Clearly the Friday Five are not very punctual when they visit this journal...

[magnetic_pole]

Giving thefridayfive another try this week. Do you know, I had to look up "fate" and "karma" to answer these questions, that's how rarely I think about these things.


1. Do you believe in fate? In the sense that certain things were meant to happen or inevitable? No. But I'm also a deeply anxious and superstitious person, despite what my more logical brain tells me. Subconsciously, do I believe there's something I need to avoid? Does that count as fate? Hm. Mostly, my heart keeps telling me things are always on the verge of going wrong, while my head reassures me it's all fine.

2. If Karma was to visit you now, would it be kind or kick you in the butt? I'd hope it would be kind, because I've been trying hard to do good things for the right reasons. But I haven't always been as successful as I'd like.

3. Do you believe you have lived another life previous to this one? No.

4. What do you believe in with an unshakable resolve? Very little. Death and taxes. Corruption at the top. Tea and coffee make everything a bit better.

5. What one factor influences your life the most? Yikes, this is hard! Let's say sunshine: I find myself in a good mood with it and struggling without it.

Comments

Better than me

[jesse_the_k]

I decided that me and that Friday Five were on different astral planes.

What teabag brand do you prefer?

(Tea is my primary fandom.)

Re: Better than me

[magnetic_pole]

Aha! I'm not so much a tea gourmet as someone who just drinks a lot of inexpensive tea and loves it. We get it from The English Tea Store in these giant packages of 500 English Breakfasat tea bags (though I don't see them on this page--hm...). We call this the "house tea" as opposed to speciality box teas that are mostly for guests but sometimes for something different. Lots of mint, because somehow guests love mint and all ask for something decaf if they've come at the end of the day for dinner. I also love licorice, though it seems to be something of a niche taste. :) How about you? M.

Re: Better than me

[jesse_the_k]

I have lower-caffeine teas for mornings: white (I faff around among various bags and loose, haven't found one I really like, i can't abide peony) and oolong (Iron Mountain Goddess). Other possibility is Rishi's Maghreb Mint, which has green tea, mint, cardamom, and some other spices.
https://www.rishi-tea.com/product/maghreb-mint-organic-green-tea-blend/green-tea
Mmmmm.

Then the no-caffeines after noon.

I invested in a huge bag of Adagio's Honeybush Hazelnut, which is lighter in color and flavor than standard Rooibos. The Adagio mixes leave me cold, though the tins are pretty.

I also like licorice--my #1 is a loose tea from Frontier called "Luscious Licorice."
https://www.frontiercoop.com/frontier-co-op-luscious-licorice-herbal-tea-organic-1-lb/

I designed my own mix I'm proud of: 12 parts spearmint, 12 parts peppermint, 2 part Luscious Licorice, and 1 part shredded dried ginger root. It's sort-of Chai-like, but without the caffeine.

And that's not even all of them, but I'll hush now :,)

I'm really fortunate that the upper Midwest is hospitable to co-ops, so I've had access to great loose teas that I can sample in small amounts.

ETA Wow! The English Tea Shop has everything--thanks for the link.

Re: Better than me

[magnetic_pole]

Oh, wow--I can imagine just how good your "house blend" is! Those are all great flavors that seem like they'd mix well.

The good thing about loose teas is that you can combine them.

I'll check out that licorice! We started buying it because it was supposed to be good for some ailment the better had, and she hated it. So I drank that first box all by myself, resolving not waste it, and now I'm hooked. But I've only lever tried the Yogi version because that's all our local stores sell.

Glad you liked the English Tea Shop link! They're great--quick on delivery, nice to talk to on the phone if you need to. M.

Re: Better than me

[jesse_the_k]

Frankly, I've disliked every Yogi tea I've sampled, so if you like licorice you'd love Luscious. I'd be happy to send you a can of JK's House Blend, if you'd like.

Re: Better than me

[magnetic_pole]

Sorry I missed this earlier! You're very kind to offer, but we've got a tea drawer that won't quite close, and my partner will mock me mercilessly if I bring anymore tea into this house. Thanks, though!

Following your recipe above, I've been mixing teas this past week--mint and licorice, mint and ginger. There's always something new in the world! Thank you. M.

Re: Better than me

[jesse_the_k]

I'm ridiculously fussy, and we all need a hobby.

Under duress, I will drink tea from a teabag, but mostly I select from my more than 12 loose teas in the tea drawer.

My morning ritual is two 14oz mugs of oolong (choosing among five Upton varieties--current fave is milk oolong).

Then I spread the next three or four mugs over a wide range of flavors:

Upton's decaf darjeeling or Adagio's Honeybush Vanilla with some extra ginger when I need to yellow my teeth more.

Frontier's Luscious Licorice is great--I have to limit my chamomile, or I'd drink that all day. Instead I rely on my own mint-licorice-ginger mix for long afternoons.