So tea lovers, what are your other interests? Do they relate to tea in any way?
Video games, doodling and travel! I don’t think tea relates to the first two much, other than I usually have a cup by me as I’m playing/drawing (especially late into the night HAHA), but I think it relates to travel! Whenever I’m out new places, especially in Europe, I like to try all types of new teas!
My other hobbies would be fish keeping, drawing, travel, and video games.
Fish keeping, I think would be the one that would relate closest to tea. Everything is so water sensitive! Temperature, aeration, PH, Nitrates, Nitrites. All of these have to be just so to keep a happy aquarium, like brewing a good cup of tea. HOW DEEP! With my betta, its even recommended that you put almond leaves in their water as it will tint the water which calms them, and makes the environment a lot more natural. There’s a lot to learn if you get serious with the hobby, like tea!
Drawing and video games not so much on the relation scale. It is what I hope to get a career in down the line. Right now I’m in the graphic design field, and did some freelance concept art so we’re getting there SLOWLY BUT SURELY!
Travel is what got me into tea in the first place! When I was in Ireland we had tea time about 5 times a day and it really opened me up to actually trying new things in tea world. I forgot who it was but someone had a great idea of checking out local tea shops in their travels and getting something new wherever they go. I think this is going to be a tradition that I pick up as well. What a great souvenir that’s going to be different and unique no matter where you travel!
Going back to my screen name. I’m also very passionate about the ocean, and the environmental issues surrounding it. I just love everything about the sea!
Oh yes and dogs. I have a rat terrier/blue healer mix that I love spending time with, and I have an obsession with corgis!
My betta is usually in a 10 gallon planted community tank. Don’t worry! I would never put him in a tiny bowl. He is in a 2gal quarantine tank right now though. I have a loach that thought his fins were food so he’s not going back until they’re on their way back to normal. I also have to find a new home for Papa Loach. Can’t have a repeat of last time. D:
I got a betta fish and per the instructions given to me by the large chain pet store (stupid to listen I know) I had him in a bowl. I’m really crazy about my pets so of course as soon as I got home I started doing research and quickly learned that he would be much better suited in a 10 gallon tank with a heater and filter. No other fish, one was enough for me to start with.
He didn’t to so well in his tank though and passed away after a few months? I loved having a betta fish he was such a social little fish (with me I mean not other fish!). I want to get another one, but I really don’t want to see another fish die. Everyone basically told me “usually betta fish do better in bowls”…which I know is disinformation. I’ll admit I don’t know a lot about fish but I really did things by the books. Made sure to let my tank get all “set up” before I put him in it and even got the water tested before putting him in there too!
Maybe you could help me out when I’m brave enough to get another fish? I think he might have had finrot because his fins started looking funny. I treated the water with some stuff I was told to put it, but he went downhill fast.
Poor Tate I did love him so. I guess I was a bad fish mom (still feeling guilty) =(
Edited to add : I got a betta fish because I was told they were easy to care for compared to other fish and were pretty resiliant. Being my first fish and not knowing much, I thought a hearty fish would be better than a delicate fish. Plus they are so beautiful.
Oh noo! I’m sorry to hear about Tate. I’m like that too, when I get a new pet I do research up the wazoo, and when I started fish keeping it became quite the obsession for me. Bettas are really resilient, fun fish to have. They have a ton of personality and do well in most conditions. In college I had one in a one gallon bowl for 4 years! One gallon is the smallest I would ever go for a betta, and he was only in that because that was all the space I had. I made sure to do 100% water changes every week.
It sounds like it was probably a water condition issue. How long was your tank cycling before you put in him in? That would have caused the fin rot as well. Don’t feel bad though, it sounds like you really did the best you could do with what you were given. He might not have been a very healthy fish from the getgo, chain stores don’t take the best care of their fish, so he might have had a lingering condition.
