Apparently I don’t blog so much when it’s boiling out. We finally brought up the air conditioners and we’ve been running them enough to keep sane. I’m still uncomfortable a fair bit of the time but I can sleep so I won’t complain.
Berry harvests are still way down right now. There are TONS of immature blackberries on the bushes but they are ripening so slowly I wonder if they will ever be ready. The sumac berry, /pink-lemonade reportedly came out weird, I think I jumped the gun and they weren’t ripe yet, everyone still liked it but said it did not taste like lemonade. I need to find my foraging book and check when they are supposed to be ripe.
So, the camp-out went well. Five kids showed up and three stayed until midnight. We read spooky stories, talked about and showed off our pets, and the kids thanked me multiple times for putting it together. They asked me if we might be able to have similar events on some kind of regular basis and I’m thinking about it. I think I’m zeroing in on something, maybe the ideal sort of job for me, something that takes advantage of all my strengths and talents. I enjoy creating events, parties, planning activities, and running craft and other workshops, contests, book clubs etc. So, teen librarian is phenomenally close, my current job is phenomenally close, to what I feel I should be doing. But…
Other things I want to do just aren’t allowed in that box, not the way I want to do them, not on the scale I imagine them. Like the “All Hallows Read” where I wanted to run an overnight campout in the library. I thought we could do a sleepover with pop-up tents, sleeping bags etc. The plan was to have toaster oven s’mores, cocoa, etc, read aloud some spooky stories or Halloween related stuff, play some games and let the kids have the unusual experience of sleeping in the library. The teens loved this idea and my boss thought it was great and was willing to split the night with me so each of us could get a little shut-eye but the trustees didn’t feel comfortable with it. They also don’t allow us to show PG 13 movies even if we would limit the attendees to 13 and up and obtain explicit parental permission for each child attending. They won’t even allow PG 13 movies for adult audiences at the library. It’s just weird that I can show the first two Harry Potter movies but not the others.
That is all for now. I’m feeling ill and overwhelmed.
Nope. Nope, nope. Not going to talk about the state of the world or all the craziness going on right now. I’ve focused on the crazy already, elsewhere, and I’m going to let this blog be a place of refuge from turmoil, strife and fear.
I found no blackberries in our yard this morning, and was only able to find a few golden raspberries, but there are bushes out in the neighborhood that are producing and I’ll probably hit some of them later. Our bushes are still heavy with not-yet-ripe berries, and we are getting a bit more rain lately, so maybe we’ll have more blackberries soon. Our staghorn sumac is finally producing! I was able to harvest 7 berry clusters this morning and they are now soaking in cold water for a day so I can make my family some pink “lemonade.” I can’t drink it because I am allergic. Sad story, I am allergic to lemons but in a Wild Foods class I took I learned that staghorn sumac tea was the original pink lemonade. It tastes just like it! I got to drink it 2 maybe 3 times before I became allergic to it. I was so excited to have lemonade again… a major letdown, but my family can still enjoy it so I make it.
Got through book 3 of the Demon series: Secrets of the Demon; by Diana Rowland. Really loved it as I have all of them so far. A little iffy on the ending but I am willing to see where the author takes it in the next book: Sins of the Demon. I love her books for many reasons, but the best thing for me is that I haven’t unraveled her endings before I got to them, not in any of books 1, 2, or 3, and that is a rare and happy event for me. I mean, sure, there’s something ego-boosting about figuring out whodunit all the time, but it’s also kind of tedious too depending on how early I’m sure I’ve figured it out. I don’t know why but I’m good at figuring these things out and it makes me appreciate writers who can surprize me, especially when I can look back over the story and actually see the hints that were so skillfully obscured. Suddenly seeing the red herrings for what they were is wonderful. Her white Trash Zombie series is wonderful too, I should get back on that, I think I’m on book 4 or 5 of that one.
Here at the homestead we are focusing on our many games. We’ve started to split off from each other a bit, which is weird. The girls are in games with friends, my eldest even dropped out of the family game, our boy dropped out of the circus game too which means my husband and I are in/running 2 games with none of the kids involved. It’s probably a good thing. Someday things will be more normal and we’ll leave the house for jobs and school and social stuff and it’s good the kids are taking steps and branching out before we get to that. We should encourage our boy to join a game with friends online too.
