Questions about retainers

I am an adult who just finished a course with braces.  After a lifetime with naturally straight teeth, my top front teeth put themselves badly out of alignment, so I had it fixed. It worked, it looks good. Since I never wore braces before, I did not know what to expect with retainers. My dentist office keeps forgetting that this is all new to me and therefore they did not warn me about this temporary retainer I was given Friday afternoon, in a big rush before they closed up for the weekend. I didn't have time to think of questions.

I'm supposed to wear this clear plastic thing "a couple of weeks" while the real retainer is being created. This thing is obnoxious! I can't live this way, wearing it all the time except while eating or brushing my teeth. I'm not going to take it out to pour a hot cup of coffee down my throat and then go brush my teeth and replace the retainer. I need to enjoy coffee and tea -- slowly, at leisure and without holding a retainer in my other hand -- all day long. But I was told the retainer will turn brown with stains and cannot be worn for any chewing. So why isn't it purple or some other interesting color instead of clear? It isn't as if I am fooling anybody wearing this thing, it looks bizarre  and of course I am lisping and drooling, so the effort to make it appear invisible is futile anyway.

My questions are:  Will the permanent retainer be constructed with the same stainable clear plastic?   Does it have to removed while eating?  Does it need to be worn all or most of the time forever?  If any of these answers are "yes," then I prefer just wearing braces, frankly.