Finding a Scream

Mystery solved!

Aaaaaaaaaaggghhhhhh!

Bath

They opened a real thermal spa in Bath. Now I find out about it, one year later!

At least I had the Cadbury.

Why I'm Cheerful Today

It feels like autumn today - I know it's rainy, but I love that it's not going over the 70's. Layering is fun! (until you're stuck with the big winter coat for 3 months, then not so much.)

I bought some things from Lush - not a crazy shopping splurge, just facial wash and soap. The shopping bag is under my desk and it makes the office smell like Lush. Aromatherapy!

And I'm getting some much-needed appliances - soon my apartment is gonna look like a home again. The prospect of cold-weather tea parties after service is enough to make me cheerful.

Yes, a positive attitude does beat a complaining one.

Monday Last

I truly enjoyed attending the Jasper Fforde book signing at the Lincoln Square Barnes and Noble on Monday. As he's my favorite living writer, I was maybe a little too excited, but I managed not to giggle too much.
He gave a talk that was about an hour long, followed by Q & A (I couldn't come up with a good question, narrowing it down to one is never good for me). I have to say, he's as funny in front of an audience as he is in the books. He told jokes, and shared his publishing adventures. He's really enthusiastic about his work, and not at all reserved. A friend of mine used to gush about the British Humor (or should I say Humour) like it was the end-all in funny. Fforde's got that kind of wit, not overly dry, but that way with words and twisting them around that is utterly enjoyable (and makes me say, why can't I come up with things like that?)

The only thing I could think of saying to him when it was my turn was that I loved that he never got a degree (I said college, but in England it's university) and yet still comes up with this kind of writing, or something to that effect, and he said, "yeah, that's all rubbish anyway," I think he meant the degrees. His brothers both have doctorates, but who has posterity? I'm not knocking those with degrees, just saying it is possible to make it as a writer without being lettered. In fact, it looks like that's what actually helped him along - otherwise, he may have felt tied down by the need to have a specific genre. When he didn't need to write for other people, things turned out as it should have - the what if's and all that.

The guy who took our picture together did not press hard enough on the button of my digital camera, so it took three tries. I said to Fforde that maybe he's just not photogenic (though in greater likelihood that would be me) and he responded by saying maybe he's Hades (the diabolical character in the Thursday Next books). Man, he's like my literary rock star!

It was also nice to see other readers of his there. I expected a lot more of the sci-fi/fantasy type, and instead there was a vast variety of people. These books appeal to so many different types, and somehow gets translated into 12 languages (he's big in Germany), it's amazing.

By the way, The Fourth Bear - even better than The Big Over Easy!

Mundane

This article says that Rite Aid will be buying Eckerd - which is boring business stuff I know, but I like Eckerd - it's probably my favorite of the "drugstore" chains. Duane Reade isn't bad either, but Rite Aid has always been my least favorite - even when they were the only ones who had 5 X 7 photo albums in my neighborhood. CVS sometimes has Boots items, but not where I live. Of course, if Target came to Astoria, that would be it.

My Fforde post is coming soon.

Makeover!

I was reading this article about improvements in the works for Port Authority. Man, can they ever use it! Even with Empire Coffee and Tea and Cupcake Cafe being a walk away, it's always been a cruddy spot.

The article refers to Grand Central Terminal's makeover in the 1990's. I started work right before those renovations began, and it was definitely a nice change. Although rumors abound that hygiene is not up to par in the underground dining area, well, the same could probably be said for many swanky eateries all over the City. I don't watch those exposes on the evening news because I'd probably never eat out again. Anyway, Grand Central isn't a bad place to go in extreme weather - there's an underground passageway to the Terminal from the building I work in - I could avoid the weather all day with the exception of my short walk to the subway in the morning. Besides dining there are little shops (still hoping for a Lush someday) and a bookstore. I guess this is the equivalent to Montreal's underground city, though not as extensive.

Miss Braganza, Ah!

