Eccentric Tea Woman

  (photo taken by me) As they talked in the realms of philosophy and religion, she realized that perhaps, she was better off than she had initially thought. If it wasn't for her wandering into a tent and taking part in a ten minutes Japanese Tea Ceremony over 20 years ago, would she be sitting across from her companion in a completely different state? If she hadn't rebelled against her father and his dislike for all things Asian, would she have held onto the belief that brewing Tea was a waste of time? She shook her head no and then took a sip of her cooling Darjeeling, while her boyfriend got up to make pancakes for them. She relaxed in her high backed chair and sighed. It's amazing how one flap of a butterfly wing can change the world, she said to herself. Her boyfriend asked her if she wanted blueberries on top, to which she said yes. Perhaps that's my wings causing a tsunami in Kansas, she thought as she sighed again. 

  (random photo by me) I had to steal that line from The Cure (love the song, BTW). It's Friday, half of my mouth is numb from visiting the dentist, and I'm feeling quite good. The temperatures have warmed up somewhat here in Denver and I'm ready to get outside to enjoy it.  I've been thinking about studying more Tea Ceremonies and sharing what I've learned with people. Not for reasons of showing off, but in assisting people with alternative ways of relaxing and slowing down. The pandemic has taught me a great deal about slowing down, meditating more, and asking myself the question: what am I missing? Even when my anxiety wants me to MOVE MOVE MOVE, I slow down. And eat Fig Newtons. Watching a Tea Ceremony (Chado) is like watching time turn into dripping maple syrup. There is no "hurry up and finish". With a Tea Ceremony, you leave the demands of the world at the door and enter into another form of Time. You and others come together to spend some time embr

  (random photo taken by me) For a long time in my life, I was a coffee addict. Give me the cuppa and no one gets hurt! I worked in several cafes in bookstores and every time, I loved brewing and smelling the coffee and espresso. I never got tired of it. In fact, I remember when I made a 14 shot drink for a guy I was dating. He's still alive. When I traded the bookstore and cafe world for the corporate cubicle world, my coffee intake increased due to the exposure of fancy creamers. I loved my coffee with Hazelnut creamer, or French Vanilla, or Italian Sweet Cream . . .  One day, I read an article about the benefits of drinking green tea. At the time, I thought that tea would taste like hay. Yet, I decided to try green tea anyway. I remembered that it was Celestial Seasonings Green Tea with Raspberry. When I drank it, my mind exploded and quieted down at the same time. I consumed more and more tea and then made the decision to do away with coffee all together. One caffeinated co-wor

It's 4:19 PM and I'm listening to Billie Holliday while typing away on my laptop. Yes, I'm still in Colorado. Yes, I'm still self employed (and somewhat broke!). Yes, I'm drinking Tea ( Lipton's Green Tea with Passionfruit, Jasmine, and Orange ). Yes, it's a new year. Yes, it's snowing outside. Again.  Rather than write some Tea review, I wanted to instead write a little essay. Hope you don't mind. Ever since I left New Orleans for Colorado and the mountains, I've been dancing from day to day, all the while wondering just what in the hell was about to happen next. In being self-employed, it's been both a freeing and scary experience, sometimes feeling both emotions in the same day or even hour. There have been days when I wanted to quit and return to the corporate world. Find a nice cubicle and hide from my creative side. Never look at tea or writing or photography again. And every time I played with that idea, something would bop me on the h