"Christmas Bells, those Christmas Bells..." *sings*

Today... is Christmas.

Christmas is here,
Christmas is there,
Christmas Time is Everywhere,

And that means that I got presents. Alas, I shall wait to tell you about them, and when I do I will ignore all but my most favorite.. so far. For now you shall have to listen to my description of my morning in script format.

INT. BOY'S ROOM - DAY

Young teenage boy, STEPHEN, is sleeping in his bed to the left of the door against the left wall. Older teenage boy, JOEL, is sleeping in his bed to the left of the door against the left/back wall. Young girl, HANNAH, sleeping on the floor to the right because of family-that-doesn't-usually-live-here overflow.

Two parents, MOM and DAD, enter room and walk over to Hannah who is just waking up.

MOM:
Hey Hannah,
Did you sleep well?

HANNAH:
Yeah... It's Christmas!

DAD:
Yes it is!

MOM [To dad]:

I still have a few presents to wrap.
Should I wrap them now before everyone
gets up? Or should we just wait until we
get together with our extended family
tomorrow?

DAD:
(Goes off talking about the situation
for a few minutes)

JOEL:
(Sleepily) Do you actually have to have
this conversation somewhere where it
will keep me awake?

DAD:
(Sarcastically) Yes, actually..

They leave, Joel goes back to sleep. Hannah follows them downstairs.

Well... That was more or less my morning. Then I went downstairs about an hour later, we hung out, passed out stockings, opened presents in our own fashion which I shall not go into detail about here.

My favorite present that I got was from Jared and April, "The Tea Companion", or "The Guide for Becoming the Ultimate Tea-Snob" as I like to call it. It's pretty much awesome, and I highly recommend it to anyone who wishes to enjoy their tea-life a little more than they do. It talks about more than just the taste of tea, but everything from history of tea to the time of day to drink certain kinds.

*sigh* . . . "kids these days"

I was musing over this blog post by a friend of mine, where she was talking about chivalry and how annoying it is that it has all but died.

Reason: Respect

Or lack thereof. The reason that chivalry is all but dead is that no one has any respect for anyone else. Period. They do not care about the other person's opinion, as seen by the all too common:

"You can believe what you want, but don't try to change my opinion."

This statement might, to some people, sound as if the person is accepting the other person's opinion. But it is really just the opposite, there is no more rude way to deal with another's opinion then to say it does not matter to oneself.

They do not care about the other person's parents. This (to me) actually sounds odd but is very true. How many times do you hear "Oh, common they'll never know" or "Psht, they don't mean that" or any sort of statement bearing the "Who cares what your parents said? They don't actually care.". In actuality, they do care. They care if you are watching a movie they said not to. They care if you are hanging out with people they don't want you to. They care whether you do that they tell you to or not.

Do NOT tell yourself "Well they told me not to then.. but it is later now." You know what? Maybe things are later. So go ask their permission now. Just because they say you can now does not mean they are letting you do it in the future. The biggest deal here is not "can I handle the R rated movie?" but "I am disobeying my parents." and do not tell yourself that you are not in the wrong, because then you will soon lose the ability to see the difference between right and wrong.

They do not respect anyone's integrity. Even if they say: "You can think what you want, I won't try to change that..." How many times does someone try to get the other to do something they do not want to do. I would be willing to bet that most of the relationships that end with the boy moving on to another girl, and the girl left with an unwanted pregnancy, would not have ended up that way if the boy (and maybe sometimes the girl) had not asked more than once and respected the initial response and not pressured again and again to get the person to do what they did not want to do.

That is forcing your opinion "that it is okay" or "good" or "best" or (God forbid) "my right" onto the other person, c-o-m-p-l-e-t-e-l-y disregarding the other's opinions, integrity, and moral convictions.

A HUGE problem with the internet is that people can find someone SOMEWHERE that agrees with them exactly on one subject or another. So they feel as if they do not need to communicate with their family, and who could have otherwise become local friends, beacuse they feel that their opinion is accepted by someone, probably many people, so they can't be completely wrong . . . right? Wrong.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

This sounds preachy, but I'm only writing this because most of these problems are things that I deal with myself.

-Joel Watson

Skipping the next in the box "Green Tea" we move next to "Constant Comment®" as it sounds much more interesting than plain green tea.

Water Type: Hard Tap (Lots of Minerals)
Steeping Time: 00.03.30
Steeping Heat: Reg. Boiling
Additives: 2 Teaspoons of sugar

Initial Taste = 8.5
After-Taste = 7.5
Aroma = 8.5
Originality = 9.0
Taste Throughout = 6.5

Average = 8




Initial Taste = In the "Lemon Lift®" one expects the tea to taste a certain way. With "Constant Comment®" I also expected a certain flavor, but the tea surprised me. It tasted orange, not in the "Lemon Lift®" candy sort of way, but in a spiced Christmas-y sort of way.

After-Taste = While the after taste is good it loses it's strength and adds no twist to the flavor.

Aroma = This tea has a very good aroma of orange and spice, almost exactly like a "Yankee Candle®".

Originality = This tea is very bold in what it tries to accomplish and succeeds exceedingly well. This is one of the few teas that tries to be different and new and actually pulls it off.

Taste Throughout = According to Buddha everything must be in balance; And this tea is no exception. Your mouth will get used to the orange flavor as you drink down the cup and will actually start to ignore it, like when you have had too much icecream.

While spices are supposed to support your main flavor (orange), this tea ends up with a spice flavor supported by the orange. And the result, while not bad, will get boring.

Other Notes = None to speak of.

Bottom Line = This is spoken of as an orange flavored black tea with spice, but in actuality is a spice flavored black tea with orange. It is a very good tea and even better for the holiday season, but I recommend you drink only small cups of this at a time, or very slowly; As the flavor tends to wear out its welcome.

