Grabbing a spot of tea

I've seen Tea Spot on Macdougal Street before, but never had a chance to stop in until last week. Even then, I just had a moment, so I only saw the ground floor (apparently there's seating downstairs, will have to have a look at a more convenient time - from the pictures I saw online it actually looks worth a second visit.) I ordered an Oolong, with a name that escapes me as it was long and I was too occupied to jot it down. Anyway, it was a nice cup, and it warmed me right up on a harsh day (most days this winter have been obnoxiously trying).

While waiting on line, which wasn't long, I looked at the other items on offer. There were sandwiches and various kinds of pastry numbers that looked decent enough. The prices were a bit, well, pricey. The lowest price I found on the average cake was $4.50, and it went past $6 for many of them. I don't know. It seems they had Wi-Fi, and enough seating to pass the time. As mentioned before, the downstairs pics were pretty enticing, so I will have to make a return visit, but even so, the prices seemed kind of steep - especially since my personal Macdougal favorite, Caffe Reggio is right down the block. Reggio deserved a post of its own, but suffice it to say that it's the kind of place you can spend hours in without killing your budget, yet still have a nice cappuccino, Italian pastry, or even a good pot of tea amidst a heartbreakingly old school Villagey ambiance.

Still, I'm always happy to see a tea place nearby, and hope it continues to do well. I promise I'll give it one more try, but if anyone reads this and has been there, feel free to further convince me/talk me out of it. The wall of teas behind the counter is persistently nudging my subconscious.

I read wrong...

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Who can guess what I thought when I first read this LOLcat?

Either way, I had to share this particular muffin head.

The Grand Tour

Library, facing the window.



Extreme Close Up! -Fiction



Courtesy of Ikea, the cats have their own tent in my library. So far Zenobia's claimed it.



Can't leave Moofer out! And his tissue.



There you have it. The books, the teapots, the cats. A lot like this blog.

Makeover!

I was staring at my lovely bookshelves at home, and watching (for the umpteenth time) "84 Charing Cross Road". I decided to add to this melange of activity by reorganizing my shelves properly.

So, tons of questions come up as I'm trying to makeover my shelves: Should I separate paperbacks from hardcover? (yes, especially with fiction) What about non-fiction? How many subdivisions should there be? (turns out quite a few: there's the tea section, the histories, biographies, travel, anthologies, cookbooks - though most of those live in the kitchen). Where does poetry fit in? (they're in a class by themselves. Some put them in fiction, but why? When I write poems, they're usually about my life. Is that fiction? No, for the most part.)

Okay, this task should never be commenced at night. Information overload is worse than caffeine when trying to get some shut-eye. I managed to complete the fictions and do the rest the next evening. I have to say, the non-fictions still need work. At some point I simply jumbled a few categories together, because they looked good that way.

All in all, the project turned out well. My library is my running pet project, and has been for the past 3 years. All that's truly missing is my dream chaise lounge, but otherwise it's a pretty complete literary refuge. Photos will follow soon.

Coffee is keeping me up at night...

Not in the expected way. I rarely drink coffee, simply because I can't. I'm only wired for minimal amounts of caffeine, which makes me the ideal tea lover.

The past few days something coffee-related has kept me up well past midnight, despite never having entered my digestive system. Two nights ago I finished the book "The Coffee Trader", which is an historical novel based in Amsterdam during the 17th century. The main character, Miguel, is a Portuguese Jew who fled the Inquisition and has had recent reversals of fortune in the trading industry. He gets involved in the developing coffee trade, so this story is more about the selling of coffee as a commodity than by the cup. Nevertheless, coffee lovers will enjoy the descriptions of those new to the practice of drinking coffee and its effects on them. Normally nothing bores me more than something relating to stock market-type adventures, but there was enough intrigue and redoubtable characters running through the book to make me unable to rest until I'd finished it.