The reopening of the library continues. It looks like the trustees have approved opening for August 1st. We will start allowing a maximum of ten patrons at a time in to use our computers. Supposedly there will be no browsing allowed, not sure how that’s going to go over. Hopefully it will go well. There are still some layers of approval to get through, the Board of Health and the Select Board must approve the plan before we go forward with it, so it might not happen the way it’s written right now. It seems fairly reasonable to me, if the plexiglass is in place and I am not expected to leave the staff area to interact with patrons, I think I can handle it.
For all my worries about the virus, I am also stressed with the tons of extra work I’m now expected to do. Patrons can’t come in and browse and many of them can’t figure out how to properly reserve things online, so they call us with lists. That’s fine when it’s a few patrons a day but right now it’s many more than a few, and it’s overwhelming. I’m enunciating through my mask into the phone, trying to type or write with one hand, the computer is slow, the patrons are often incorrect that their searches have verified we have the item in our collection, and I have to apologize constantly, explain constantly, etc. After all that, I have to enter everything into the new curbside pick-up spreadsheet we’re supposed to keep. Pus the near endless procedures of quarantining and disinfecting every item coming into the library, all the doors, and everything we touch during our shifts. It’s a lot. I get it, I know it’s all for the best, but we are not working a single extra minute on this stuff. We have the same shifts we used to have only now we’re supposed to add in all this extra stuff and that is just going to get worse for a while as we slowly open up.
After each patron’s computer appointment we are going to have to sanitize the computer, mouse, desk, and chair. We are going to have to field all the phone requests by patrons who haven’t had access to a computer in months, collecting information like name, age-range, phone number, whether they will need to use the printer, etc. We will be enforcing 30 minute limits for the first time since I’ve been working there and requiring patrons to leave the building when they are done. They can’t pick out a book or movie while they are there, at least I think that’s how we’re planning on doing things at first, so we have to enforce that as well.
Lingering, nagging doubts about reopening are with me constantly. The emphasis from my boss is; “if you don’t feel safe with the way we are planning on opening, tell me what concrete steps I can take that will make you feel safe with reopening.” But the only thing that would make me feel safe would be not opening. At this point we are looking at pretty flat numbers in the state, which is lovely, but a lot of people were really stupid only about a week ago, around the 4th, and we won’t see if we will get a spike in cases from that for at least 1-2 more weeks. Add another week onto that to see how bit that potential spike will be. The crazy thing is we’ve been loosening restrictions across the state without pausing long enough to see how that loosening is affecting the infection rate. I’m afraid by the time we see the spike, and even later when officials finally admit that it’s a problem, and even later when they Hopefully lock things down again… it’ll be too late. It’ll be a disaster we can’t hope to contain. We’ll be utterly fucked.
Limiting my exposure to the news isn’t helping. I can be adequately informed as to what’s going on or I can be calm, I cannot have both. I very badly need both somehow. It doesn’t help that my husband feels a need to stay up to date with the news, or that his brother calls and fills him in on any horror he’s happened to miss. It doesn’t help that ignoring all the horror doesn’t make it go away and i know that. I need a break. I need 2020 to give us all a break, to give us something good, something really, really good, something helpful, something hopeful, something less stampede-toward-total-dystopia-ish.
So here I am. Here we are. Tonight will be the last cool night for quite a while. So I think I need to sleep in the fort tonight. In an ideal world, I would arrive home tonight to find a note from my hubby saying “meet me in the fort.” and I would get out there to find a nice dinner, lit candles, jazz playing, and wine. I know, that’s the date I put together for him a while back, it’s the date I need tonight, but I have to go to work. Maybe I can pull it off somehow? I’m having trouble seeing how.
So, it’s been several days since I posted, we’re all fine here, how are you?
I’ve been working, working on working, running games, playing in games, reading, cooking a lot, and plenty of other stuff.
My latest read: the 3rd book in the Demon series. So good so far!
Special note: last night, while gaming, exploring a vampire lair, a bat got into our bedroom and went unnoticed by all… except for Puddin’ the Wonder Dog, who perked right up and stared at the little thing until I took notice. Of course I start yelling; “OMG, A Bat!!! Help me, A Bat!” Stuff like that, and my husband is like; “We already killed all the bats, we’re fighting a vampire.” … … … ME: “NO, A REAL FUCKING BAT!!!” Points——> “Right fucking THERE!” And then much restraining of the dog, searching for something to throw over the bat, then running for leather gloves and a box, and finally: successful bat removal. Then returning to the game.
