I Need a New Mug
I ask for relatively few things from my job. One, that it not fire me before I'm ready to go. And two, that I can have my morning cup of tea while it is still morning.

My on-going struggle with caffeine truthfully paints an inaccurate picture of my usual caffeine consumption. I am now six days caffeine free, and feeling pretty good. The headache lasted only three days this time. And I managed to stay awake for most of my weekend. It was a nice weekend.

I should be ready to re-introduce caffeine back into my diet soon enough. In moderation, of course.

But truly, I was not consuming exhorbitant amounts of caffeine prior to six days ago. I restricted myself to one Coke a day, at most. Coffee only on weekends, with a limit of one cup of coffee per day, at most. I have made a strong committment to not drink coffee during the week, especially while at work.

Opening the floodgates of coffee at work will result only in the longest, highest, strongest caffeine addiction known to mankind. Once I say yes to the wealth of free coffee located approximately 9.2 steps from my office door, there is no turning back.

So, instead of coffee at work, I have tea. I bring my own tea, and my mornings just aren't complete without my sugar-loaded cup of herbal goodness.

But apparently I also need to bring my own mug because cups are scarce around here. Especially when I need them most.

I can usually find a stash of styrofoam cups near the coffee machine located 9.2 steps from my office door. I venture out, holding my breath so as not to inhale the fragrant and tempting aroma of brewing coffee, grab a cup, then hightail it back into my office. From there, I grab my tea supplies (including bottled water), and head down to the microwave to heat my water and make my tea. I enjoy the ritual as much as I enjoy the tea.

Unfortunately, working in a homeless shelter, we run out of things from time to time. One would think that cups are a priority to keep on hand, since we serve many meals to many people who need a good cup of something to wash everything down. But alas, every once in awhile I find that there are no cups to be found. Where are all the cups?

One day I could not find a cup upstairs, so I ventured downstairs hoping to find one near the other coffee machine. There I found the world's oldest and most disgusting styrofoam coffee cup. I was afraid to touch it. And I decided to add it as a feature on the next tour I gave of our building to the curious public. One doesn't often find a styrofoam cup that is 54 years old. I imagine it's the shelter's first cup ever. It's a unique feature we can proudly boast. They weren't kidding when they said styrofoam isn't biodegradeable.

Then I ventured into the industrial kitchen we have here, where we cook tons of food daily. It was in between meals, and therefore quiet. Yet, I was afraid. The kitchen is a scary place. Again I asked, where are all the cups? I looked through every inch of the store room, yet I could not find what I was looking for.

I did, however, find one small stash of tiny plastic pink cups. They were still in plastic packaging, so I figured they were relatively sterile. And I wasn't sure the plastic of the cup would hold up in the microwave while I heated my tea water. But, I had no other choice. Either tiny pink plastic cup, or no tea at all.

I chose pink.

Today there are no styrofoam cups. All I want is my tea.

Once more I ask, where are all the cups?

C.T.