In a related story, I found out about an online game called "Coffee Shop", in which you are the owner of a coffee stand and must try to make as much money as possible and keep a good reputation for 14 days. I'm not a video game player per se, but anyone who knew me during the Tetris years knows that once in a while I get hung up on a game long enough to obsess over it for hours on end. I actually did make some progress, but wasted too much time in the process. I have to say, though, I had a few good laughs. If you make a bad cup of coffee and overcharge, the cartoon buyers will either pour the cup out in disgust or vomit on the sidewalk. The seller in the stand just sits there and holds a finger over the cash register like nothing happened.

I will try to do something tea related tonight; perhaps this will counteract the trivial vigils of this week.

Ice Queen of Astoria

Yes, it's really cold this week. No, I don't like it. Still, it could be worse.

In the morning, when I'm walking to the subway, ears tearing, breathing labored, hat head forming, I try to think of something positive about the weather. It's hard when it's extreme cold. December's coat weather wasn't too bad, because it was possible to be fashionable wintry. Now it's just layer-so-I-don't-get-hypothermia-wear. Not cool, so to speak.

What winter does have over the summer is the tea perks. I baked a good deal in the past week. For the first time ever, I made crumpets - and they were nice! With jam they were pretty special, but with honey I was truly in love. The only drawback was that though they're made on the stove, between waiting 30 minutes for the yeast to take effect and having to cook it in cookie cutters (and I don't have too many of the proper size), it took longer than some baked items. I suppose it was worth the wait. I also found a recipe for lemon blueberry loaf. Next time I'll scale down on the sugar, but otherwise, I have to say it was a sensual experience.

There's nothing like to dead of winter for having the excuse to stay indoors with the furballs and curl up with one of my 81 books for the year. So far, 3 completed. I think we can remedy this...time to put the kettle on!


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Starbucks is courting me...

Starbucks rarely beckons me nowadays, but I did slow down for a moment earlier this week. The sign "Tea Time" is enough to catch my attention, especially in winter.

Just recently Starbucks has offered Tazo tea lattes. I saw about three on offer, though I hesitated earlier this week because I simply don't NEED to buy tea during working hours. Yesterday, though, I thought "why not" and dropped by the one in my work building.

I've been a bit distracted this week, and I think it showed when I tried to make the simple transaction with the barrista. I asked about the new teas, and she said, "did you want London Fog?" Am I that readable? Then while picking up the tea (with 2% milk, I wanted the real thing), this young guy fell in the line of my dizzy fire. He politely said, "sorry if I skipped you?", which he hadn't, so I said, "what?" and then it sank in that he was being polite so I tried to explain my slowness by saying, "sorry, I'm uncaffeinated at the moment" and he said "what?" and I said "what?", and he gave me the "you are weird" look and left. I don't know, crowded places just get to me. Moving on...

So I sipped London Fog back at work, and was surprisingly pleased. It's a lavender Earl Grey, with vanilla and milk. It smells and tastes slightly perfumey, but with a nice creamy touch. It's sweetened just enough to not be overwhelming. It's a contradiction in my normal tea tastes, in that normally I cringe when I see someone adding milk to Earl Grey. Pulled together, though, it was more of a treat. It didn't actually remind me of London though: maybe an English garden, not the city. I would have named it Zenobia:



I'm sure I'll try the other flavors in the near future: a lady at work gave me a coupon for them that can be used every Tuesday.

Though I love true tea, without extra flavor or sweetener, there's always room in my heart for such concoctions.

Books!Books!Books! End of 2008

I have quite a reading year ahead of me. I joined the 999 Challenge, which means attempting to read 9 books in 9 characters in 2009. I started already, reasoning that as long as I FINISH the book in 09 it counts. Besides, I've barely cracked 60 this year, so I need all the help I can get. By the way, that doesn't mean I read less. Between Middlemarch, Bleak House and a number of other mammoth-sized books, I've held my own. Joining the challenge, though, is more fun than work for me. It's a great way to keep organized, and to finally tackle all the TBRs piling up at home. I'm rubbing my hands with excitement! I can totally face a cold, bleak NY for the next few months - and it's a relatively cheap undertaking, since I don't have to further pay for these books. I'm stocked.

