’ Lounge meant one might know there was hope for dealing with “that kid” for the rest of the day. So, don’t throw out the coffee with the caffeine!

    1. reminded me of my “real” little metal coffee pot with basket. “real” coffee never went into it, but it was used constantly in my play kitchen. thanks for that memory.

      1. I saw one in an antique shop but it did not have all the parts…I would have purchased it for the good memories…I wish I could remember the name of them.

  5. My husband can’t drink or eat anything with caffeine after 4 or 5 PM. I am beginning to have problems after about 7 PM.

  6. When I was in college, I could have a double espresso, stay up long enough to study, then go to sleep without a problem. After I had children, I discovered I should not have coffee after early-to-mid-afternoon. I made the mistake of having a regular (as opposed to decaf) cappuccino at an Italian restaurant at 8 p.m.. I ended up skipping an entire night’s sleep. I couldn’t even nap! I went to bed my normal time the next night, but have been tired ever since. πŸ˜‰ (Then there’s that heart arrhythmia….)

  7. No coffee for me since college days. It just doesn’t sit right in my stomach. But I love a hot cup of Chai or herbal tea in the morning! Nice substitute for coffee. I also wind down with music when I get uptight.

    With or without the caffeinated buzz, I pray I never forget who is in charge. Thanks, Ken! Another wonderful post.

  8. when I developed colitis the dr explained to me what caused it in my situation. weighing the consequences I made the decision that I would occupy my brain with God’s word and ask Him to clear my thinking about the things in my life I could do nothing about. that was 25 yrs ago and today I seldom have flare-ups, and when I do it’s because I have allowed a situation to upset me. God expects us to “use” Him to keep our lives free to glorify Him rather than worry or fret. don’t despair! trust God and believe that He is taking care of business.

  9. Coffee gives me diarrhea. I can get by with a bottle of Diet Pepsi. That’s my caffeine fix for the day.

  10. OK, while I will NEVER stop drinking coffee, this post was great. I laughed out loud three times…while sitting in Starbucks. πŸ™‚

  11. I also am trying to cut back on coffee. I ate pretty healthy with our first child, but by our third child, I was drinking coffee and soda. Now that third child (4 years old) likes to drink coffee. Oops.Even so, it’s hard to pass up a coffee shop. Reminds me of how often we are caught up in how the world lives and survives, and how hard it can be to turn away from the world back to God; to trust that he will provide for us.

  12. I have five cups before 10 AM but I don’t ever talk to anybody before 11 AM. that’s when I stop shaking

  13. I have five cups in the morning and a couple more in the after-noon . The cat is now living in kitty heaven

  14. Husband and I really enjoy our coffee. He has to watch the full leaded, me fully leaded or unleaded makes no difference, doesn’t affect me.

  15. I take a caffeine pill every morning as I don’t drink coffee … usually … but yesterday I went to our local gas station for a donut & got a cup of 100% Columbian … WOWEE … I was “wired” all day … anyway I wanted to tell you I got your ‘FULLY ALIVE” set of CD’s & CHONDA PIERCE’S “LAUGHING IN THE DARK” … don’t know which one to start on first! My favorite skit of yours is the one about the doberman & shitzu … I laughed so hard I almost wet my pants … you can be halarious!

  16. DECAF PEOPLE! A couple years ago I realized that caffeine tears up my stomach, but I love the way coffee tastes. Now I still have my coffee but it’s decaf!

  17. I’m a bit spoiled as I only drink home-made lattes. They make me happy, they wake me up, put a smile on my face and help me sleep better. Absolutely love them.

  18. I listen to Ken Davis stories, laugh till nothing is really THAT important, then when I catch my breath, wipe my eyes, I take it from there.

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