The other day, a friend asked me whether I drank coffee and, as always, there’s a story. I didn’t actually start drinking coffee until I was 45 years old. Prior to that, I was always able to take a nap at any of my jobs.

Some places I worked had nap rooms; others had couches in the employee break area where I’d lay my head for 30-45 minutes. I even had to put a napkin under my cheek to catch the drool. I remember asking my boss once how he felt about my taking a nap during the work day. He responded by saying he had no problem at all with it. He said, “at the end of the work day you’re the most productive person in here”.

So I continued my naps until I got a job driving tourists around all day. There was no couch or nap room, and I was responsible for getting all those people home safely at the end of the day. This was a particularly tough challenge on all-day trips to the Oregon coast or Mount Hood, where the return drive is particularly dull.

It was at this point I introduced myself to coffee. I found my favorite spots at the coast: Insomnia in Cannon beach and 14th street coffee in Astoria. These choices were as much due to atmosphere as the coffee. Both had comfortable places I could work on my laptop as the tourists walked around town, and both offered good people watching.

The only problem I had is that the return trip from both the coast and Mount Hood could be as long as 2 hours. If there was traffic as we approached town I began to panic knowing I still had to drop all the guests off before I could get to a bathroom. A couple times I just told everyone they’d have to wait in the van at one of the drop-offs just so I could run in and pee.

Despite the diuretic effects, I valued the energy lift and even began to enjoy the taste. Like my glass of wine, my cup of coffee became part of my daily routine. Most of the time, I prepare it at home, but when I travel, it’s an excuse to sit down and take in where I’m visiting.

It’s also an opportunity to give my legs a rest as I tend to walk for several hours a day when I’m traveling. I’ve found a 20 minute coffee break goes a long way to relieving the pain in my legs. As with my coastal favorites, coffee shops abroad provide an opportunity for people watching and even talking with locals.

As many of you know, I am committed to budget traveler, and that means avoiding eating out. Stopping at a coffee shop gives me the feel of eating out without the expense of doing so. In some places, like Iceland and Scandinavia, food was so expensive that coffee was the only dining out experience I’d indulge in.

So while it may have started as a way to get me through the day, coffee has become an excuse to enjoy the day.