So, that was most of the excitement for yesterday. But I also learned how to make friendship bracelets! Yes, I know, like any 8 year old can do, but I am enjoying it. It’s one of the take home crafts I’ve put together in the hopes the teens will enjoy it. The stained glass craft and the fairy lantern craft have been well received. I’m working on a shadow puppet craft too. Lots of stuff to do.
My attempts so far: simple stripe, chevron, leaf pattern, & rainbow pride stripe.
I’ve been playing the Harry Potter game on my phone again for a few days. It encourages me to get outside and walk around which I really need to do. I’ve put on 5 pounds, all squishy and no muscle. Rude. It’s a freaking pandemic do I need to gain weight too? No. So I get out and fight Death Eaters and monsters, and return confundables or some such thing. It’s cute and play HP theme music at me. I like it. They keep adding to it and making it more interesting which is cool, plus special events and things.
Also, holy crap, you guys! One of the teens has submitted a story for the contest!!!!!!! YAY! Last year I had a Design a Cover contest and no one entered so this is making me very happy. ^_^
My sister sent me a present. It is so awesome! She’s gotten into pottery and she’s really good, selling stuff online and in a little shop or two near here. So exciting. Anyway, she’s making yarn bowls now and they are so cool! Here:
It’s blue with a branch opening and gorgeous green on the inside. So so lovely. She has cool stuff, check it out! https://hollypots.com/
This weather is killing me. So disgusting. It’s 81 degrees out with 60% humidity and I walked for about 20 minutes, strolling, and I am so sweaty and uncomfortable. My hair is still damp from my shower and I’m considering a second one right now. I will definitely shower before going in to work. UGH.
If the promised rain would keep on coming maybe we could get a full berry harvest. Some of the wild berry bushes are in spots that drain a little too well. They are laden with hard, green berries just waiting for proper rain to ripen and make me very very happy. ^_^ We are harvesting and eating berries every day. I make smoothies with them since there aren’t that many yet.
Approximation of daily harvest of berries.
The library will likely be completely oppressive today. My Director is usually cold all the time and I am always too warm so it truly sucks in the summer. I’ll only be there for 3 hours tonight but I have to work all day tomorrow. I haven’t been on my feet that much in MONTHS, I’m going to be hella sore. I know, I am lucky to have a job at all, and I am grateful, this weather just makes me miserable.
My MIL in FL is getting really antsy. One in 3 people may be infected where she is and she’s getting a little scared. She’s also alone, bored, sick of all of it like the rest of us. I don’t know how I’d be coping if I didn’t have my husband and kids here. I honestly don’t know how non-gamers are coping. We play games with friends 3xs/week. Lots of laughs, just enough catching up with each other, I don’t feel super isolated. I do miss in-person games, getting together for wine, beer, food, but honestly, Roll20 gaming is social enough for me most days. I find normal zoom chats pretty boring, like phone calls but you can see everyone’s messy houses and split ends, we use them for the audio when we game. I can’t believe that’s all non-gamers get, zoom chats and such with friends and family. Oof.
Okay, don’t listen to me, I’m just cranky from the heat. bleh. Be safe!
Well, it looks like we have a date to start allowing patrons into the library. It isn’t 100% firm but it’s the first time a date has been floated. August 1st, just a few weeks away. My only hope is that the rising tide of cases, and they are already on the rise, will kill this horrible plan.
My son’s school is saying they will be open in some hybrid fashion, having half the students attend at a time. What an utterly FUBAR situation. It will a hellscape of chaos for working parents for sure and I’ve been to the school, seen their narrow halls and small classrooms, there is no way, even with half the kids, that they can maintain social distance. And who is doing all the endless extra sanitizing? The overworked teachers? With what money will they pay for extra janitorial hours? Oh, or will they task the kids with cleaning? That will go well! Again, my only hope, for not having to switch my son to a virtual school, is that they come to their damn senses because of the increasing cases.
This was in my feed yesterday from a poster called Zac Bears “Massachusetts is approaching an “R” of 1 for the coronavirus, meaning exponential community spread will restart! Wear a mask, stay within your bubble, and take all precautions. We aren’t immune from irresponsibility in other states!” And here is a link to what that means: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/05/covid-19-what-is-the-r-number/ My MIL is in Florida and the hospitals are just about at capacity with this nightmare. We joke with her; “don’t get sick! don’t get hurt!” But it isn’t a joke at all. The worst thing that could happen to her is anything that would cause her to need to go to a hospital.
