Coming Soon

Zenobia has been freshly shorn, pictures to follow in a few days.

I've been really lazy about this blog, but I'll get back in the groove soon. Till then, read a book already! Lay off the online shopping - it's gorgeous out there!

Victorious

I'd usually put this on my Persona Non Gata, but I think this merits mention right here. Morning Coffee and Afternoon Tea has alerted me to the return of my all-time favorite (secular) magazine, Victoria! Can't wait till fall! Till then I'll read the back issues and giggle like an geek in anticipation.

A Note on Yogurt

I have to say I'm not a big fan of yogurt. I certainly don't loathe it, and I eat it quite often, but I mean who wants yogurt when there's ice cream? But it's healthy, and as long as it's not lumpy I'll eat it.

So why devote a whole post to yogurt? Only because in my recent jaunt to Trader Joe's I picked up a rather unusual flavor : Matcha Green Tea. Curious. That's all I can say about it. It's good, but all I could think of was how much I love Green Tea Ice Cream. Still, I'd eat it again. It does combine a natural tasting Matcha with a suggested food item to my diet.

Phone Home

I've been going through some old VHS tapes. I've been able to get rid of some, but I usually have to watch or at least fast forward over the whole tape before I can determine whether it's purge worthy. It's kind of funny to see what TV shows I was really into in the past (about 7 - 9 years ago, to be exact), though sometimes it's embarrassing. I mean, why did I tape every awards show in the year 1999? Toss!

Watching old commercials is fascinating to me. Often I see products advertised that are irrelevant nowadays. One type of ad that seemed to flood the late nineties was for collect call companies. From 1800-Collect to Dial 10-10-220, every other commercial was about calling home. In fact, celebrities (especially SNL alumni) were featured in almost every ad. I know people must still make collect phone calls from time to time, but you really don't see this being advertised anymore. I wondered why for a moment, then I remembered the year I got my first cell phone: 2000. Though I'm usually technologically behind the masses, I do recall cell phones only being owned by a few friends of mine in the nineties. In fact, it was still considered rude to answer your phone when someone called you in a restaurant - it made you look kind of superior I guess. Now, of course, it's nearly taboo to not be reachable 24/7.

Collect call companies may not be completely obsolete, but they are certainly out of our collective consciousness. I don't miss the annoying ads. Besides, now we have Head-On, the product which soothes migraines while their commercials cause them. Ah, welcome to the future!

Zenobia Pic

She needs her annual haircut real bad.

Not My Cup of Tea

One morning I was in the mood for iced tea, and settled instead on a mate "tea" from Bombilla Gourd. It set me back $2.60, which to me is a lot for bottled iced tea (even Teany charged $2.50), but I was feeling experimental.

Now, I've had yerba mate before, and it wasn't really appealing to me. I figured I'd try again, and thought that with its peach flavoring and sweetener, it couldn't be that bad.

It wasn't that bad, I mean it wasn't horrible. It just wasn't good in my opinion. I tried to like it, but it left me with a bitter aftertaste, and the feeling that I was drinking dirt. I know I like pu-erh tea, which definitely tastes like soil, but that tea stands on its own and mate doesn't stand up to my taste buds.

This doesn't mean that nobody will like it. It just means I tried to be fair and my verdict was meh.

A positive note: it's stimulating in a healthy way. It's got caffeine and theobromine, the stimulant in dark chocolate. Well, that's what the label says anyway.

Rock Those Tees

I'll bet you never expected me to feature a picture of Lindsay Lohan here, but today is a special occasion. Well, it is for me anyway. I'm a little strange in that I have an ability to remember the exact date something happened, maybe not for everything, but for quite a lot. The 11th of April was the day I first became a stark-raving Queen fanatic. Though I've toned my fanaticism quite a lot in recent years (and filled it with my love for tea, cats and history), 15 years later it's still a royal passion of mine.

The above picture was actually taken months ago, but I just ran across this getup today while thumbing through the UK InStyle. I was not the happiest magazine browser at that moment. I have no idea what Ms. Lohan feels for the band, and I must admit my Queen thing was born on a day spent in Long Island, but it still bothered me. I just don't like associating Freddie and Lindsay together. I do like the tee, though I'm not a t-shirt wearer. Unless, of course, it's a "tea" shirt, ha ha ha.

Like I said, I don't know anything about LL, and I'll probably keep it that way. But, please, any of you slaves to fashion, Please don't wear rock tees unless you love the band. My Beatles tee-wearing Floridian friend is at least a Beatles fan.

If the rest of you are just wearing a tee for the whole bandwagon thing, beware. I may stop you on the street and ask you to sing a few lines from the group's song.

