Finding Beauty in Unexpected Places, Day 9: A Cuppa

I'm starting to understand why British people like their tea so much. In this string of grey, damp days, I have taken great solace in tea. In fact, my afternoon tea time keeps getting moved up in the day. It's something about the production of it all - boiling the water, choosing one of my pretty tea cups, and waiting while the tea steeps. The rhythm of it all makes me happy.

I don't claim to be a refined tea drinker, but I'm a picky tea drinker. There are certain teas I like, and I hesitate to venture too far from them. I like the raspberry tea at T-spoons, and the almond biscotti tea at my friend Laura's house. I like almost any earl grey tea or mango flavored tea. I like Twingings lemon ginger tea. But my absolute favorite is Harney and Sons Hot Cinnamon Spice tea. Actually, I love almost any Harney and Sons tea that I've tried (currently I'm also trying their green tea with coconut, ginger, and vanilla). The Barnes and Nobel cafes sell tins of these teas (but they serve Tazo teas; I have found Harney and Sons tea served at a few coffee shops when I'm traveling).

I was describing my love of Harney and Sons to a friend, and when I explained that they were at Barnes and Noble cafes, she said, "Oh! I've seen those! Their packing is so beautiful!" It's true, they are packaged beautifully, and truth be told, that's probably why I bought them the first time. Plus, the tea sachets are made of a loosely weaved, silky fabric and not paper. It adds to the whole feeling of indulgence when I'm making my tea. Is it sad that I'm sucker for packaging? Yes. Do I care? *Takes a sip of tea* No.