Anytime is Tea Time at Home

One of my enduring habits in the morning is to make myself a cup of hot tea when I awaken. I like my tea strong and sweet and usually drink Red Rose orange pekoe blend. During the day on average I might drink as many as seven cups of tea, all contained in an oversize plastic mug from Tim Hortons that I have had for several years.

I don't know precisely what it is about tea that I like so much. I like its bold, unassuming taste, certainly. I like the way that it is not overpowering like so many cups of coffee I have had. I like the way a large mug of milky tea stays hot for long periods of time. But most of all, I like the slow, almost imperceptible way that the caffeine in tea energizes the mind and stimulates the senses.

I could probably learn to do without coffee if I had to, but tea is something else again. It is truly one of the real pleasures in life. It is the perfect accompaniment to the quiet, unpretentious bookish life that I most enjoy living.

Aside from morning tea, the time of day that I most enjoy drinking tea is when I have had dinner and I am settling in for the evening, perhaps working on my second novel or writing to publishers about my first. Tea makes me feel productive and alert, but doesn't seem to affect my nerves the way coffee can.

Needless to say, I am a great admirer of the beverage. It is a great all-purpose drink that is perfectly suited for the serene, contemplative life to which I aspire.