Anyway the wind blows......

Funny Tea Room Name #7

I've never been to Toronto, but if I ever get a chance to visit, I'm gonna check out Tealish, which derives from an already hilarious expression. Did you ever hear someone describe their food as delish? Well, it cracks me up, anyway.

Go back to whatever you were doing.

Mr. Strawberry, in case you forgot

Mini-trip to Scotland

I had a little Highland fling this week...well, not quite. It's Tartan Week in Grand Central Terminal. Every April in Vanderbilt Hall there are sections of Scottish Specialities, from kilts to links to bagpipe music. It's all there, complete with musical performances and chances to win special trips to Scotland (like I'll ever win...)

My favorite section this time around is the food. I know, you're thinking, Scottish food - blecch! While I agree I wouldn't live on a diet of haggis for sure, there are certain things, mainly baked goods, that are wonderful. Rumor has it scones were invented in Scotland, and for a certainly there's always shortbread. Big surprise - as long at the teatime food is good, I'm all for it.

Speaking of tea, I bought a heather flavored black tea, and can't wait to try it. I've already tried the Summer Fruits Conserves (preserves) from Gillies. Just perfect.

There's a lot more to see in The Scottish Village, and there's something about the kilt-clad men that I find endearing. There are other Scotland related events around the city this week, but I probably won't be able to see it all. Still, it did get me in the mood to go back to Scotland. It's been 13 years already. I don't want another decade to go by before I return.

The Prolific Plaidy

I don't like to call anyone my mentor (for some reason I equate that word with Svengali) but when it comes to European history, Jean Plaidy comes close. She is possibly the author I've read the most of, although I haven't quite finished every novel she wrote.

Though I've always been a Ravenous Reader, I didn't really get into historical novels until 2000, when I picked up The Captive of Kensington Palace, a Jean Plaidy book about the pre-queen life of Victoria. It's probably not her best work, but it was enough to fire up my curiosity about English history, so I took out another Plaidy book, The Revolt of the Eaglets. This one covered the early Plantagenet period and introduced me to Eleanor of Acquitaine. I was officially hooked.
After that it was one Plaidy after another. She wrote about every king and queen of England from the Norman conquest to Queen Victoria. Not only that, but she did it from the point of view of every important character of the time, so you can see history from different angles. Of course, some of it must have been conjecture on the part of the writer, because one cannot possibly know what everyone was thinking at the time. Still, it was amazing to sympathize with people that one would previously have considered to be pure evil. I think the only person I couldn't feel bad for no matter what was Henry VIII. He's just not likable, I'm sorry.

In over six years, I've completed 39 of her novels - and there are many more to go. They are not difficult reading, but at the same time it's not simplified. I am amazed to see the amount of historical knowledge Jean Plaidy (her pseudonym) had and was able to organize into stories. I mean, I've heard of experts of the Regency period or the Tudor era, but hundreds of years is a lot to be an expert on. Though I don't think I'll ever come that close (and perhaps I don't want to,) I must say as a result of reading these books, I wanted to know more. This led to me reading more about history than I ever thought possible - this coming from the girl who failed her American History Regents exam. Plus I was curious enough to read historical novels from other writers over the years.

Though Jean Plaidy (whose real name was Eleanor Hibbert) died in 1993, I can't say she left me wanting more. She wrote more books than any other writer I've ever been into. Even if I did end up reading all her books - and I probably won't since under the name Victoria Holt she wrote stuff I just can't get into - I'm glad I picked up Plaidy. It's been quite a ride.

Bubble Buddies

I was pleased to find out Tavalon has bubble tea. I was even more eager cash in my coupon for free bubble tea this Monday. I had the Green Tea Latte - though I'd never add milk to hot green tea, put it over ice and tapioca pearls and it's refreshing. It was a little bit like green tea ice cream. Bonnie tried the Taro Tornado. She agreed with the staff that it tasted like good cereal milk (think after Lucky Charms.) I'll be sure to return to Tavalon - though it's not a large place, they are knowledgeable about tea and that's the main thing. (By the way, the first picture is from their website.)

And now, a scene from Sense and Sensibility

I found this picture on a coffee/tea blog. It's taking tea Pre-House.

Next!

Though I'm not looking forward to summer, I have at least one event that will be exciting: the "Next" Jasper Fforde book. It's a Thursday Next this time around, and it's been three years.

Between that and Spiderman 3, there are some diversions in life that will keep me from getting too depressed about not going away any time soon.

My Tea Things #3

This is a strawberry teapot. I don't think I needed to say that.