Today I got a sampler for 6, count em, 6 different types of "Bigelow" teas. So for the next couple of weeks or so I will be reviewing these flavors: Lemon Lift®, Green Tea, Constant Comment®, Earl Grey, Plantation Mint®, and English Teatime®.

Let us start with "Lemon Lift"

Water Type: Hard Tap (Lots of Minerals)
Steeping Time: 00.02.30
Steeping Heat: Reg. Boiling
Additives: 2 Teaspoons of sugar

Initial Taste = 8.0
After-Taste = 8.5
Aroma = 8.0
Originality = 7.5
Taste Throughout = 7.5

Average = 7.9




Initial Taste: This is a very expected but interesting blend of black tea with lemon flavor. It tastes like black tea which someone dissolved a couple of those Ye Olde Fashioned hard lemon drops in. It also does not seem to include "Lemon Grass" as a flavoring as I have not yet had breathing difficulty. (I am allergic)

After-Taste = Same flavor. Was not bitter.

Aroma = It didn't smell exactly like the taste. But the funny thing is it smelled like I was sniffing one of those bags of old fashioned hard candies, which does not taste exactly like the candy, but has a bit of a powdery smell to it.

Originality = The lemon addition was a very nice touch, though not all that original. But they carried it off nicely so it gets .5 above average.

Taste Throughout = It is never bitter to the last of the cup, which earns it above average; But there is a strange texture to the tea which seems to coat your mouth with an undesirable film.

Other Notes: Could have been steeped 30 seconds to a minute longer.

Bottom Line: A good black tea with a bold, although not strong, overall flavor. Recommended in the early afternoon, and not before bed as it slightly coats your mouth. I look forward to having this again.

Tea - Tazo Black "Awake"

Since I am quite fond of teas of many different flavors and brands, I have decided to have taste testings where I take them quite seriously that you may be cautioned away from, or recommended towards different types and brands of tea.

Water Type: Hard Tap (Lots of Minerals)
Steeping Time: 00.04.00
Steeping Heat: Reg. Boiling - Scalding
Additives: 2 Teaspoons of sugar originally. Added 3rd after a couple sips.

Initial Taste = 7.5
After-Taste = 7.5
Aroma = 7.0
Originality = 7.0
Taste Throughout = 8.8

Average = 7.7

Initial Taste: Black tea. Enough said, but I will expand anyway. It was nothing past the way the average cup of black tea tastes. But it earns .5 points as it was not quite the average cup of black tea, tasting cheap and weak.

After-Taste = Again, black tea, nothing special other than the taste was more rounded and did not have that slightly sharp bitter taste that the cheapest teas get.

Aroma = Black tea,

Originality = This, along with "Aroma" will mostly be used on teas that have strange additives or extra flavors. So with regular black tea: 7.0

Taste Throughout = This was where I thought "Tazo" had outdone the average cup of black tea. Although the flavor of black tea is currently my favorite, I have always found that the last fourth of the cup of tea tends to become increasingly weak and bitter, as a timid kid reciting something he has not been well versed in. Although "Tazo"'s black, this was not the case. The taste of the tea, surprisingly, did not change through the cup in the least. It was just as strong and flavorful to the very last drop as the initial sips.

Other Notes: 4 Minutes is too long a brew for this tea, at least at the heat level I had. It was slightly bitter which is why I added the extra sugar so I could continue my taste test unhindered.

Bottom Line: As far as black tea goes this seems nothing original; But if black tea is all that you crave, this brand will not let you down.

cheep speling isnt profeshenol

Minor note here, Joel was reading his local newspaper "The Laconia Daily Sun" and discovered this headline: "Lawmaker/Chief wants law changed to make in illegal to refuse breath test"

Joel wants to get law made to make in illegal to put typos in newspapers!

Faerie Tale - Part 2

One upon a time there was a young girl, slave to a band of gypsies. She was about eight years old and had no recollection of what her life had been like in those first eight years. Her earliest remembrance of existing was waking up in the back of one of the carts the gypsies used, feeling extremely sick. Soon after, they stopped at a town where the gypsies 'employed'(sold) her to the king of the land's head cook as a 'servant'(slave), and went on their way, telling the cook that the girl's name was Silvia. Life in the kitchen as a cook's assistant was not too hard. Although the cook never forgot to remind her of her place several times each day. In her spare time she would gamble, and play poker with the other cook's 'assistants'(slaves), which she got quite good at. Although while the cooks used real money the 'assistants'(slaves) used breadcrumbs. She would also read, something the cook would wonder how she had learned, and take walks in the castle garden on clear nights.

It was on a such-like night when she was fifteen yeas old that she observed a cloaked figure moving through the garden. Thinking it to be another 'servant'(slave) playing a simple trick she confronted it and found that it was the prince of the land. He confessed that he was running away, but Silvia was clever and convinced him to stay, reminding him that as the prince he had an obligation to his kingdom to learn how to rule, not serve himself. He agreed to stay for these reasons, but mostly because there was a fascinatingly intelligent servant girl who worked in the kitchen. They soon became best friends, but kept it a secret to avoid jealousy from the other 'servants'(slaves).

There was a singularly awful evening when a foreign ambassador came and thought she may be a lost princess from a far off kingdom. This ambassador couldn't be sure but he was not an honest man and decided that even if she was not, no one would know the mistake and he would get a reward anyway. So one night he stole her away and sent a letter to the kingdom she may be princess of. Silvia was not told anything by the man and spent the next few days weeping, locked in an expensive, but dark carriage without windows, bumping along to a destination she did not know.

To be continued...