A friend of mine just brought back for me from Harney & Sons their Queen Catherine blend. It's actually one of my favorite black tea blends, very light, stands on its own. Egotistically I love the name of the blend, though of course it wasn't actually named after me. In fact, most people don't know who Queen Catherine was (though thankfully, it's not one of the three married to Henry VIII.)

Catherine of Braganza was in fact Portuguese royalty, and later married to Charles II of England. As a queen she may have been viewed as a failure for not providing any heirs, well, who can blame her? Her husband was far too busy with his mistresses, including famous actresses of the time. Charles II seemed to be kind to her in every other way, and she certainly outlived him by many years, despite being Catholic during a very anti-Catholic time in England. Though she was a quiet woman, she was also strong when she needed to be, and known for her kind and forgiving nature. Sounds like a tea lover to me!

Tea was not widely partaken of during this time in England - it was enjoyed more among the Dutch and Portuguese. Catherine was a tea drinker and helped make this practice popular in the English court, which gradually spread to the rest of the realm - and now people view tea as a "British" practice more so than any other country in Europe (though Ireland and Turkey may have more tea drinkers per capita).

The picture of me next to the oversize teapot was taken in the Bramah Tea and Coffee Museum. Catherine's mug is painted on there along with other tea related pictures. Mr. Bramah happened to be there that day, and besides offering me a job (should have taken it, dang it!), he also enjoyed relating to us the history of tea in England. He linked tea drinking to the overall improved health in England. After all, the last major outbreak of the Plague took place during Charles II's reign. The boiling water for tea (and coffee) probably had a lot to do with this too. Of course, this is all speculation somewhat.

More Stuart Dynasty trivia: Remember in history class when we learned that New York was named after the Duke of York? He was Charles' brother and heir to the throne, James II (though his reign was not too successful). And when New Yorkers paid tribute to their monarch by naming boroughs after them - Kings and Queens County, guess who was the queen? Yes, it was Catherine.

Though I'm not sure Queen Catherine and I would have gotten along (her dowry to Charles was Bombay and she had no issues with the slave trade), perhaps we could have ironed our differences with a nice cup of tea.

That's It!

I am fed up with stuff. I still love my books and most of my clothes....but after going through three decades' worth of accumulation the past few weeks, I've had enough. I need space. I need organization. I need to save money. I don't need to shop.

Not that I'll never, ever buy anything for fun ever again, that's too extreme, and I'm trying to avoid extremes. But I really want to lay off the shops, either online or on the street. With the exception of necessary home improvement items, my main personal goal right now is to abstain from acquiring. (Though I never frown on gifts ;))


Doesn't this cartoon look like me?

Packaging

I was reading about restrictions made for flights coming into the US from the UK, where the US gov't is not allowing lotions and other liquid items from airline passengers arriving from the UK through anymore. I think they exempted medicines and baby formula.

If it was the other way around, I figured at first I'd be a little annoyed. Leaving toiletries behind can make the first day of one's trip a little sketchy. Then I thought of the positives. You don't have to worry about all the little bottles bursting on your clothes while flying over the Atlantic. Most countries nowadays have basically the same products (nothing new under the sun). And, you get to shop guilt-free on your first day.

The last point probably only appeals to select females, but it is fun. I love the different packaging on items from other countries. The UK and Ireland has Boots, one of my favorite cosmetics shops, only sold in limited supply in some Target stores here. I could spend hours in Boots. It doesn't end there, though. Whenever I enter another country (not as often as I'd like), I love to see the grocery stores, the cereal aisles, that kind of thing. The US usually surpasses in variety, though in cat food I've seen many more types of Whiskas cat food in London. Besides this I've also purchased CD's in London because of the different covers, and sometimes there's a bonus or something. I haven't done that in a while, though. The same goes for books. And basically there are no new types of teas overseas (well, maybe in Asia but I haven't been there yet) but I still love buying the tins from Whittard.

It's all marketing really. But everything is packaging, isn't it? Even web design. My blog comes in green packaging. Man, has this post come about as a result of a thwarted terrorist plot? Last days...

