Oh Joy. No Java!

So, those who know me, also know I like my coffee.

I mean, I really like my coffee. I'm an addict.

A few weeks ago, I sat at work, after oh…two? three? cups of strong coffee, and my heart thundered in my chest. Thump-thump-thump. I don't mean it was beating fast, but it was slamming into my breastbone.

Well, I'd *blush* stopped taking blood pressure meds for a while "to see how it goes".

To say I was slightly worried is a bit of an understatement.

I raced home, took my tablet, went back to work.

And had another coffee.

It calmed down, went away even, but I repeatedly had those really hard thumps for the next couple weeks.

I cut down smoking (Sorry, I'm working on the quitting thing, not there yet.). No change.

I started to drink the occasional cup of decaf.

It became less frequent.

The past week I've had only decaf — and so far, no thump-thump-thump.

But damn, I really miss the caffeine! I'm practically comatose.

It got me to thinking about giving my characters some odd intolerances.

Well, I'm writing a cheetah shifter at the moment… and the heroine, trying to make him laugh, asks if anyone wants coffee, tea…a saucer of milk?

He tells her he doesn't drink milk.

He's a cat. Cats aren't doing so well with milk. A bit like dogs and chocolate. (Think about that, next time you offer your werewolf some chocolate cake.)

But there's another quirk.

Because he's a cat, he can't taste anything sweet. (Cats lack the taste buds for sweet things.)

So yeah, here's a guy who will drink his coffee black, unsweetened, and who will only eat cake to be polite, not because he likes it.

But really, all he wants is water. And he is probably fond of catnip.

I think writers (of shifters) need to look at the animal side of their characters a little more closely. It stands to reason that the character would exhibit some animal traits, physical or otherwise, while in human form, and vice versa.

Now don't make your werewolf talk while in wolf form, that's just nuts. But you could have him like to watch TV. Or maybe he has hayfever?

What would you like to see in a shifter?