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Martin, thank you for sharing two bags of this herbal blend—I am afraid I have not done the first one justice because I preceded it with several extremely sweet marshmallow chicks that were in my Easter basket. So my first flavor impressions may not be very accurate. It definitely leads with a nice, fresh peppermint vibe, with an undercurrent of dried flower petals—that must be the echinacea.

I’ll stay out of the sugar before I try my next cup, but even with a candy-coated mouth, it is pleasant and calming. I could go for some calm—last night, there were three tense, pacing adults and three pacing, yowling cats in ready-to-duck mode while a series of nasty storms went through. Tornado warnings missed us by just a few miles, but all is well. Just a handful of small branches down in our yard. Amen and amen.

Happy Easter! It was a morning of holy chaos (spell that w-h-o-l-l-y) with 23 marshmallow-bunny-juiced 12-year-olds. We played 25 Words or Less and did trick shots with pom pom shooters. Try it sometime: knot the end of a balloon, snip off the top, pull it over a toilet paper roll, secure with tape. After chatting with a newcomer about his skills and interests, he asked to use the marker board, and while my back was turned, had mapped out an algebra problem that looked like something from “A Beautiful Mind.” Just another day at the Warehouse. (Oh yeah…I may have attempted to teach something, too.)

…which leaves me so very thankful for a quiet backyard, enough sun to warm my toes in, and one of my favorite “indulge” teas. I think we’ve hit its one year anniversary, so I’d better get on with drinking it, but is has not yet lost any of its lemon pastry goodness. The black tea base (maybe a Ceylon?) is mostly just a carrier for the lemon zest and yogurt granules that make it taste so citrusy-creamy.

Hoping you’ve found a reason to celebrate today, too!

My legs felt like rubber after the first push-mow of the season, which included a good deal of leaf mulching. And since the wind gusts blew a good deal of the fallout right back into my face and throat, I wanted something simple to wash out the muck and recharge.

Enter this very nondescript green low-end looseleaf from our local indie grocer. It’s quite possible that the wholesaler changes from time to time, but there’s always a bin of sencha-ish leaf mulch to be had cheap. It isn’t fussy, it isn’t bitter, and has a little bit of a sweetgrass finish.

Yesterday, I hugged one of my girls who was serving as command central for the supply organization squad (I should hire her to rearrange my craft room), and then she said, “I’m hot and thirsty and my throat hurts and the boys took all the water bottles!” Guess what woke me about 3 a.m….

Doc Martin (our Martin, not the one on PBS) to the rescue! I had not yet tried this little sample of linden leaves and buds, but his handwritten prescription for colds and cruds was a cuppa, plus a teaspoon of honey. Done. I put the honey in before trying the leaves straight up, so I don’t have an accurate taste descriptor. For the moment, let’s call it “kind of like chamomile, but not.” At any rate, it’s gentle, sweet, and soothing the rawness. Between that and a backup squad of zinc lozenges, we may have dodged the bullet. Thank you!

I was one of those kids who never voluntarily tried unfamiliar fruits or vegetables, and the bad habit has stuck over the years…so in a blind fruit test, I doubt I could recognize an actual pomegranate by taste or texture. However, since it became a trendy flavor several years ago, I’ve had multiple variations and mutations of pomegranate teas and drinks. This is a pleasant one. Fruity with only a little tartness. Not sure I caught any raspberry, but I still liked it. Reminds me of one you could serve your kiddos.

Speaking of whom, you should have seen mine at work. Volunteer day. We spent a couple hours at our former city library which is in the process of becoming a children’s science center. The building has been vacant since 2017, and my crew swept, vacuumed, Swiffered, hauled boxes, arranged furniture, and organized dozens of boxes of supplies the non-profit staff had moved from their temporary home.

One fifth-grade girl who ducks behind her older cousin rather than make direct eye contact smiled at me while hauling a folding table that weighed about as much as she did and said, “I think this is making me come out of my shell!” One of my fifth grade boys, given a vacuum cleaner, remarked, “Wow. I’ve never done this before!” Priceless.

Oh, and two of the girls found a lizard skeleton. Brought it in a dustpan to the center’s director, who grinned and said, “Hey! I’ve got a glass jar about the right size for that.”
Hope your Sunday afternoon was just as much fun, wherever you were.

Enjoying a nice springy cuppa and a sunbeam in the window, courtesy of our friend Martin. When you prepare to taste a fruit tea for the first time, you either expect heavy sweetness or heavy tartness. This has neither; just a deep fruity undertone beneath the mint. I can see this making a very nice iced tea once we graduate from fake spring to genuinely warm weather.

Today was one of those “looks like spring but doesn’t feel like it” days - trees abloom, lawn threatening to need mowing, Mr. Bluebird crossing my path as I drove through the neighborhood. But the wind was icy and cut like a chain saw. So I need a warm-up more than anything else. This is adequat-ulent for that purpose. Mild green base with a hint of jasmine to accompany all the hints Spring has been dropping of late.

Martin mentioned that he had to go plum hunting with this fruit tea; I agree—I got lost in the woods myself. Not plummy, but it wasn’t unpleasantly tart, either—reminded me a little bit of red Hi-C with less sugar. It was fruity enough to enjoy while surveying the fruits of our labor this afternoon: the backyard glider is sanded, touched up, and refreshed with a much-needed coat of polyurethane.

Fine. I am marking my calendar for February 29, 2028 NOW. This is a marketing gimmick and a half (only available on leap days), but it’s also a really smooth and sophisticated breakfast tea. Assam is my love language, and the addition of cornflower/silver needle lightened it up a little—I kept getting hints of Lucky Charms marshmallows in the cup this morning.

Thanks, ashmanra … I laid your little sample packet out last night because I knew I was going to need something special to get me up and moving on Daylight Savings Sunday!