The Warner Brothers Studio Store

I never thought I'd be nostalgic for this place. In the 1990's, theme restaurants and stores were popping up on every block in Manhattan, as well as in malls all over America (remember the Rainforest Cafe?) Though the Disney Store had its moments, the WB was my all-time favorite.

And why not? If the merchandise wasn't appealing to me that day, I always enjoyed the screens placed all over the store showing various cartoons, from the old-time Bugs Bunny clips to the Batman cartoon of the 90's (still probably the best superhero cartoon in recent years), or Pinky and the Brain...it was the best way to be a shopping couch potato, until I got my laptop.

Yes, most of the merch was overpriced. How much for a Powerpuff Girls T-shirt? But it was kind of expected that you weren't going in there for the best possible deal on a stapler. Besides, there was always stuff on sale for a broke college student. It was fun to look either way.

Once in a while there were tea-related items, but only in the past few years has it been easy to find tea things in stores. Still, it didn't matter who you were, something in there was gonna be fun for you.

The WB store ceased to exist around 2001, and I hadn't really thought about it until recently. Nowadays you can try to live the experience by looking on ebay while playing a cartoon, but like many moments of the past, it's just not the same (I'm still waiting for the Jello Pudding Pops to come back!)

Comfort Food

When grieving, we sometimes turn to certain types of food as comfort, whether they are healthy or not. I've done that somewhat, though with the power outages it hasn't been too convenient to do so. For the most part, my comfort food has been in the form of books. I've read voraciously in the past weeks. One might wonder how I can concentrate on such things as fiction when I have so much occupying my thoughts at the moment. It's been my way of coping, I think, to dive into things - in the past I've done that with certain kinds of music, but usually it's books. Even after 9/11, it took me till the end of the week, and I had my nose in a novel.

It's true we can't hide from our problems, but we can't spend all our waking hours on them either or we will go mad.

The new release from the convention (I don't say what it is in case someone hasn't gone to their convention yet) is good reading without being escapism. It's probably my most stabilizing book right now. Additionally I've been through a few novels this month, and let's not forget The Fourth Bear, which sadly I've almost finished. I'm tempted to read all of Jasper Fforde's books over again.

My other escape of choice is music, but it's rough going right now, being all over the place as I am. I should invest in an ipod I guess.

And time pushes on...

One Year of Love

I took Zenobia home one year ago today. She started out kind of bratty and retiring, a bit noisy, but has proven to be quite a nice cat.

In the past weeks since I lost my father, Zeno and I have been staying with my sister and her husband. The apartment I shared with Zeno and Dad is undergoing some renovations as I will staying there. Until then, Zeno has been incredibly patient staying in her one bedroom (so she won't be bombarded by the three cats and dogs in residence), rarely complaining. In fact, she's been more affectionate than ever. She's a comfort during this time, almost a new Duforth. I look forward to many more years of Zenobia.



 

Atonement

I read Ian McEwen's Atonement, and thought they really should make a movie about it. Looks like someone else thought the same thing.

Thanks

Thanks to everyone for supporting me and my family during this difficult time. I'm not quite up to writing here regularly yet, and I don't know when it will be appropriate, but until then...love all you guys.

 

In the heat I'm dreaming of boots

I don't know why this happens. It's absolutely sweltering outside, and I want these boots so bad...I'll never buy them because that's way to much for anything wearable outside of eyeglasses or a wedding dress.

Last July I went on a boot buying spree on ebay. Now I have no room for my collection and most of them I've worn only once or twice. I'm holding back this year.

I want to bake again too - food, not my skin.

Where has my autumn gone?

Tea in DC

The Park Hyatt in Georgetown is a gorgeous hotel. The bathroom in our room looked like a spa, and the staff are incredibly attentive. Of course, what excited me about staying there was its Tea Cellar. It's just a room near the lounge where they serve all kinds of fine tea. The servers pour tea gradually to get just the right flavor. With more time I'd have sampled a vast portion of their selection, but as it was I only tried three. The Sencha was fresh and grassy, just as I like it. I wish I could remember the name of the herbal blend I enjoyed. Anyway, it's fabulous. The English Breakfast blend left a little to be desired - it kind of tasted like tonic water. Nevertheless, I love when any place makes an effort to make a decent cup of tea.