I can definitely help you out when you’re brave enough to give it another go! I’ve set up tanks for several of my friends, and though I’m no expert, I do have a good grasp on what’s what! There are a lot of great resources out there too that you can use. My favorite is “Ultimate Bettas”. They’re a fish forum that pretty much can answer every question you have under the sun.
If you need any fish help in the future feel free let me know! :D
My son is the real fish person but now that he has moved out we are taking care of his tank. He had a betta in it that lived for years and years. It was really beautiful. I may call on you if I run into any fish mysteries!
I had a betta in university as well (Hannibal!) who I kept in a bowl – he lasted quite a while, by fish from a store standards. I used to think having fish was silly but Hannibal was full of personality. Yay fishies!
I was surprised too! Betta fish are seriously social fish! I was teaching mine tricks. I was teaching him to hop out of the water to get a piece of food from my hand. He would only hop a little bit out of the water, but he was learning fast and I know he would have caught on. I really miss him. His time with me was too short.
Tony & I have a 150 gallon tank at his house, with a variety of fish:
Perky & captain cyclops – orange veiled angels
The Blues brothers – 2 blue gouramis
The clown brigade – that’s the killi loaches, they are so entertaining when they come out
The hoard – that’s the plicos. We started with 2, & they keep reproducing!! We used to deliver them to the local fish store, but he retired & closed. Tony gave away one of the pair, but now the youngsters are almost big enough to reproduce.
cheech & chong – 2 scissor tails
bonnie & clyde – 2 red tipped whatevers
& various other smaller characters…
It’s a fun & lively tank! We had a bit of a bullying problem for awhile (which is why the captain’s name became captain cyclops. He lost an eye :( But everyone’s been behaving for awhile now, a nice friendly community!
I was looking up ideas for orchid terrariums online a few weeks ago and fell down the intertube rabbit hole. I ended watching hours of youtube videos and ordering a book by Takashi Amano. My new (used) tank will be delivered any day now. I have no clue what I am getting myself into, and it’ll be ages before I get to the ‘fish’ part of the tank, but I think I just got myself into aquascaping.
Still need a terrarium, too! :P
Aaah~! I would love to have a 150gal tank someday, and I love the fish that you have in it! Sounds like a fun tank to watch. I get frustrated with my 10gallon because I want to get some different variety fish, but they are all usually schooling fish, and either require a very large tank, or need to be groups of 6, which would overstock the 10 gal. I think that’s what happened with Papa loach. He’s a schooling fish with fish to school with. I think I’m going to bring him back to the local fish store and trade him for some otos, snails, and maybe start up a neon tetra school.
I love killis though! They’re so pretty.
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Good luck with the aquascaping Londo! That’s something I never got very into, but wish I had a bit more knowledge on. I really want to add some more plants to the tank but you’d be surprised how fast time slips by when you’re researching different species.
This is almost getting to sound like a dating site. Hey, what’s your sign?! What a bunch of crackup tea nerds we are. I love us!
Aquarius, sagitarius rising, moon in virgo ;)
Not looking for any dates or anything though! Just having fun!
Bump!
Pisces/Dragon (Have no idea beyond that, as I never been hugely into astrology, though I do occasionally read my horoscope and look up personality traits of my sign and others. Usually the Pisces descriptions are dead on for me. Heh.)
For me most everything I do is connected: Inspires me, feeds me/my soul,gives me money to pay my bills and buy supplies…
Other then Tea…
Books-I loooove reading! Since I got my 1st laptop about 4-5 years ago I don’t spend as much time book reading, but very little could actually stop me from being a bookworm completely. I read mostly Fantasy, sometimes a little Scifi. Sometimes I like certain mystery novels, though been sticking mostly to The Cat Who…books or to Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys. For quite a few years I’ve been mostly into Kids fantasy books, though truthfully never really stopped reading them. Non fiction-History, Mythology, Different cultures, (Lately it’s been reading culture blogs online about foods, customs, aspects of a particular country. Blogs/websites about the various Asian cultures have been a huge source of inspiration and never ending amusement. Also been reading about the various Mideastern cultures, which is slow going because I can’t find alot of sites that talk about the culture in addition to food. Both types of foods I am into learning how to cook.)