I'm not really a strawberry eater - I've only had a few good ones in my life and the "straw" parts get on my nerves. They don't gross me out like tomatoes, though. I think they are one of the best looking fruits, actually.

Whenever I look at this teapot, though, I am reminded of a plush strawberry doll Marie and I came across in a home in Plumstead (east of London.) It was so vacant looking it brought out the ridiculous in us. So, armed with my new (at the time) camcorder and Marie's cartoon voice, we did a mock children's show that I'll probably never show to anyone. Still, good times. In case you were wondering, his name is "Mr. Strawberry." He didn't smell like Strawberry Shortcake.

The teapot is kind of small, so it's mostly used for decoration. I've had it forever, don't really remember where I got it. That's kind of unusual for me.

Should I like this or be insulted?

I stumbled across teabirds today. It's a blog that features cute girls drinking tea. It's kind of a humorous idea, and I have no problem with someone appreciating attractive tea lovers. My only issue is that the girls tend to look the same - mostly white, extremely thin (do they stick a finger in their throat after sampling the scones? I know that's mean, but I'm catty, especially when it comes to tea.) The biggest problem is the lack of comment moderation. Someone left a really nasty comment in a past post, and no one thought to remove it. Whoever submits pictures to this site needs to expect to be objectified.

I think I'll keep my own tea drinking pics right here. It would be bad enough to have someone leave a nasty comment about me - it would be even worse to have my picture rejected. Oh the horror!

What will they think of next?

(Similar sentiments exist for Babes with Books.)

You just don't see this in Astoria

Since I literally cannot travel anytime soon (unless one of you lovely people out there would like to finance a trip for me :}), I have to enjoy whatever memorabilia or photos I have from trips past.

I've never been inside the Tower of London, though I've been right next to it, but someday I guess I should take a tour. Amazing how this place went from being a royal residence to a daunting prison. At least one Catherine I know (Howard, the fifth wife of Henry III) was beheaded here. Her cousin Elizabeth survived her stay at the Tower, and lived long enough to send others here to their ultimate demise (or sometimes just a frightening stay.)

That's just a fraction of the historical events that transpired at the Tower, I don't even want to get into the torturing. But I have to say, stare at this place from the bridge and you'll be impressed. If you're from the U.S., this is even more true, as we just don't have buildings dating back to the eleventh century.

Funny Tea Room Name # 6

Let me preface this by saying that as I've never been to the tearooms in this series, I'm not knocking the tearoom itself - I just love the endless possibilities these entrepreneurs can choose from by simply using the word "tea" in their name. Or should I say possibiliteas? Sorry, couldn't help it.

Teance - Sounds kind of mystical - is someone trying to channel Lu Yu? Or do they mean to rhyme the title with Beyonce? Either way, one of these years I must get out to California, as they seem to have a plethora of tea rooms.

Trippin' on Treacle

I can't believe I let years go by before having Tea and Sympathy's treacle pudding. This weekend I was reminded of how wonderful life could be, just sitting with a friend in a cozy little British tearoom on a kind of cold February evening. The treacle pudding is just a step away from being too sweet, and just a moment away from perfection. The custard poured on top does not take away from the flavor, it simply enhances it. I do recommend that if you have tea with it (I had chamomile lavender herb tea as it was too late for caffeine), you don't need to add sugar - the treacle provides enough sweetener.

There's nothing more to add. Try it sometime, you'll see what I mean.

Recycling the Past

What is it with these childhood favorites being remodeled lately?

First Strawberry Shortcake started wearing jeans. Now Holly Hobbie has been reincarnated. Apparently the new Holly is descended from the original, and she has her own TV show. Good for her.

I don't completely disapprove. These latest versions aren't bad role models for little girls - and I don't think Holly or her friends will be shaving their hair off anytime soon. I would never encourage boycotting the products just because I'm nostalgic. I say to parents, Sure, go for it!

I was looking for the classic Holly Hobbie stuff with Bonnie this week, and it's kind of needle in haystack. Though it's not completely extinct, old Holly does play hard to get. Maybe it will become like Classic Pooh, where both version live side by side in harmony.

If only all problems in life were this stressful.

Candy From a Baby?

So I went to get my taxes done, accompanied by Pam. The wait was slightly long, though not impossibly. We were just a little hungry and suddenly the little candy machine (like the ones in grocery stores but smaller) was looking really good. I had my eye on the Mike and Ike's, so I inserted a quarter and turned the knob. Out of nowhere this little girl came out with her mom, and the girl made a beeline for my candy, sticking her hand in the dispenser and helping herself. I was saying, "no, no" to her, because I was too surprised to say anything else. Then her mother grabbed her and smacked her, yelling all the time. The girl starts shrieking at the highest decibels, of course, and Pam and I just stared in disbelief. Then the happy family leaves...um, without even saying sorry to me or offering a quarter in compensation.