My work is asking us to self-monitor for Covid symptoms and not come in if we have any… completely ignoring the vast numbers of asymptomatic carriers who can spread this thing. I am disheartened, I am depressed, I am stressed out as much as I can stand to be. And I am being asked: “What concrete steps can we take that would make you feel safe at work?” I don’t have an answer that keeps the library open. I think we should all be in lockdown, at home except for essential trips for food, medicine and the like. I think that is the only way we contain this. I think it is the only path to safety. I don’t want to go out in public, too many people refuse to wear masks, it isn’t safe. And now we have the CDC changing their guidelines because of the temper tantrums coming out of the WH. So we can’t even trust the CDC… at a time when we desperately need trustworthy information.
It’s a weird week so far. My son dropped out of my Pathfinder game, for many reasons, including the fact that he’s in so many games he can’t keep his characters straight anymore, makes me sad.My Director let us know the library is opening in some capacity on August 1st which I find greatly disquieting. A coworker then questioned the need for all of us to stay 6 feet apart all the time, terrifying. On the plus side, I have 2 new players joining my game and that should be a lot of fun.
Side note: I woke up with no inspiration or motivation to bake this morning so there are no muffins. Alas. Perhaps, if it stays cool long enough, I will bake cookies or something later. It’s probably ok to take a day off now and then. Though there is value in habit and inertia is definitely a thing. If I don’t bake today will it be weeks or months until I get back to it? I hate to lose the momentum but I’m tired and stressed today. Probably partly the Benedryl, it does a number on me.
I’m reading Among the Fallen; by N. S. Dolkart now. I’ve barely started and it’s already lovely. I want to sink into it but I can’t seem to focus. My TBR (to be read) pile is just ridiculous and I’m expecting more books any day now. I’ve been watching movies more than I’ve been reading lately, I blame the Benedryl, thank you So Much, Allergies… I watched Rocketman, The Color out of Space, and Doctor Sleep. I actually enjoyed them all. Rocketman started out very surreal and continued to occasionally stray into a dreamlike quality, but it was compelling and the music was great. I thought all the acting was excellent and the story, at times, heartbreaking. The Color out of Space, a Nick Cage movie so my hopes were not high, but it ended up being quite a solid movie. There were odd moments, odd patches of dialog, typical “humans don’t talk like that” moments that happen in almost every horror film, but overall it was creepy and became atmospheric and deeply disturbing. I did get the feeling that there was probably a fair bit of film on the cutting room floor that would have brought the movie up to a higher level though. The hydrologist could have been a more fully-fleshed character if given a little more screen time and I feel like they cut some stuff they thought wouldn’t fly because of how people feel about certain animals. Definitely one of the best depictions of actual Lovecraftian horror I’ve seen and one of Nick Cages better movies. Doctor Sleep was my favorite of the 3 and a great film just flat out. Great acting, cool bad guys, I’d say it’s Stephen King at his best but I haven’t read the book yet so I’m not sure how true the rendition is. A great movie, see it, see all of them, they are all worth at least a few hours of your time.
The morning is slipping away from me. I should probably be cleaning something, or planning something, or, at the very least, be painting something or creating something. I need more time out in my fort to destress and unwind. Now that I work 2 nights a week and we’re still gaming 4xs/week, I feel like we’re always so busy. If I could drop a game I would but it isn’t looking like a very good option. I’ll have to find some other way to loosen up my schedule.
I baked scones yesterday. With rose petals and pine nuts. I think I’m allergic to pine nuts now. I still don’t feel right. I can’t take more Benedryl because I have to go to work later. Today is going to be less than ideal. Oh well. Anyway, the scones were pretty and quite tasty. I’ll probably have to make coffee cake muffins again this morning instead. Bummer.
This morning I am baking a sour cream streusel coffee cake and it is taking FOREVER. The recipe said 35-40 minutes and it’s been an hour and counting. Oh! I just realized why! My pan is 8″x8″ not 9″x9″…. yep, that’ll do it. It smells so good I can’t believe it. We are going to demolish this thing. I predict a lot of burned mouths due to impatience.
