A Teasmade

Thank goodness for The Woman's Hour.  It's one of my favourite programs to listen to on my iPod while out walking with Deacon.  Jenni Murray and Jane Garvey are like having a sister, a friend, a teacher and sometimes even a Mum tell you what's what depending on the subject matter.  On the episode I listened to yesterday, Jenni mentioned a Teasmade.  I was completely ignorant!

Being one whose ears are constantly pricking up at the mention of anything social history-related I made straight for Google once I got in.  The coffeemaker is commonplace but I never realized there has been an appliance that automatically makes tea which has existed for decades.  Apparently, Victorian era versions involved an open flame with disastrous results at times.  You can't beat a cup of tea first thing in the morning but not at all costs!  So for the benefit of others who are also in the dark about this fascinating piece of equipment I'm posting a model from the 1950s and a newer version.  If you would like to read more about their history, simply click here.

Muses for Monday

The arrival of the latest issue of the Persephone Biannually is always cause for great joy.  Knowing that it's on its way is to check the mailbox with childlike enthusiasm.  The current issue is particularly wonderful with short stories by two of my favourites, Dorothy Whipple and Mollie Panter-Downes.  There is always a piece of artwork that catches my eye and whose heart doesn't leap for a favourite blogger when their quote appears? 

The magazine section of the bookstore has lost some its appeal for me.  I can't bear to read about mascara application as if it were a science, I'm cynical about ads for wrinkle cream featuring twenty year-olds and articles about the rapist living next door...no thanks.  And yet people pay lots of money every month for these glossy pages and my past experience is that quite a lot of it is simply flipped through.  Don't get me wrong, there are times when that's all you want, for instance at the dentist's office.  But I am one of those people who apparently can't carry around enough guilt and feel a bit as though I'm stealing from Persephone.  There is so much to sink your teeth into with the Biannually and it's free.  It must cost quite a bit to produce and mail out so I for one would not be opposed to a subscription rate to help fund it. 

And....listening to a podcast featuring James May this morning, he mentioned that he has been debating with his father for forty years about milk versus tea in the cup first.  James puts the milk in first and so do I.  And even though I feel righteous when buying loose leaf tea, I get lazy and end up plopping a bag into the pot...without warming it first.  Tsk, tsk.  What's your tea ritual?

London - Day One

A more beautiful day we couldn't have asked for as The Heiress and I made our way from the Russell Square tube station through the park bearing the same name.  Mental exhaustion from the immense amounts of planning and paperwork and the physical exhaustion of dragging luggage packed to bursting was instantly wiped away as we made our way through this leafy square.  A mother and her son were on their way to a talk at the British Museum so each grabbed a bulging bag and together we made our way.  I never fail to be amazed at the hospitality of most of the residents living in a city completely overrun with tourists.

It was our first time staying at the Morgan Hotel on Bloomsbury Street.  Family run and sparkly clean it suited our needs perfectly and the offer of a Full English breakfast each morning was taken advantage of each and every day.

While I never used the garden area behind the B&B it made for a peaceful view when I leaned on my elbows on the window sill of my large sash window.  The building behind is the British Museum and I loved the idea of sleeping so close to mummies!

On the day that The Heiress and I left Burlington, there was a steady stream of calls from well wishers that melted our hearts.  Our neighbour, Suzanne (Kevin the Sparrow's caregiver) knocked on our door with a card bearing best wishes for the future and a fifty pound note!  She wanted us to enjoy a lunch that we would remember and I knew exactly where we would visit.  Tea at the Court Restaurant at the British Museum was absolutely wonderful with a feast for the eyes as well as our appetite.  Dainty sandwiches of fig, cucumber with mint and pear grape each accompanied by a soft cheese were just the thing to make us feel human again after a long flight with little sleep.  Once we had decided to make our way elsewhere a hilarious game ensued of how to get the message across to our lovely French server that we were ready for the bill.  Subtleties didn't work, not even my purse placed on my lap but funnily enough just coming right out and asking did the trick.

Due to voltage issues The Heiress had to buy a straightener and blow dryer while in London.  Thanks, Rachel, for the tip to get a whopping headstart on a Boots points card!  We still had smiles on our faces while we visited the Hunterian museum and even during the first half of our "West End Ghost Walk" tour but we were flagging fast.  Weaving our way around the dark alleys near Piccadilly Circus with our group but falling slightly behind, we passed a warmly lit eatery with tables of laughing guests.  The Heiress and I looked at each other, watched our group walk further down the street and decided that a great burger and a rest was just what we needed.  Don't hesitate to stop at Byron Proper Hamburger if you're on Haymarket and try the blue cheese on your burger, it was delicious!

At the end of every day full of wonder and lovely people to talk to, I would make my way downstairs to the kitchen area of the B&B and make a pot of tea.  Joseph would keep watch until midnight and refused to let me get away with chucking a teabag into the pot, things had to be done properly.  "What is the point?" he would say.  So he came to know my routine and would start the kettle boiling so it was ready whenever I was.  Tucked upstairs with my tea, something sweet, my book and BBC or ITV on in the background was my idea of heaven and I got to do it all over again the next day.

An Anniversary Tea

Monday was our twenty-fifth wedding anniversary.  Back then our Friday evening nuptials in a candlelit chapel was a modest event with the radiators pinging away during the service as they warmed up.  But as we left the church, the bells began to ring and a gentle snowfall brightened up the dark sky.

Celebrating your anniversary during the festive season does present some problems.  The thought of a lovely dinner at a restaurant can lose some of its appeal when you are already one Quality Street chocolate away from your stretchy pants.  A Nutcracker Tea at The King Edward Hotel in Toronto proved to be the perfect solution.

The tearoom was lovely with its high ceilings and decorative plaster and I could easily pretend that we were thousands of miles away in London (sorry, I can't help it).  Two bubbly glasses of champagne promptly arrived courtesy of the hotel.  R was being a good sport about the whole tea event, much preferring a pint or cup of coffee.  He opted for The Ploughman's Tea with its more substantial offerings and raved about the tourtiere and Scotch egg.  My three-tiers of finger sandwiches and pastries were absolutely delicious...and surprisingly filling!  This could well become a tradition.

On the drive home I asked him 'if you could do it all over again...' meaning our marriage, not the tea.  We had a good laugh and thought that we would.

For Danielle

Danielle, over on A Work in Progress, loves books more than anyone I know so it wasn't surprising that she requested a photo of my book purchases (The Priory was a gift from Kristina). So there you are and I couldn't resist sandwiching them between the obligatory tea and mug purchase from Whittard. Enjoy! p.s. - Umm, on further thought Simon, Elaine and Lynne are all fantastically book-obsessed so Danielle has some company.