I also occasionally read biographies, auto and not. I’m just as likely to read about an American President as I am about a movie star, or someone who was made famous for good works.)
I am a beginner foodie. (I just looked it up because I found I didn’t actually know what it was.)I say beginner because even though I’ve always been a fan of trying out different foods and experiences, I wouldn’t say that I was an expert in any of them. (Not my style anyways.) My family teases me about becoming a connoisseur of tea, hardly. Not much food that I am not interested in trying, though have to admit I am kind of wary of Indian food, as I have a sensitive stomach. I know I can ask for really mild food, but then I worry that asking for too mild might take away the flavor of the food. Other foods that I am not crazy about trying: Insects, bugs,oysters, caviar. (Though I supposed I might try those at some point just to say that I did.)
Religion-The way I like to phrase my religious beliefs is: Spiritual with a huge interest in Pagan Religions past and present. I say it that way because though it is Pagan focused that doesn’t mean I don’t step outside of it. I am also curious about certain aspects of Christianity, particularly where it has combined with the roots/remnants of other cultures. And also intrigued by the stuff that was left out of the bible decided by the Council of Nicaea.
Lifestyle choices-Queer identified,into kink, polyamory.(I am a switch I like to top and bottom, and the sweetie that I have referred to; we are in a poly relationship.) I also like to read books on these topics as well. Fiction or not. (No I have not read 50 Shades of Grey for 2 reasons: 1.) Whomever edited that piece of crap should be shot. I know editors can be $$$ but I see no excuse whatsoever for not hiring one to edit it a few times. 2.)It’s yet another book portraying a messed up character. I’m tired of seeing all these stories that give the impression that we’re all completely nuts. Not that many of us (including myself!) don’t have issues. My sweetie calls me babybrat (Not terribly obnoxious kind of bratty, but silly/goofy. and baby because I can be kid like.
Animals-I grew up with cats and in many ways are my 1st choice in pets. That being said however, I would love to own a dog, a few rabbits, (I’ve had a facination with the various lop earred rabbits since I was a kid. Not to mention Bunnicula was one of my favorite books as a kid;)) I would also like a few lizards such as Iguanas. (Basically anything that isn’t illegal to own, isn’t poisonous (Even if the poison sac has been removed.) and has a calm disposition.) Not including any kind of snake. I admire snakes, I like their form and their function in the wild, but I will not have 1 in my home. Shudders Samething for Rats. I do think they are cute, and would play with one, but after having a infestation of them in my house over the past year…Hellllllll no! Birds,I am not opposed to. Other members of the rodent family: Not sure.
Discussion groups-Pretty much about any of the above topics. LOL.
Writing-I’ll write essays on any of the above topics, but my passion is for writing stories that contain various LGBTIQ characters and topics. Unfortunately for me I find it difficult to actually sit down and just write. I would like to hire an editor to look over my stuff and hopefully give me some advice on where and how to proceed.
Arts and Crafts-I inherited a heavy dose for doing arts and crafts from my Mom’s side of the family. The downside is that I am not very ambitious, so most projects can be hard going. I am interested in: Jewelry making (Including beading.) Knitting/Crocheting (Total beginner.) Sewing, Batiking, Collage art (Especially image transfer.)Watercolors, Acrylics, Pastels. Polymer clay.
Random things I find inspiring/amusing: Angels,Were animals, steampunk, rockabilly,flowers, butterflies, dragonflies, The Land and inhabitants of Faerie, The Wizard of Oz, (Have yet to read the books. And I’ve tried reading the books by Gregory Maguire for some reason I can’t get into them.) I do however adore the Tin Man miniseries that Scifi channel did a few years ago.