The crowning glory of the hotel is the apple pie. It is absolute bliss. Cathy B. and I are craving it over a week later. Someday....I'll be back.
 

A Capital Weekend

A weekend probably isn't enough to really get to know the D.C. area, but it was definitely an excellent glimpse. Here's some Georgetown (couldn't resist throwing Lush in there), and a rather well known residence on Pennsylvania Avenue.

Arrival

I got my Fourth Bear by Jasper Fforde today. It comes out in the US in a few weeks, but I got an advance copy from the UK, was that impatient. A review will be forthcoming (let me read it first!)

I of course looked in the back pages to see when the next Nursery Crimes would be coming, but before I could notice that I saw the announcement of the next Thursday Next book, The War of the Words.....

WHAT??? I thought Fforde was finished with her! Then I saw that it won't be coming out till next July...how can I wait so long? Not that I want to rush Mr. Fforde - I'd rather have quality of course. But oh, the impatience!

I suppose my new book will have to hold me. What a brat I am. I get what I've been waiting for, but no, I want more!

At The Zoo...

I saw my first live panda!


 

Sheer Madness

It's a real good thing I'm spending a weekend away from home. I've had a bad week - well, the days have been okay, but oh! those summer nights! Sorry, had a Grease moment there.

The problem with the warm weather, especially when school is out, is the constant barrage of teenagers making noise outside my bedroom window. I was a teenager not too long ago, so I know it's fun to hang out till 3 am doing absolutely nothing worthwhile. But when you're an adult, even one with a slight Peter Pan complex, the sound of idiot on a Thursday night is enough to drive one mad!!! I've installed a bed cushion in my library for the most desperate of nights, but it's not really comfortable if I sleep there every night.

Last night was no different. As I started dozing off, the voices began. Then the cigarette smoke filtered in through the window and it was just too much. Then I realized I didn't have to wake up this morning, so I put on some music. When I was finally at the point of exhaustion, I stepped out to the kitchen for some water. Zenobia was scrambling around...next thing I know she had a mouse in her mouth! Suddenly I was airborne. I wouldn't get off the couch till my Dad got the mouse. Sadly, he never did, and Zenobia is the worst huntress ever! She let it get away, and then moaned in syllables till she got tired.

Somehow I did end up getting some sleep without the help of tranquilizers, but I have to say that was a pretty pathetic night. And Zenobia's lame.

Astoria Blah Blah Blah

Here are the good things about my hometown, Astoria, Queens: it's a quick commute to Midtown Manhattan, there are a variety of restaurants, um.............................. but it's not exactly the most gorgeous area. Most blocks are full of apartment buildings and houses plopped down without any thought to its eyesoreability. Some blocks are full of the same six family railroad flats, and that's the closest one gets to design in Astoria. My complaint has always been, and still is, the lack of bookstores. There was one just two blocks from my home for a year or so, but it was really a hole in the wall, no character, no staying power. I remember over a decade ago there was a lovely bookstore near the Ditmars Blvd station on the "N" line. When I discovered this place I thought I was dreaming. Sure, it wasn't that close too home: Astoria is big, and this was 2 train stops away. Still, I was glad it was there, and looked forward to visiting many times. Sadly, it's gone now. There is one more place that sells books on Broadway, but it is another poor excuse to me. There's not much going on. It's just too easy to take the subway downtown and wander around Strand if I'm in the mood.

Growing up, we had the library. It's still there, and not too bad, though I get the feeling when I'm there that I'm back in PS 70 with the vengeful Ms. Orol. Either that or I'm in a homeless shelter.

There are worse places to live, and like I said, you can eat really well in Astoria. But for crazy book people like me, in the words of the Bard: "I can't get no satisfaction..." (Well, Mick Jagger's almost as quotable as Shakespeare.)

 

Love is in the hair...

I saw this pic on someone else's blog and couldn't resist.  

