A Nice Cuppa’ Tea

It’s that time of the year again. Outside it may be cold, windy, raining, snowing or all of the above. But inside, I am cuddled up with a nice warm cuppa’ tea.

My relationship with tea began approximately 3 years ago. Upon moving to the East Coast I learned a lot of things; it rains constantly, it gets cold in October, the sun may not show its face for days at a time, it snows until April, the game of football…the list goes on. Many of the people around me drank coffee and tea consistently during the cold winter months, but I’m not a coffee-drinker and I associated tea with old British women wearing hats and eating scones.

Along with many other things, I was willing to give this warm beverage a chance. Anything that can take my mind off the fact that it is approximately 10 degrees outside will do, thanks.

My mom bought me an electronic tea kettle (these things are magic!) and my first box of peppermint flavored tea. Mmmmmm. It took me a while to adjust to the steeping process. After a few initial tongue burns due to impatience and trial & error, I got it down. Let the tea bag do its thing for about 5 minutes, be patient while the water cools down a little bit and….viola! You have, in your hands, a beverage with the power to warm and soothe. Perfect!

It took me a while to get used to drinking plain “black” tea, since I started with the strong peppermint flavor. I soon learned that I also enjoy orange and peach flavored teas, Green tea, black tea, tea with sugar, tea without sugar, tea with lemon, Chai tea, all kinds of tea! Except Earl Grey. I don’t what it is, but we don’t agree with each other.

I also love trying all the seasonal flavors that come out around Christmas. Not only do they taste like the holidays, but they smell so good!

Now that the cold has come (out of nowhere, by the way), our tea supply is all stocked up and the teapot is ready to go!

The Seasons, TMNT & Charlie Brown

So far, these are the random costume ideas that my roommates & I have come up with for this year’s Halloween extravaganza.

For those of you who don’t know, TMNT=Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
There’s four of them…four of us…you do the math…I think it’s the best idea yet.

Last year we dressed up as Crayola Crayons…that’s a hard act to follow! We represented the colors “fire engine red”, “razzmatazz”, and “purple people eater”. Using birthday hats covered in the corresponding colored-paper, we were the sharpest crowns in the box. Pretty impressive, I must say. Throughout the night we stood out among the crowds of scandalously dressed girls (”I’m a mouse….duh!”), zombies, ghosts, Frankensteins, etc.

With the night of the 31st less than two weeks away, it’s crunch time. Our first brainstorm for costumes resulted in the possibilities of the following:
-Charlie Brown characters

I get to be Peppermint Patty because of the freckles.

-The Seasons

I’m obviously going with Summer if this is the case.

-A pumpkin patch

This being the simplest of our ideas, which is essentially the appeal.

-TMNT

I have to admit, I am ALL for this one. And I’m totally being Donatello (purple, duh!)

 

 

That’s the best we’ve come up with so far. At this point, we are still open to suggestions. I have discovered there are plenty of websites out there with adult costumes, which I had never thought about before. Some entertaining and totally seasonal, while others exist solely to give people a reason to wear next to nothing and look “dressed up”. I guess by now it’s time to accept that this is what Halloween costumes have come to . What can ya do….

In college, I sometimes forget that this is actually considered a “holiday” (what? it’s not just another reason to get “dressed up” and drink??? hmmmm…..). I am reminded of this annually when I get my “Halloween package” in the mail. Famous for holiday packages, my mom never fails to send them on time and packed full of goodies!! Always including the famous bag of candy corn, Reese’s peanut butter cups, a “fall” scented candle, socks (yes, always socks. Random, I know. I have accumulated quite an impressive collection of holiday socks.), and a festive card wishing me a “Happy Halloween” from the parents. Nothing brightens up a day like some love in the form of holiday mail!

However, the mystery of the costume continues….

I’ll just stick to finishing up the candy for now (two weeks early…oops?). And buying more of my Halloween Oreos of course.

Yes, there really is a place called Kalamazoo

…Reads the t-shirt in a Western Michigan University gift shop.

Road trip! Kalamazoo is located on the western side of Michigan. Crazy name, university town. My weekend consisted of:

-Renting movies
“The Ex” starring Zach Braff=hilarious!
“Reign Over Me” starring Adam Sandler & Don Cheadle=sad, hard to watch, good movie

-Eating at an Italian restaurant called “Zazio’s”
Overall, the food was tasty… aside from one order of “roasted Beet tortelli”. Beets and pasta? Together? Eewwwww

-Topping dinner off with TCBY Ice Cream, outside of an airport for once!

-Watching Penn State beat Wisconsin.
The Nittany Lions remembered how to play some good football. Nice work guys!

-Relaxing, laughing and feeling completely content being with my other half.

-Driving approximately 14 hours in 3 days, across 3 states both ways.
There is no better time of the year to be driving. The leaves are changing and the temperature is perfect (no AC, no heater). Plus, I bought a new radio transmitter/charger for my iPod. Not once did I have to worry about changing a CD or the fact that I get sick of CDs after about five songs. Put iPod on shuffle mode & drive. Wonderful

Back to reality, in State College. Not such a crazy name, still a university town. I love it.

Welcoming Fall…

…with open (arms?) Toe-d shoes!

It is officially the Fall season. We are in school, the first round midterms have come and gone, Football is in full bloom….and it’s still 80 degrees!!!

On this beautiful “fall” day I left the apartment in shorts, a t-shirt and flip-flops. Not typical clothing for the 4th day of October in central Pennsylvania! I have worn jeans twice since starting school, and on the handful of days that a jacket has accompanied me, it has ended up stuffed in a bag by noon. As much as I love warm weather, being a desert native, I will admit that the hot & humid days combined with classes is a little “much”.

We, as Penn-Staters, are somewhat thrown-off. Usually by this time of the year we are switching to jeans and hoodies, and we are preparing ourselves to pull out the heavy-duty winter gear. Approximately one year ago I was spending the weekend in D.C. with some classy ladies, having to wear the jacket-gloves-scarf ensemble that screams “fall is here”! I vividly remember leaving the Museum of Natural History and grabbing a toasty hot-chocolate on our walk over to the (new, gorgeous) World War II memorial.

That seems like a distant memory as I get ready for this weekend; tackling Beaver Stadium in 80 degree sunshine once again, cheering our team to another Home victory.

In reference to fashion faux pas; as long as the weather is ignoring that it’s Fall, I will too. I will continue to wear my shorts, tanks, dresses, sunglasses, and open-toed shoes. However, I do plan on embracing the colors of the season. I love the shades of black, brown, burgundy and maroon that are filling the pages of clothing sites like Banana Republic. I also love the boots and coats, but they will just have to wait…

For the time being, I’m going to enjoy these warm, sunny days.