Argh, I’ve spent enough time on this…got things I’d better do today.
You didn’t read 50 Shades because it needs editing?..Seems like two opposing statements, how would you know it needs editing if you haven’t read it? Or do you mean to say you didn’t read it because it’s straight?
Cwyn, I read a few excerpts of it on Amazon, then borrowed it for a few hours from a friend. Sorry…should of clarified that:)
I’m a makeup artist on the side, so all things makeup, especially MAC (and specifically lipstick as the greatest love).
Cats are my comfort, so I love them and I volunteer at the Humane Society as a cat socializer (I basically just hug cats, it rocks.)
Reality TV and girly shows.
Running, Pinterest, collecting things…
I like to climb mountains. I have recently taken to bringing up my travel gongfu kit with me so have a little tea (usually pu erh) on the summit. Talk about a way to connect with nature! :)
I bring up a backpacking stove, small canister of fuel, lightweight backpacking tea kettle, and a gaiwan gongfu tea kit I got from JK Tea Shop. I’m really impressed with the kettle I bought from REI. It boils fast and hold heat well so when I have to turn the stove back on to bring the water back to a boil it does so quickly. It’s a lot of gear to pack up to the summit, but totally worth it!
Other than tea, my only other passion is powerlifting. I plan on competing in the near future. Also, I sure do love my 2 pet bunnies.
I love lifting weights. I love the barbell. Since I hurt my wrist and thumb last autumn in a fall, I have lost so much and I’m really struggling with it. I can’t do as much weight as I used to because it causes pain when I’m lifting, and if I do too many reps even at lighter weights, I have pain afterward. It’s so depressing, so I stopped lifting for a while at all. I’m slowly trying to get back to it, just remembering I have to start slow and light until my wrist gets used to it again.
Lifting weights is an addicting thing! I’m sorry to hear about your injury! Take it slow and steady and you’ll progress back to where you were. I’ve lost a lot of progress recently too, simply due to life circumstances. Starting grad school and a full-time job doesn’t allow me much time to lift and eat as much as I’d like. Lifting has been put on the backburner for now. Thats the reason I need to get in on a meet. I think it will respark my drive.
Delightful as it is, there is certainly more to life than tea. In no particular order, when I’m not steeping, I…
… ride my bicycle. A lot. Like 40, 60, 100 miles at a time. On August 3-4, I’ll be riding the Pan-Mass Challenge for the 11th time. The PMC is a fundraiser for the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. I’ve lost more family and friends than I care to think about, so this is an important ride for me (feel free to contribute at http://www2.pmc.org/profile/pfp.asp?profileid=HB0035). But mostly, I ride because I love the freedom of the road and the camaraderie of my fellow cyclists (ok, and the endorphins that kick in are pretty nice too). I confess though, that when I get back from a ride, I don’t rehydrate with tea – coconut water is the best thing I’ve ever found for that.
… raise and nurture my family. As of this fall, my boys will both be in college and my daughter will be left at home alone with her parents. To feed them and because I love to, I do a lot of cooking. I’m a vegetarian and I’m always looking for new and interesting ways to prepare tasty things.
… am married to my talented and lovely wife. Here’s my level of dedication: I haven’t touched coffee for many years, but I make hers every morning so she can drag her ass out of bed. She tastes my teas, I sniff her perfumes. It works out (and it’s been working out for 26 years).
… write, both professionally and personally. Someday, I hope, I will put aside my quill and open my own tea shop.
I’ll do this again since it is showing up top again :)
These days other than Tea I enjoy
Time with my Pets and Family
Chatting with friends(on FB)
My Kombucha and Water Kefir
Observational Learning
Reading
Music
Outdoors,some foraging bushcraft and camping and planting
Cooking-Learning lots of new food and drink things these days
Plants
Alternative Medicines(Benefits of herbs and other natural healing)
Horror Movies-Zombies and such
My interests change from time to time, maybe thats normal maybe not, i dunno :)
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