Without going nuts, here's a summary of a few books that have kept good company with me through this rather tumultuous part of 2008:

Devil's Brood, by Sharon Kay Penman

I waited years for this one. It's been some time since its predecessor Time and Chance came out - was I even blogging yet? I don't know. Anyway, it's the long saga of Henry II of England, his wife the legendary Eleanor of Aquitaine, and all their sons. If Henry VIII had issues due to lack of sons, Henry II had his troubles resulting from a surfeit of strapping young men, all eager to take on their inheritance while resenting the control of their capable but clueless father. It's hard to side with anyone. Penman manages to make nearly everyone sympathetic, in a less sappy way than Jean Plaidy did in her many historical novels (though I still love her). DB went on forever, but I still felt reluctant to leave the early Plantagenets at that point. What happens next? Well, I know what happens, but I want to hear it, or read it, from Penman's mouth, or, well...pen.


John Lennon: The Life by Philip Norman

Another massive, massive chunky book. Backache Backache! Also, another subject I'm well versed in but don't mind reading about once again. Thankfully it was well researched and neither gushy nor nasty. There's only two things I wasn't crazy about: the author seemed to enjoy stomping on George Harrison's legacy, claiming all his inspiration was derived from Lennon. Now I wasn't there, but even if it was, it's just not nice. Also, delving into John's Aunt Mimi's love life was a little uncalled for. TMI!!! I did NOT need to know that. I'm sure some people love that kind of in-depth analysis, so they can have it. I'd leave it.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

I'd heard that if you liked 84 Charing Cross Road then I had to read this one. Yeah, sort of. This book, of course, is fictional and isn't just about books. Basically a writer develops a correspondence with a group of people on the Channel Islands, who experienced Nazi occupation during World War II. She becomes really intrigued by their story, and the nature of their forming a literary group, and the story goes from there. It was the book I read while in Florida, so I guess this counts as my beach read of the year.

I could go on, but I kinda feel like diving into the 2009 books.

Engrish Tea

more the engrish!

Uh...what?

Melt those hearts!

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Tea for T, M & I

 

 

 

 

It's rare to stick TMI into a discussion about tea, but corny lady as I am, I found the opportunity. Actually, taking tea with Gata usually includes a bit of TMI (too much information) no matter what, so long as I'm drinking something with the slightest hint of caffeine. Motormouth resumes - though that's preferable to my alcohol-fueled litanies.

Anyway, Chesterfield Hotel in Palm Beach is a cozy place to take Afternoon Tea - especially for a hotel. They had me at "seating in the library". There, Teresa, Melinda and I were ensconced in couches, books, and finger sandwiches. We had an older gentleman pour the tea for us, and share some information about the hotel's sister properties in London. Moments like that make me wish I had a butler.

The sandwiches were typical (not much for a vegetarian, which I'm not really) but quite nice. There were a bunch of tiny sweet pastries on top. The tea selection wasn't vast - no Darjeeling! - but I find most hotel teas don't have scores of teas to choose from, so no surprise there. We all had Earl Grey. What made the tea were the scones. They were what scones should be, warm from the oven and fluffy yet substantial, and a bit of powdered sugar on top. We had strawberry jam, marmalade and clotted cream to choose from. My only (slight) disappointment was the one scone per person offering. Personally I like to be satiated with scones, and to roll out the doors afterwards, but otherwise it was a wonderful tea.