Movie Magic

Bonnie and I were walking on 42nd Street between 5th and Madison on our lunch break today. The rain was tapering off, but we still needed an umbrella. I looked down for a moment, and then did a double take. Why was there snow on the ground? It was gathered around the curb like a February day a few days after a snowstorm. For a moment I thought maybe someone had dumped ice from a restaurant refrigerator - latent memories of defrosting the freezer in the 80's. The I noticed there was the same kind of snow across the street. I was briefly dumbfounded until I realized where we were. Midtown Manhattan. Every week a block here and there was used for filming a movie scene. Often I will pass by postings informing everyone that parking will be prohibited for so many hours because a studio is filming a future blockbuster, or maybe an episode of Law and Order.

Mystery solved. As a non-driver, it doesn't usually bother me that trailers will be taking over a whole busy block of Manhattan. When they were filming a scene for an upcoming Uma Thurman movie in Astoria, it was slightly annoying that I couldn't walk by a corner shop that normally I could pass without a second thought. I don't lose sleep over it, though.

I still think it's fun that by the miracle of modern movie making, we can have winter in June. I'd have taken a picture, but I'm sure I'll see that block full of snow in a few months anyway - if not, I'll catch it in my local theater.

What is it with cats and newspapers?

The Perfect Couple

To me, nothing is more cozy than curling up with a good book and a cup of tea. I love going to tea rooms with my friends, but I'm just as comfortable showing up alone, with a nice chunky book I'm in the middle of. Hotel teas....maybe I need a breathing companion for that, but otherwise, books are the perfect accompaniment to a nice cuppa and a fluffy scone.

Therefore, few things excite me more than a tea-themed book. Whether it's a memoir, travel guide, or tearoom mystery, the combination is akin to strawberry jam and clotted cream - splendiferous! Here's two tea books I've had the luxury of delving into recently:

Blood Orange Brewing, by Laura Childs
I first discovered the Tea Shop Mysteries in 2002, and was enthralled. The reader gets to live a few weeks wth Theodosia Browning, formerly of the marketing world and now entrepreneur - she owns and operates the (sadly fictional) Indigo Tea Shop, with young culinary genius and student Haley in the kitchen, and Drayton, a tea conoisseur who loves all things past. If this place was real I'd be on the first plane to Charleston for Afternoon Tea.

Lke most mystery series, the sleuths somehow find murder mysteries landing in their laps far too often than is realistic. Of course, this time the Indigo staff are catering a candlelit celebration of a donation of an old home to the Heritage Society. Suddenly, a prominent figure drops dead in front of everyone. Whodunnit? Theodosia is called upon by the grieving widow to find the murderer, despite the corpulent Detective Tidwell's warnings to back off.

It's not a difficult read, and sadly I always know who the culprit is as soon as their name is mentioned early on in the book. I'm not giving it away, lots of names are introduced in each new volume. Something about the introduction just clicks "guilty" in my head. Despite this, I still want to know why, and I love living with the characters for a short time, with all the tea anecdotes and mostly kindly person occupying the world around the tea shop. Then there's recipes after the story ends, and some tea party suggestions. I'd like to try the Cupcake Tea. Who wouldn't love that?


Tea In The City: New York, by Elizabeth Knight
I found out about this lovely new book at Sympathy for the Kettle, which of course is featured in here.

New York is usually thought of as a coffee city, but us tea folk know better. In this city, tea is like a treasure, search hard enough and it you'll find it in rewarding measures. This glossy book is full of places to take tea and shop for tea things, as well as gorgeous pictures by Bruce Richardson. It's divided by areas in the city, and even has some places in the boroughs. Yes, even our beloved Queens, though of course not to the extent of Manhattan. At least there's plenty of places to purchase some loose tea and pots to take home. I've been to so many of these places, but I enjoyed reading about them anyway. Plus, it gave me choices for other tearooms to visit in NY. Sure, there's plenty of places on the internet to give me ideas, and they've been helpful. Still, there is nothing like reading about it in a good smelling book.