Tea Time

My family are big coffee drinkers.  When I was growing up, I remember Dad taking out the big air tight can of coffee in the morning, opening the lid and letting us kids smell the coffee grounds.  I still love that smell - I love the smell of coffee.. I just hate the taste of it.  Isn't that odd?  To love the smell but dislike the taste?

Once in a while at large family dinners or when Mom had guests over, tea would be served.  I never remember her using a teapot - only a microwave and the pedestal tea cups that went with her Corelle dishes.  For some reason seeing them drink tea meant the occasion was something special - and in our house - having any company over was special (especially since Mom would go nuts cleaning in anticipation of a visit).

I tried tea when I was a kid but never cared for that either.  It was less bitter than coffee, so I think after giving it a try over and over again I became accustomed to it. When I was in college, I always sat at my desk or on campus with a cup of hot tea at my finger tips as I poured over the course work.  The subtle flavors were always soothing and had a calming and refining feel.

Since college, I found myself drinking gallons of tea a day.  Okay.. maybe not GALLONS, but a lot!  I have an electric kettle that always seems to be on - and I'm the only one who drinks the tea.  I imagine I average about 12 cups (8 oz cups) a day - perhaps more on my day off from work.

Just before Christmas I went with my mother to a local antique shop.  One thing my mother has come to appreciate about having a gay son is that she has someone to go antiquing with!  Anywho... there is a little "restaurant" next to the shop we go to called "The White Linen Tea Room".  They serve high tea there, run a catering business and make the best scones I've ever had.  Usually I never pay attention to the place as I don't know many people who would enjoy high tea - and I never saw the pull of loose tea.  Why get loose tea when I can get the tea bag stuff at the grocery store for a few bucks less?

We ventured in to pick up a present for a friend of ours (they sell some interesting little gifts in addition to tea) - and of course to have a free scone they always give to customers.  I decided to pick up a box of loose tea and give it a chance.

The sales lady was very friendly and started telling me all about how to make tea properly.  I kept thinking, "umm.. you boil the water, drop the tea bag in (or infuser in this case) and PRESTO - tea!".  I never knew that keeping the tea bag or tea infuser in the water too long will spoil the taste of the tea.  Some teas are only meant to steep for three minutes, some six minutes.  After that, they can become bitter and the taste change drastically.

Who would have thunk it?  All this time I was making tea the wrong way?

So I went home, followed the directions and brewed my new loose tea in my teapot (I like the formality that can go with the tea culture so I always used a teapot and cups and saucers).  I let the tea steep for the five minutes it called for.  MMMmm!  So good!  If you're a fan of tea, I highly recommend treating yourself to some loose tea!  The flavors are better than anything I've had from a box off the shelf from Tops.

Tonight for the first time, I even noticed there are directions for making the tea properly on the box of a brand I do buy from the stores (I can't afford to be a total tea snob).  It's only supposed to steep for five minutes versus just leaving the tea bags in the pot like I always have.  So.. I tried it tonight (yes, I'm drinking some now).  Again - what a difference!  It does taste so much better!

I'd share my findings with my Mom, but she now only serves coffee to company.  Shame.

What's in a number?

Before telephones became the norm in all households, and prior to the need for area codes, phone numbers used exchanges so the operator knew where to connect the call.  For example, our phone number starts with 695.  Up the the 60's, our extension may have been OXford 5 --- the OX corresponding to 69 and the term OXford telling the operator where to connect the call (should you need the operator's assistance).

Why this entry about telephone numbers?  It's because of a telephone number that my Grandparents met... and fast forward decades later... I came into existence.

My mother's parents both lived in small towns in Pennsylvania around the Wilkes Barre area.  Most families worked in the coal mines which didn't give much money for luxuries.. such as having a telephone line.  My Grandmother's family was one of the few in her neighborhood to have a telephone since it was needed to conduct business in her parent's "Mom and Pop" store which they operated in the front of their home.

