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Serena Tanner

November 24, 2017

Stephanie Maenhardt

Consumer's Memoir

Little Cup of Comfort

I remember drinking hot beverages like hot chocolate for as long as I can remember. I

always connected a steaming hot cup of creamy liquid to comfort when I was depressed. I never

realized that the connection came from grandpa. Anytime I got hurt or I was sad, he would pick

me up and sit me in his lap and pass me by little cup of comfort while hold one of my tiny little

hand. We would sit quietly when I was sad. Somehow the stillness in those moments are the best

memories I hold close today. Or when I was hurt, he would tell me funny Cajun swamp stories or

read me books always changing voices to fit the characters. Soon the innocence of those warm

cups of happiness turned into coffee, and then the cups soon turned into life or deatheven to

this day.

I actually remember when the addiction of the dark caffeinated coffee first started. It was

Christmas break 2003, and the weather outside was so harsh and bitter that the wind came up

from between the wooden floor boards frozen me toes through my fuzzy socks. It was the day I

learned the man thought was my father turned into a stranger and the man who loved me more

than anything in this world it was told became a deadly reality. My grandpa sat me down in his

lap like every morning to watch cartoons, but today he handed me a cup of dark liquid and not

the creamy brown I was used to. When I asked that it was he calmly replied its a big girl drink
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because today youre a big girl. I was afraid to ask what made me a big girl, but my question was

soon answered and my life would soon change. I remember the winkles on my grandpas

forehead and his brows where closer together then normal as he let out the longest sadness sigh I

had ever hear. He said, Serena, when you were 2 your dads fight with cancer ended and the

cancer won. So that means Onie is not your real dad, and your real dad, Odell, is in Heaven

now.

That was all he said. No more. No less. That day, the stillness was restless and the

bitterness of the new dark drink seamed to calm the questions that were building up inside me.

That day I was lost in the darkness of the coffee because the blackness represented how

emptiness I felt. From that day on I would always turn to coffee in my hour of distress, sorrow,

and even happiness. Then when my grandpa fight with cancer also won, I would drink coffee to

bring back the nostalgia of his memory and the reminiscences of sitting in his lap with his hand

holding my own. Even the earthy bitter smell still brings a moment of happiness. However, when

I grew to miss him to much or when life became too stressful I turned to the relief of coffee too

much and shortly the relief turned in sinister.

I was born with unhealthy weak kidneys. Over the years to turning to coffee had made

me develop a serve case of kidney stones that tore my left kidney and I formed a very serious

blood infection. I stayed in the hospital for 2 months after that. The doctors who had my best

interest in heart made me swear off coffee or any other deadly caffeinated drink. I did for about a

month but the need to be close to my grandpa again and the relief that I threw my health out the

window.

So, over the years up until now I have been in and out of the hospital with kidney stones and

excruciating nights in the bathroom all for this addiction that started many years ago. Now the
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coffee has started to affect my heart, and I have developed an elevated heart rate where my

resting heart rate is 110 or over. If I could go back to that bitter winter day and tell my grandpa I

rather have my normal safe cup of hot chocolate then the bitter black cup of coffee, I dont think

I would. I would rather take the health risks then to give up the early mornings with my grandpa

or the comfort a cup of coffee brings to me.

I have traded the 2-3 pots of coffee a day for two the cups a day, because I traded grandpas lap

for coffee dates, long nights, and good books. Coffee will always be a part of my life whether it

is comfort, memories, or late-night talks. When I think of coffee, I remember the mornings watch

the sun rise or further back my grandpas lap and cartoons. No matter how much pain my body

my go through, I would not trade it for the comfort or memories. Because how my grandpa

always said, I have measured out my life with coffee spoons.T.S. Eliot
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Serena Tanner

October 22, 2017

Ms. Maenhardt

Rhetorical Analysis Essay

Caffeine Is it as Safe as You Think for Your Kids

We have all heard the saying Dont talk to me until I have had my coffee, or Red Bull

gives you wings. Personally, one of my favorite coffee quotes is by a man called James

Mackintosh, The powers of a man's mind are directly proportioned to the quantity of coffee he

drinks. Now let me ask this, what does coffee and Red Bull, a common energy drink, have in

common? The answer is simple rightcaffeine.

On the subject of caffeine, since we are here, we have all heard the health facts like

caffeine will stunt your growth, caffeine causes heart problems, and lastly caffeine is an

addictive drug. About 85 % of the U.S. population alone drinks at least one caffeinated drink a

day, thats including men, women, and children. As a parent hearing these bad health statements

about caffeine, why would you consider giving you developing child caffeine. Well, one mother,

Janet Fuller, wanted to find this out for her daughter. In her online article Why is it Bad for

Kids to Drink Coffee?, she sets out to find the answer on the effect of caffeine for her newly

becoming teenage daughter.

Janet Fuller, a concerned mother, only ever gave her daughter a sip or two of coffee from

time to time. Now, as her daughter is becoming a young woman, she started to gain interest in

coffee shops and drinking coffee like her young friends. Before Janet could let her daughter start

drinking coffee, she embarked to find the answeris it safe for daughters health. She also
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wanted to find the answer for other parents that might be asking the same question or help

parents stop giving to their kids if caffeine is dangerous. To solve this mystery, she gets the help

from Dr. Steve Abrams, chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Nutrition,

and Jennifer Temple, an associate professor in the University of Buffalos Department of

Exercise and Nutrition Sciences while also preforming some research on her own.

