Wednesday, November 24, 2010

tea for two.

As the days grow colder, I fantasize (constantly) about living in a warmer climate. Wouldn't it be nice to never have to scrape ice from your windshield again? Shoveling, a distant, unpleasant memory never to be spoken of (except when weird Uncle Fredrick gets tipsy and talks about the "C" word at holiday dinners). By the "C" word, I of course mean "Canada" (my home and native land).  I have another meaning for the "C" word, but it is hardly appropriate for a blog post about tea.

Canadians view braving the winter as a badge of honour.  And boy do we ever like to talk about the weather ("Remember that storm back in 2009? That sure was somethin'").  While the majority of us do not live in igloos or use sled dogs to commute to work, we do know a thing or two about staying warm.  It's really very simple: tea.  There's earl grey, orange pekoe, english breakfast, irish breakfast for your basic "house" blends.  My favourites are herbal teas - green, mint, and camomile teas, I just can't get enough.  Got a tummy bug? Ginger tea. Sour throat? Lemon tea.  Not feeling so good overall? You clearly need MORE TEA. 

Since I spend the majority of my day at the office, I decided to bring my tea pot and (matching) cups to work.  My team (all two of us) have morning tea and afternoon tea.  It's all very civilized.  Over the coming months we plan to sample assorted flavours, and perhaps even venture into some taste tests of loose leaf versus bagged tea comparisons.  I think we all know how that's going to turn out.

My hope, is that by spreading the gospel about tea, more people will partake.  That we will unite in our love of tea and take back the phrase "tea party" making it respectable once more.  Sheesh. The nerve of some people. 

4 comments:

  1. Anonymous12:45 p.m.

    Sometimes a cup of tea taken back to my room for my last 2 classes of the day is what gets me to the dismissal bell...I agree with you about the powers of tea!

    Wow, LOVE the idea of a teapot at work though! It does taste better (at home) with a teapot, so you have inspired me to think about getting one for the staff room :o)
    A. xo

    ReplyDelete
  2. Caroline1:05 p.m.

    LOVE LOVE LOVE tea, whether by the cup or the pot! When (if) you come to Kingston, let me know and I'll introduce you to David's Teas, a new shop on Princess St. downtown, that sells about a hundred and fifty different tea blends either by the pound or by the cup, freshly made. Awesome and lovely, among all the coffee shops! Fae and I took some into the theatre with us last night when we went to the new Harry Potter movie, and needed all its calming properties for that.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Nicole M9:00 p.m.

    Having an allergy to coffee, I'm a long time tea drinker. And since herbal tea is as good as water for your system, I stick with herbal over black or green teas. You can get so many flavours... from chocolate hazelnut to apple spice to vanilla rum... there's nothing better to warm you up! (And the best tea shop is the one in the St Lawrence Market!)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Being south asian - tea is well you know its a way of life for us. I love tea.

    ReplyDelete