My grandmother remembered her neighbors giving out the store's telephone number (my grandmother's home phone number) to friends.  The call would come to my grandma's house.. and she would have to hunt down the party for whom the call was intended so they could come use the phone.  She always hated that.

Anyway.....

One day, Grams and her friend Dorothy were out and about and a man started hitting on Dorothy.  My Grandmother could tell Dorothy wasn't interested... but couldn't resist antagonizing this poor fellow further.  The man asked Dorothy if she had a phone so he could give her a call some time... before Dorothy could tell the guy off, Grams yelled out: "VAlley 2-2047!".  She told Dorothy she'd be happy to bring her to the phone should the guy call her.  Dorothy was not amused... Grams was hysterical with laughter. 

The romance between Dorothy and this fellow never materialized, but this man thought Grandma was so kind to help him out that he told his buddy Vince about her.  Soon, Grandma got a call from this Vince asking her out on a date.

Yes.. it was my Grandfather.  A star football player for his High School, good looking, though rather shy and reserved.. he took my Grandmother out on a blind date.  She used to tell me she never understood what he would see in her... he was so handsome and could have any girl he wanted.

After the date though, Grams didn't hear from him again... not for an entire year.  Talk about playing hard to get!  On New Year's Eve Gramps was sitting around and said to himself "I wonder what Helen is up to" and gave her a call.

Not one to sit around waiting for the phone to ring... Grams was out having a good time with her friends.  My grandfather called and woke up my Great-grandmother who spoke little to no English.  He would have to try again.

As you may have guessed he got a hold of her, they started dating regularly... and the rest was history.  All thanks to a simple telephone number.. and my grandma being a smart ass.  Because of this story I have a great affinity for that number VA2-2047.  Without it, my grandparents might not have met.. and I might never have been born.

In light of the story though, perhaps I should give the guys a meet a year to call me back before giving up on them???  Nah... I'll find a football player of my own.

In Memoriam

Yesterday, at 9am, my Aunt Karen passed away. She entered a coma like state the day before. We received a phone call around 6am that she had taken a turn for the worse. When my parents and I arrived, she was struggling with her breathing, sounding much like a coffee maker or percolator.

My mother was at her side the entire time. My Aunt had made my mother promise that she (my mother) would tell her when it was time to go. After getting permission, the breathing became less strained. As her pulse began to grow fainter, we prayed around her, and I traced the sign of the cross on her forehead. She took three gasps of air, squeezed my mother's hand tightly, and died.

According to the nursing staff, by the smooth and calm look on her face, she was not in any pain. Thankfully, she had a rather peaceful end to a horrible disease. She was 52 years old.

Hospice is a wonderful organization, and the staff there have been wonderful to my Aunt and family. They have a policy of having their patients leave through the front door, just as they entered, not sneaking them out the back, but letting them leave with dignity. The staff who knew my Aunt washed her and prepared her to be transferred to the mortuary. When the undertaker arrived (old schoolmates of my Aunt and Mother), my Mom, Dad, God Mother, and childhood friend of my Aunt's escorted the body outside, along with the nursing staff in procession. My mother thought it suiting that she was being taken back to Riverside-Buffalo (the section of Buffalo they grew up in) in an old Caprice Station Wagon... just like the type my grandfather used to drive.

It's been hard at times for us, as we lost a remarkable woman, full of kindness and generosity, but we also feel a great sense of relief. Her long and painful journey is at an end. Aunt Karen died on my Grandmother's (her mother) birthday. I'm sure the party she arrived to in Heaven was like nothing we ever experienced here on Earth.

Eternal Rest grant unto her O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon her. May she and all the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, Rest in Peace. Amen

My new nephew!

I'd like to introduce you all to my new (and first!!) nephew, Collin James. He was born January 23, 2009 at 11:12am. I am a very proud Uncle, and enjoyed holding him for the first time. He's a little angel, and as cute as can be!! I'm looking forward to being his "fairy God-Father" and being a good friend and Uncle to him as he grows up!