We couldn't help but laugh afterwards, and the rest of the waiting room joined in because that's what happens when the ridiculous happens. It made me think, though. How will the child learn how to behave when all she knows is smacking and screaming? Pretty sad. I may have been out 25 cents, but at least I got a laugh out of it while the kid learned absolutely nothing.

(I still love Mike & Ike's. My teeth don't, though.)

Taking a Stand

I went to a new tea place in the East Village, called Gramstand. I didn't take any pictures, sorry, basically it was minimalist and clean looking. By the storefront window there are two green armchairs that looked cozy, but they were occupied by two girls chattering. I heard far too many f-words to enjoy my proximity to them.

There were also some lounge-type couches in the back, but as I was alone it didn't feel comfortable. So I settled on a table towards the center.

The service was friendly, order at the counter, and the tea I had, GramStandard, was good - much like Mango Indica. It was the spacing that got on my nerves.

I can't really blame the store owners. The place is large enough, and airy. Sadly, some patrons don't quite grasp the meaning of personal space - on a Sunday afternoon! - and before long I was surrounded by three laptop users. Literally surrounded. I know I have an almost superhuman sense of smell, but I tell you it's not a good situation when you can smell the breath of someone on their laptop, because that's how close he was. Tea and gagging are not a good combination.

I guess my verdict is that it's a decent place for those living roundabouts 14th Street and Avenue A, and I wish my own neighborhood could come up with a similar concept. But for me, it was too far of a walk from my other destination, Trader Joe's, for it to be worth it. I know I live and work in a crowded city, and I'm a laptop person myself, but people need to respect other people's space, just a little bit. And maybe there is something the Gramstand owners can do - after all some of my favorite tea places (Teany, Tea and Sympathy, Sympathy for the Kettle) are not large at all, and yet I don't get the feeling that I'm about to be crushed by a hovering laptop.

I do give points for a decent bathroom.

My Tea Things #2

Combining two things I feel for: Sherlock Holmes and tea. Anyone who has shopped in the touristy areas of London will recognize this type of teapot: some come with pictures of English royalty, others have well known sites like castles and still others show scenes from famous British literature.

I've already gushed about Sherlock Holmes, and I'm not ready for a repeat performance. I've actually had a bit of trouble watching my beloved Jeremy Brett version, as this was something I shared with my Dad in the last few months of his life...I just can't bring myself to watch those shows anymore. Still, I love this teapot and its shape is just perfect - functional and scenic.

I will try to feature something for #3 that won't remind me of something sad.

The Ultimate Love/Hate Relationship

My feelings on Grand Central Terminal all depend on the time of day I'm there.

Midday it's usually a decent place to stroll around. Most people are in lunch mode, and are sauntering about, looking at the shops or heading for the dining level. This is a nice time to head for Posman Books, a small bookshop but okay for browsing. I remember before the more recent renovation there was a Barnes and Noble, but I'm kind of glad it's not in Grand Central as it would be an overload I think. There's a L'Occitaine En Provence, which I sometimes visit during the sales. There are two Starbucks and an Oren's Daily Roast, not to mention the Grand Central Market, with is frenzied fancy food. I go there for my occasional Devon Cream fix. Did I mention there's a Junior's? You can't complain about the shops. This time of year one is thankful to be near a place that is shielded from the outdoors (it's beyond cold this week).

Here is the hate portion of the relationship: rush hour. Tons of commuters mingle with hordes of tourists in a mad dash for their destinations. Some days I get upset that I can't stand still for a moment without getting trampled on, and on other occasions I am frustrated at the folks who just don't move fast enough. There are passageways everywhere, and constant threat of collision.

In these ways I guess Grand Central Terminal/Station truly represents New York.

By the way, I took these pictures during a mid morning break. As I snapped one pic the flash went off and some guy passing in range kept repeating "Did you get me? Did you get me?" I pretended not to hear him.

Not Petit on Taste

Le Petit Prince is on Broadway in Astoria, on the same block as Tierras Colombianas and steps away from many notable Greek restaurants. It's one of the best things to happen to Astoria in recent years. The breakfast pastries are out of this world, and their tea! They use Mighty Leaf as their supplier, and may I say it is mighty fine (the teabags are of good quality, therefore forgivable.) Here I've had one of the best Darjeeling teas in my life.

The tarts are sublime, actually everything I've tasted so far has been just about perfect. Even the Fraisier was enjoyable, and I don't normally eat strawberries. C'est Magnifique!

My sweet tooth is fully satisfied.