I’m sipping a cup of caffeinated tea as I write this post. I haven’t been doing this much lately. Sipping caffeinated tea, that is.

Some years ago, in an attempt to check the headaches that were plaguing me, I cut caffeine out of my diet. It seemed to help. Although I’ve never drunk coffee, I’ve imbibed in enough high-test tea to expand and contract those blood vessels plenty.

Switching to herbal or decaf teas calmed things down on the vasodilation/vasoconstriction front, so I’ve kept it that way for years. Then I discovered Trader Joe’s cha tea, a caffeinated product, full of spices and flavor. It made my daily cup of decaf taste like brown water. And so the slow slide began.

Or is it a slide? Maybe it’s a return to normalcy. When I gave up caffeine I worked all the time and slept poorly. Things are easier now. Maybe I can sneak in a chai or two. At least that’s what I’m hoping. And so far, so good.

(Detail of a Trader Joe’s chai tea box. No free tea was received in exchange for this review!)