Last night:
TV: " Legs spread same width as the shoulders, body tight, then hit the ball like you’re defeating the enemy. Here the pinky finger is the key. Then you just hit hit hit kaking-bingo!"
Me: -.o
TV: “What are you talking about?”
“He who conquers the left side conquers the world chief. Setting the parameters … that’s really the hard part.”
Me: …zzzzz…
Vespa on the TV: SCREEEEEEEEECH
Me: O.O OH GOD WHAT
Bad times. Baaaad times. Mastering my sleep schedule has always been difficult. With the con today, waking up too early would not have been good, so falling asleep early was not an option. Cue this chai.
I’m not sure why, but the dry blend smells, to me, like an antique store…or reminds me, maybe, of some of the re-enactment houses and locations in Colonial Williamsburg, which I adored visiting every summer as a kid when we would drive up the eastern seaboard. I can’t tell you what it is in the blend that triggers these memories…only that something assuredly does. It may be the very subtle, lingering scent of something smokey in the tea…in fact, I’m certain that’s part of it.
It tastes, after being prepared like a chai, almost exactly like it smells, only with more depth than it’s willing to give your nose. The smokey quality is really appealing to me. It’s very subtle, but very definitely there. You take a sip and you don’t have to look for it, but neither does it overpower a fairly well-balanced, internally-warming blend of the usual chai spices. I have trouble finding the vanilla in here, though.
Prepared 1c. water, some sugar brought to boil, tea added, simmered 3-4 minutes, 1c. 2% added, allowed to get foamy, removed from heat and let sit for a while. Strained/poured/sipped in front of the tv.
Nothing amazing happens here, everything is ordinary. A huge factory that can be seen from our town, the Medical Mechanica plant. All the adults got excited when it came here, like it was really a big thing. The white steam that billows out every day at the same time, it looked to me like smoke that signified some kind of omen. Smoke that spreads out and covers everything.
Ahhhh.