The whole experience reminded me of why I devote a whole room in my apartment to being a library in the first place. There's nothing like a cheery inner sanctum, surrounded by books, to sip a favorite cup of tea in. I enjoy that even more than travel. My thoughts are similar to Anna Quindlen's in "How Reading Changed My Life":

"I travel today in the way I once dreamed of traveling as a child. And the irony is that I don't care for it very much. I am the sort of person who prefers to stay at home, surrounded by family, friends, familiarity, books. This is what I like about traveling: the time on airplanes spent reading, solitary, happy. It turns out that when my younger self thought of taking wing, she wanted only to let her spirit soar. Books are the plane, and the train, and the road. They are the destination, and the journey. They are home."

Of course, in my case you'd have to insert tea in there somewhere. And I do like traveling: I'd like to get out of town more frequently. In the absence of funds, though, I'm happy in my library, and take afternoon tea with good friends whenever possible, whether in NY or South Florida.

Love Dem Kitties!

 

 

 

 

In case you didn't believe I was a crazy cat lady before, I thought I'd present more evidence.

Aflac!

 

 

 

 

My favorite duck of Thousand Oaks pond. He doesn't seem to mind the rather tasteless yeast-free rice bread I shared with him/her. I went back and forth calling it Aflac and Jemima, and wasn't about to check and see which was more correct.

Did I mention the weather is gorgeous here? (Florida, in case I hadn't told you personally). It seems slightly cloudier today, but it's still the perfect kind of warm. More pics to come.

I Can Has Shepherd's Pie!

It's been a bit rough going, trying to keep away from red meat. Sometimes I want a cheeseburger, and the turkey version doesn't always cut it. I'm especially wary of Shepherd's Pie, as I had a violent reaction to it once, resulting in a dreadfully unpleasant subway ride home (which reminds me, even on a decent day the subway and its riders are getting nastier than ever.)

I was curious, then, about Teany's Shepherd's Pie. Would the vegetarian version make a decent substitute? Why yes, it would! It was really all I needed, though I also had the lentil soup, which was good but a bit rough on the system later on. Yes, on a November day, it was more than acceptable, and cozy. That's good, because after a traumatically crowded visit to Whole Foods, I needed comfort food (yes, I earn the Moron of the Day Award for going to a normally overcrowded grocery store the day before Thanksgiving.) Bathy thought the SP was rather nice too.

I hope I've made the point that not every tea room is all about pretty china and frilly tablecloths (not that I mind those things, but you have to want variety here and there if you live in NY). On the subject of tea rooms, I must add that the Teanychino is one of the best ways to drink Mate. Normally, I'm not a fan of Mate as a drink, but this is a subtle way to enjoy it. It's got almond and vanilla and some flowery bits, which covers up the "swill" factor I find in most Mate. By the way, it's not pronounced to rhyme with gate, more like mah-tay.

I'd still like a cheeseburger, though. At least I was able to hold off this craving for yet another day.

The Kitty Quiz

You Are a Persian Cat

You are very high-maintenance, at least as far as keeping up your appearance goes. But you're surprisingly low-maintenance in every other aspect of your life. You are peaceful and sweet tempered. People enjoy your company. You are loving and a good companion, but it takes you a while to trust people.

What Breed of Cat Are You?

I've spent too much time with the Zeno!

Paper: My Best/Worst Friend

I really have an interesting relationship with paper. Yes, paper, the stuff made from trees and sometimes recycled. I realized this as I was doing some intense housecleaning this weekend.

The Hate: I can't seem to get it in control! I know we have online bill paying nowadays, but there's still loads of important and semi-important paperwork coming into my home and, of course, at work. At least at work we're expected and paid to have paper all over the place. At home, though, it's preferable to keep things tidy; and envelopes, magazines, catalogs, printouts...where can it go? I've never been able to have a proper filing system. I think it's one of the reasons I haven't gotten into any creative paper projects recently (I have some lovely scrapbooking and card making books and supplies, but the thought of pulling it all out and then having to face THAT...now I know why people are organizing their photos digitally.) Having a shredder is excellent, but it almost makes a dent in my war against paperjunk.

