So those of you perceptive enough to notice the time at which this was written will see that it is 3:15 a.m.. In class we have begun discussion over the topic of The Lady of Shalott in which the titular Lady of Shalott is cursed in such a way that she cannot look away from a mirror, lest she perish. By all accounts, the threat of death cannot be seen as a minor inconvenience, but otherwise the nature of the curse is simply annoying; this is a decent segue into the situation in which I currently find myself.

In literature, especially in more recent examples, occasionally you will find a character who is cursed in a bit of a bizarre way- the subject of the curse is inconvenienced in some small way that, while appearing harmless on the outside, actually is just harmless, but quite annoying. For instance, a character may be unable to ever find their left shoe after removing it- a problem to be sure, but nothing compared to dying when you look out the window. A much more common curse, and one we actually see in some capacity in the real world, is the inability to sleep. Though insomniacs in real life can sleep, they have a hard time doing so, those who’s curse prevents them from sleeping have no such luxury; on the same subject, it is a common trope for a character, or species, to not need sleep or be incapable of it and, for story purposes, attempt to sleep. I have done just this.

A bit of information on the situation I find myself in- throughout my life, coffee- specifically the caffeine from it, which prevents receptors in your brain from making you sleepy- has had little effect on me, tending to make me feel more tired (not sleepy, but tired) such that when the effects preventing me from feeling sleepy wear off, I am much more likely to sleep; it wasn’t uncommon for me to get home fairly late and drink a large mug of coffee and still manage to get to sleep at a normal time. But this time, I tried something new. Knowing of the complementary flavors of chai tea and coffee, I decided to mix the two in fairly large quantities (just a large mug), I consumed this beverage at 7:30. I began attempting to sleep at 10:00 and, despite my attempts, I am no closer to sleeping- I am, however, much more tired. I don’t know if I broke a sort of threshold or if the effects of coffee and chai tea interacted in such a way that the outcome was exponentially more potent, but this is the result.