Janet first took her question, Im I a bad parent letting my growing daughter have

caffeine, to Dr. Steve Abrams. He first reassured her that she was not a bad parent for letting

her daughter have a taste her and there, but there are no guide lines on safe levels of caffeine for

children only adults.

He stated that, Because childrens and adolescents brains are still developing, and

because caffeine directly impacts the nervous system, there is an opportunity for caffeine

to change the development of the brain and we dont really know exactly how that will

happen.

This wasnt enough for Janet, so she confided in Temple, whose research for 12 past years has

focused on caffeine effects on kids, for a more defined answer. Temple informed Janet that under

FDA rules energy drinks dont have to limit on the caffeine allowed in the bottle and often dont

label the amount. So, they can basically contain as much caffeine as they want. Temple let her

know in her research on lab rats that were given caffeine and later cocaine showed a high

addiction level. Janets research on her own lead her to a sorry about a high school girl that died

from caffeine-induced cardiac event causing a probable arrhythmia, from drinking a 16-oz

energy drink, a latte, and a large soda within 4 hours.

You could tell in Janets article she was concerned about this decision on giving her

daughter caffeinated drinks. She started the article with a light-hearted story about her daughters
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interest in coffee. Even threw in some teasing comments that she tells her daughter when she

when her daughter wants coffee like coffee will stunt your growth, I didnt start drinking

coffee until college, and think how much money youll save if you dont buy these drinks!

After telling the story about joking with her daughter, her tone was never serious but never light-

hearted, more of curios concerned mother caring about her daughters health. She didnt stop

until she found an answer and even then, she did research on her own. A parent could relate to

her concern for her daughters health while thinking of their own kids health. She chose the

right time to think about this because her daughter was coming more independent, and parents

with teens could feel the same.

This was a power article finding out research on kids and the effect of caffeine is very

under researched. Also, this article was written this year. Janet really wanted to know the truth

on the effects of caffeine on kids. Is it safe or not was her mission to find out? Not only relying

on what a doctor or a scientist had to say, but taking research in her own hands. I would highly

recommend this article to an expecting parent or one with kids and growing young adults. Not

only to give just the writers experience and what she found but to spark a parents own research

for their childs health.

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Works Citied

Janet Fullers article When Can Kids Start Drinking Coffee?

https://www.epicurious.com/expert-advice/when-can-kids-start-drinking-coffee-article
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Serena Tanner

Professor Stephanie Maenhardt

English 1010

25 September 2017

Does Marijuana Effect Anxiety?

Marijuana goes by many different names like cannabis, pot, weed, dope, etc. Marijuana is

a recreational drug, but is not legal in all 50 Untied States. Anxiety affects approximately 1.5

percent of the U.S. population over the age of 18 each year (ADDAA 1). Many people use

marijuana as a self-treatment for anxiety and panic attacks (Butterfield 1). Many marijuana users

praise that the drug helps them feel relaxed, clam, and happier (Habermann 1). On the other

hand, other users argue that marijuana heightens their anxiety, panic attacks, paranoia, and

depression (1). Could consuming this drug be the cure for anxiety patients, or the cause of

intensified anxiety? First, we would need to understand what anxiety is.

Anxiety has many different forms like general or social anxiety. When experiencing

anxiety, the person may feel nervousness, fear, and panic attacks in heightened anxiety (Croft 2).

Experiencing anxiety triggers your body into fight-or-flight mode that is controlled by the

amygdala (Habermann 2). Marijuana when consumed has a huge effect on the amygdala,

weather its good or bad.

Marijuana has at least 400 different chemical compounds, and some of these compounds

are cannabinoids that intact with the endocannabinoid system (Butterfield 2). The bodys

endocannabinoid system regulate anxiety by inhibiting excitatory signals to neurotransmitters

found in the amygdala (Gluck 2). Habermann claims that people with anxiety disorders who
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use marijuana may experience relief from anxiety through the endocannabinoid systems

normal coping mechanism extinction of fear (2). Gluck argues that chronic use of marijuana

can lead to the down-regulation of cannabinoid receptors, resulting in increased anxiety (3).

How can some people experience anxiety relief, while other increased anxiety? Yet, the overall

effect of the drug may depend on strain and dose (Butterfield 1).

The most common effect of marijuana is anxiety and panic reactions (Butterflied 1,

Gluck 1). These effects may be from the use of a strain containing high doses of THC

(tetrahydrocannabinol). In Glucks fight against marijuana use for anxiety claimed, high doses of

THC cause the heart rate to increase to 20-50% (1). Elevated heart rate can worse anxiety by

intensifying the fright-or-flight mode (2). Later in Glucks fight she stated that roughly 50% of

marijuana users experience this reaction (2). Butterfields case contradicts this by auguring high-

THC strains work well for anxiety relief (9). Low doses of the high-THC strain is thought to

encourage relief.

With marijuana not only becoming legal in most states and most anxiety users self-

medicating with, this drug has sparked a lot of discussion. Can marijuanas effects clam or

worsen anxiety? Research has been conducted to prove both points. Marijuana can be used to

help anxiety or have the opposite affect and intensify anxiety depending on the dose and strain.

Marijuana might be the cure of anxiety for some, but the others may need to find another

treatment.
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