The Love: I'm absolutely mad for books. I detest reading books online, and I haven't warmed up to the idea of Kindle or those forms of readers. Holding a book in my hand and escaping for a while, and learning something new while I'm at it: I can't ask for a greater pleasure, and such a nice tactile experience. The same goes for journaling. As mentioned in previous posts, I never gave up writing in bound blank books, and I doubt I ever will. To me, this blog is simply a complement of my written records. The smell of paper items doesn't hurt. A magazine could cover the subject of grouting, but if it smells good (the magazine not the grout), just crack it open and it's budget aromatherapy. Oh, and let's not forget brown paper packages tied up with strings! The sound of someone wrapping a package is powerfully calming. I suppose I get this from my Dad. He would fall asleep to the sound of papers being turned, and had a special cassette from a Mr. Rogers episode when they did origami in his neighborhood.

It seems to me I love paper more than I hate it. I just wish I could conquer Mt. Paperpile.

Appetite Suppressant? Ha!

I love tea and will always recommend it for whatever health complaints I hear of. I don't think it's a cure-all, but I've seen its benefits. Green tea, for example, is what I run to when my actual stomach is bothering me. I also find that when I'm coming down with something it coincides with a streak of limited green tea drinking. So yes, it's good for you. Drink it, by all means (not at night, insomniacs!)

I do beg to differ when it comes to one benefit: I keep reading that green tea helps you lose weight, as it's an appetite suppressant. Really? Why is it that every afternoon I decide to have a nice cup of Sencha or Lung Ching or whatever variety floats my boat, I am suddenly ravaged by hunger? It doesn't matter what I've had for lunch, as soon as I'm done with that cup I'm running for chips, cookies, cake, anything that will hold me off till dinner. Maybe it's just me, being my contrary self.

Am I the only one? I just don't think it's right to hail green tea as a weight loss drink, if this is the side effect.

I just had a flippin' cupcake.

Lady Smartypants

Maybe I read too much, but it's nice to know that whatever else is going on in my head, lack of knowledge is not it:

There Are 0 Gaps in Your Knowledge

Where you have gaps in your knowledge: No Gaps! Where you don't have gaps in your knowledge: Philosophy Religion Economics Literature History Science Art

Do You Have Gaps in Your Knowledge?

My eyes are burning...Book Review

I've said it before: I am NOT a crier. Unless there is a serious death in the family, including the cats, I rarely shed a tear. If I watch one of those sad chick-flicks, I might tear up a little, but it doesn't get further than that. So imagine my surprise when I found myself weeping at the end of Dewey. I was hysterical. That's really unlike me. So now I can't say whether I'm about to recommend this book or scare people away.

Quite a few cat lovers have heard of Dewey, the fluffy orange cat that was found as a kitten in a book slot and kept on as the library's full time representative. Vicki Myron's story, about his life in the library, as well as hers both as a library director, a cancer survivor, as well as victim of various other tragedies, really does tug at the heart, even my normally lukewarm one. On top of these two life stories with their ups and downs, it's also the story of Spencer, a small town in Iowa. I know nothing about Iowa, and I only know a little more now. Still, Spencer sounds like a nice place, where people work together during hard times to get through. Plus they grow a lot of corn, and I love corn. I don't care how simple that sounds, corn is great!

Anyway, it was just fine reading about the amazing Dewey, and all the love he showed the library's visitors, and how much he was loved. It was something how his fame spread wide during his lifetime, as far as Japan. I guess if you can't handle the sadness of a cat dying, skip the last two chapters, and you'll be fine. Personally, I thought I'd be fine, and next thing I knew I was gasping like a little kid after a tantrum. Sheesh. (Sniff!)

What got me was probably thinking about my own lovely orange cat, Cinnamon, who died the same year as Dewey. He may not have befriended a whole town, but he did breathe new life into our home after a really bad year. Though I'd known other decent cats before, it was he that turned me into the cat person I am now, for better or worse. So by the time I got to the part in the book where Dewey had to be put down, it was too close to home.