Yesterday’s “allergy scones” (delicious if dangerous) & today’s coffee cake
Verdict is in. Husband gives the coffee cake 10/10 and I think it would be if it were 100% cooked which I don’t think it is…. I will use a 13″x9″ pan next time and bake it for probably about 20-30 minutes. I think it’s worth saving. We’ll see how it goes over with the offspring in a bit, they are all still sleeping. I’m a little bummed the middle isn’t quite cooked. Presumably I didn’t insert the toothpick far enough in? Rookie mistake and you hate to see it.
In other news, my state is going to “stage 3” of reopening today, despite the fact that it hasn’t been long enough for us to see how stages 1 & 2 are affecting infection rates yet. *sigh* We have gotten some calls at the library from patrons who are upset we haven’t opened our doors yet, one said they were going to complain to someone. My Director has said we will not open until our plexiglass shields are installed but I fear she may cave to pressure as people keep barrelling forward. I will quit if it comes to it. Gods, I hate that I have to even consider that. I am watching my friends starting to go out to eat in outdoor seating, resuming getting haircuts, even massage, and I can’t believe it. It seems so clear that the guidelines we are being given through official channels are inadequate, I don’t know how people aren’t seeing that. We wouldn’t have the infection rates we’re seeing if the virus was carried on droplets that are gone in 15 minutes, scientists are telling us it is actually airborne, meaning it can hang there in the air, floating, for far, far longer than 15 minutes. They found Covid-19 in air samples from that cruise ship 17 Days after everyone disembarked.
There are also continuing stories of people attacking store clerks etc, forcibly removing their masks, even breaking their arms. I don’t like thinking that that happens to anyone, let alone that it could happen to me, I wish everyone could just keep it on the road and behave. I like to think of the library as a peaceful place, a relatively quiet & civilized place, a place where assaults don’t happen. But they do. Libraries are for everyone, so we get all kinds, some of bigoted and violent and they absolutely, if they follow library rules while in the library, have the right to check out materials, use computers and so on. I like to think maybe those types will learn something when they visit, that they might gain a broader perspective. That is certainly my wish for them. And yet, because of those types, I am forced to assess the risks to myself in simply going to work amid this pandemic. Once the doors open how safe will I be? Only as safe as the most selfish, deluded patron allowed through the doors lets me be.
So where is the other side of this? I mean, what will the other side of this be when we get there? Do things ever really go back to normal again? Just as they were, as far as handshakes, hugging, attending events, and so on goes? The shocking swiftness of the spread of this disease makes me think we would be unwise to ever return to what we used to call “normal.” If the next disease to spring into being is as contagious as this one, has a similar, long incubation, but also has a higher death rate like some others we’ve seen, say 30%? It will be an unstoppable, global calamity. I’m not freaked out about that idea, I’m just looking at what we’ve got in Covid-19 and thinking about other related infections like MERS. We may or may not see a disease that is that “perfect storm” of highly contagious, stealthy, and deadly, but we certainly cannot rule it out. What am I hearing this morning? Bubonic plague in Mongolia? Brain eating amoebas in Florida? Is anyone keeping track of the giant murder hornets in the Northwestern U.S.?
This is why I hide my poor, tired brain away, it’s hard to hold onto any kind of metal balance if one stays adequately informed about the world. So I paint, and I bake, and I read, and, most of all, I game. I become other people, in other worlds, I stride around like a badass and conquer all my problems head on. It’s nice when problems are imaginary and can be solved with a few good die rolls. I wish I could bring about world peace & social justice with a few natural 20s in diplomacy. I wish I could conquer world hunger by creating a gathering of Druids who could travel the world creating adequate food and clean water for everyone. Crazy diseases? Meet these fine clerics of Iomedae or Desna! Boom! Solved. I wish. So, I keep hiding in my little home life, in my books and games and such.
So, I’ve been having a very fun week cooking and such. I have learned to make muffins, which I now like, apparently. I made chocolate chip coffee cake muffins and peanut butter muffins with peanut butter chips, both delicious. I made mint chocolate chip ice cream yesterday, came out pretty good and I know what I’ll do differently next time so, I’m counting it a win. This morning I got up and made donuts for the first time. I made cinnamon & sugar, vanilla glazed, and chocolate glazed. All good! My husband has declared them preferable to commercial donuts.
After eating some fresh, warm donuts this morning he said; “Wow, it will be so much easier to stock up for the next shut down. You’ll just need a bunch of basic supplies and you can make whatever you want from them.” He then compared me to the astronauts on the space station somehow, which I think is something of an exaggeration….
