But why does it hurt so much?

See, the first time wasn't bad at all. Maybe some decreased alertness and blogging capacity, but that was about it. This time is a little different. First there was the onset of sleepiness a few hours after I got up (and I got a decent night's sleep). I didn't try to fight that; I just hoped I could nap it away. Then the headaches started. Nothing resembling migraines or anything, but still, who the hell wants those? Not me. At Barnes & Noble around 2:00 or so, I strongly considered relapsing and even made it as far as the Starbucks counter. I even justified it to myself: (a) it'll make me feel better and (b) I can do a hilarious blog entry about the miniscule amount of time it took me to break. But I thought better of it and just got a diet IBC Root Beer instead, which was clearly labeled "No Caffeine" to eliminate any doubt. Later on there were some more headaches, and another bout of napdom, and now I'm pretty much feeling okay. A grande nonfat iced latte does sound more appealing right now than the most spectacular creation from Cold Stone Creamery, but I'm going to have to stick with the latter.