I may need to stay away from the animal books for a while. I have to finish The Labrador Pact first. Uh oh.

Long Lost Footage!

My two favorites in one room! Miracles!

Actually, this looks like a video I'd have made when I used to make all those silly videos. Maybe it's a good thing I stopped...

Frolicking in the Foliage

 

 

 

 

I've said it before, but I live for the autumn. The colors are one of the major attractions. I wish my camera caught it a little better, but this will have to do.

Bonfire!

 

 

 

 

I really need to catch up on my picture posting from last weekend. I have some time now, especially as I'm laid up with a raging cold, or whatever it is. Vexing as it is, I'm relieved I didn't suffer from this last week.

Why didn't I bring my shredding upstate? It would have taken five seconds to dispatch us in this lovely bonfire. There's nothing like a warm fire on a rather cold night, and a night well populated with stars. You don't see that everyday (well, I don't, anyway)

We start with the kitty...

 

 

 

 

I figured a good way to begin showing my weekend upstate would be a showcase of my Mad Cat-Lady skills. This is Goober, the outside cat. She's friendly and quite up there in years (about 16). It was like having Kira with a personality adjustment. (Kira is the cat Marie got the same year we got Cinnamon, and she's managed to outlive him yet.)

Okay...ew

I got the following message from an eBay seller regarding an item I received about a month ago:

"I don't understand why you won't take the short time it takes to go to your feedback profile and leave me some positive feedback as I and others have done for you. Please take a moment to leave me a kind word, as I did my very best to make you a happy eBayer."

Here's the thing. The item was sent in a timely manner, the transaction was smooth, and I tend to leave feedback in these instances. Sometimes, though, I let one or two slip past me. The usual reason is that I just got off an eBay buying spree, which though much tamer than the ones in previous years still frightened me. I'm a recovering shopaholic, and I've done so well that even a slight lapse of control is disappointing. So I try to leave feedback as often as possible, but when I get off one of my binges I attempt to keep off the eBay site altogether for as long as I can.

Does this guy deserve positive feedback? Perhaps, but I don't like being hounded for my input. I don't do that to my buyers. So, as Kip would say, "I'm a little T.O.'d" (Napoleon Dynamite reference.)

Now I'd like your opinion on this matter, but don't worry, I won't hound you for it.

3 at 3...til 3

 

 

 

 

It's rare to get the three sisters together for tea: not impossible, just rare. We all had off on Tuesday, so we met up for my favorite ritual: Afternoon Tea.

It was hard to settle on which venue, but as Bonnie had only been to Alice's Tea Cup once, and Pam had just been to Chapter II, we went to Chapter III. We all ordered The Mad Hatter (big surprise), and my tea of choice was Trafalgar Square. If I can't be there, I'm gonna drink it instead!

The only complication is that I'm on a strict no dairy, no red meat, no fun, diet. Well, I cheated for a day. You got a problem with that? Well, my digestive system did, but I let's not get into that.

I was particularly taken with the pear walnut scone. Such a nice and substantial flavor combination, like the perfect autumn day (which it was). The sandwiches were nice, too: I can never get enough of the Lapsang Souchong-smoked chicken with apple slices. Superb. One of these days I'm going to try to make this at home. It can be done!

Times being as they are, going out for tea is a luxury, so it needs to be appreciated. I certainly do, and I never tire of spending time with my sisters. (Awwwwhh.)

(there was also a bit of good news when I came home that day, but I won't go into it here. Suffice it to say if I did have a blood pressure problem, which I don't, I won't. Huh? We're all mad here.)

As for milestones, well, I actually finished Bleak House, which is amazing. Two Dickens in one year? For me, this is significant. Put Middlemarch and various other hefty bits of literature on top of that, and it's been a seriously well-done reading year for me.