I am attempting to propagate my peppermint plants into more peppermint plants. My goal is a vast, unstoppable supply of fresh mint. Normal people could just toss a mint leaf in their yard and it would be overrun with mint in a month. For me this is not so. I must work at it, try, fail, try again. Eventually I got 2 types of mint to take hold in my yard. It took me 3 years. I could still easily wipe it out making tea so I’m trying to get some real, strong patches of it developed. We’ll see.
Peppermint on the left, spearmint on the right.
There exists a real chance that we demolished the mint ice cream without getting proper pics, something I will remedy with batch 2, coming soon to a goofy blog near you!
I found a recipe online for mint chocolate chip ice cream that uses fresh mint and does not require an ice cream maker! (I don’t have one and I prefer gadgets that are multi-purpose) So this morning I went out and harvested a bunch of peppermint from the yard and attempted the recipe for the first time. I was so excited I forgot to take many pics but here’s what I’ve got:
Mint fresh from the garden, ice cream step 1, & mint froth!
Now the ice cream is all put together but I rather suspect the chocolate chips all sank to the bottom. I think I will try mini-chocolate chips, if I can get any, and whipping the cream a little stiffer next time. I will post tomorrow and let you know if this worked and how it came out. So Exciting!
If I can make ice cream… I have the Power! The means of production are in my hands! MUAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!
When I was a kid iced tea was this sugary stuff in a canister that we weren’t allowed to have. I went through a phase where I drank a fair bit of it in my 20s but as it is basically non carbonated soda with only one redeeming value: caffeine, I gave it up even before I gave up soda. It’s like an optional level of growing up to give up food that isn’t really food, to start wanting to eat things that actually make you feel good and are full of nutrition and not just sugar, fat & salt. I still indulge in food that doesn’t have much to recommend it, I just try to choose it consciously and not by default.
At some point after giving up sugary, canister iced tea, I found myself needing an ice cold drink on hot days that wasn’t just water. I started making mint tea sweetened with a little maple syrup and it was a hit with my family and with people wherever I brought it. Then I started making an unsweetened mint tea using half spearmint and half peppermint and my family absolutely loves it. This year I am making iced teas with various mint leaves, dried citrus peels and/or dried citrus slices, dried roses, dried apple slices w/cinnamon and so on. I feel 100% free to experiment, to try and succeed or fail, to make mistakes and discover wonderful new things I want to keep in my life. A few years ago I decided, and I’m quoting here: “Fuck it. I am not getting any younger, my life is rolling on by at a steady pace, and I am tired of being afraid to fail. I am tired of talking myself out of things without even trying. I am tired of feel so very STUCK. So this year I am just going to go for it, just whatever I feel like I might want to try, I am just going to try and not listen to my brain telling me it won’t work.”
So that’s what I did. I started small. I watched shows I thought I might not like, I tried recipes I wasn’t sure I could manage, I read books I thought might go over my head, and I tried making things I thought I might not be able to successfully make. I failed to push past my fear of doing a craft show, twice, maybe more than twice, it’s hard to recall. I still haven’t done that, but now I haven’t been producing crafts like I used to so… I DID open an Etsy shop and sold some things for a little while. Definitely didn’t make any money but it was still something of a learning experience. I saw a job for a library assistant and ignored the fact that I wasn’t qualified and actually sent in a resume’. I got an interview and I got the job! About 1 1/2 years later I saw a job posting for a teen librarian, something I did not get the schooling for and librarian schooling is serious, wow, major degrees for it and often for very good reason. But, this was a small, rural library and the expansive and detailed knowledge that might be very necessary in a populated city isn’t as critical. So I applied, sent in a resume’ and cover letter telling myself the worst that could happen would be no reply. I got an interview and I got that job too!
The lesson in this ramble is: GO FOR IT! You might get a wonderful surprise! But, having gained my dream job, I now experiment mostly on a smaller scale, with recipes, art, and that sort of thing. So, Iced tea: Play with it! Have fun! Use your favorite fruits and herbs to create your own signature blends! BE YOU. Put something you thought up out into the world. Anyway, here’s some pics of my “process.”
That was yesterday’s tea and below is today’s still in progress. I opted to pick mint fresh from the yard for today and skip the dried apple I used yesterday. I also made the blend a lot stronger with more dried orange slices and roses.
Gen-Xer Remix 