Day Thirty-Five: Instant Energy!

Today I learned an important lesson:  Not all novel experiences are positive or enjoyable.  However, despite the fact that some novel experiences are not inherently pleasant, approaching it with an attitude of inquiry and curiosity can make the experience interesting.  Which, in a strange way, makes it pleasant and enjoyable after all!

Let me give you some background...  Sadly, since the birth of my daughter, I have become a bit of a caffeine addict.  Now, I do not want to give you the false impression that I am guzzling caffeinated beverages at every turn, for this is not the case.  However, for the first time in my life, I have a sense of NEEDING a cup of coffee every day, preferably first thing in the morning.  As if this isn't bad enough, after a period of time without said cup of coffee I end up with a splitting, caffeine withdrawal headache.

Now this wouldn't be so bad if we actually owned a coffee maker, but, alas, we do not!  There has not been a need....  Until now!  I have been eyeing some of the single serving coffee and hot beverage machines for a while now but have yet to take the plunge and money has been tight since I created this new addiction.  So, as a result, I have been relying heavily upon our local Dunkin Donut's drive-thru for some time now.  

From the information that I have just shared with you, dear reader, you might conclude that my husband is not a coffee drinker.  However, here you would be wrong.  My husband routinely frequents a local cafe on his way to work to get his own caffeinated fix.  However, he has also created a back up plan for the mornings after he has been up all night with our little darlings and is running late...  And here we come to my novel experience of the day.

That would be Starbucks VIA Ready Brew Columbia Coffee...  Which is just a fancy, Starbucks-kind-of-way of describing powdered, instant coffee.  Needless to say, I didn't make it to Dunkin Donuts this morning and the headache was creeping up on me.  So, yes, here is where I admit that I used today's novel experience to feed an addiction.  Ack!  I'm shameless, I know!

Does it make it any less pathetic that I didn't like it?  No...  I think that might actually make it a little bit MORE pathetic, truth be told.  The only part of the experience that was enjoyable was that it was novel and I approached it as such.  Which brings me to a question...  How often are the benefits of novelty due to the open, inquisitive attitude we take in our approach to the experience versus the experience itself?  

So, to channel the Coffee Talk Lady, I'll give you a topic.  Similar to the "attitude of gratitude" that has shown to have such an impact on a person's happiness, does an "attitude of openness and exploration" also provide us with a greater level of enjoyment in our lives?  Discuss!