Tea For Two... Um... Five

Edit: This is my 100th post. I didn't even notice. That is too funny.

On Monday, Niki, DH and I, Max and Zoe went to the Celestial Seasonings factory in Boulder. We would have taken Pete too, but he was too young; they wouldn't have let him go on the tour. He got to enjoy some one-on-one time with his dad. Here are Max and Zoe with the Sleepytime Bear.

When you get out of your car, the air around the factory smells just heavenly. It is a combination of many flavors of tea; sweet and floral and spicy all at once. Step into the lobby, where you can read about the history of tea, see the artwork for each variety, see teapots designed like the artwork, and taste any tea you would like to try. This room has another tea aroma. This is a teapot designed like the artwork for the Tension Tamer Tea.

The tour through the factory was so much fun. They made us all wear hair nets, and for DH, they provided a face net. No stray hairs allowed, because you really do not want that in your tea. We got free samples of the tea (4 teabags of Black Cherry Berry) as a pass for the tour, and we got to keep our hair nets.

The instructions at the end of the historical video tell you not to take pictures in the factory. It is stated again before you get through the door into the tour. There was a lady that didn't listen, and thought she could get away with taking a picture of the shaking boxes that sift ingredients. A factory worker came out, and made her delete all the pictures she had taken. Our tour guide was a young lady with a very quick sense of humor. “She must be from Lipton.”

We saw the Tea Room. This is where they store much of the tea leaves as they first come into the plant. They have huge containers full of White, Green and Black tea leaves as well as Rooibos (which is not a tea leaf, but another kind of plant from Africa). My house is smaller than this room. It was tremendous.

We saw the Mint Room. It is a huge storage locker with a really tall garage door. When they open the door, the smell can hit you like a wall. Be careful stepping inside. Peppermint and Spearmint are in the air, and you can taste it if you stick your tongue out. Stay too long, and your eyes will burn, almost as bad as when you chop an onion.

Then we got to watch the machines pack and seal and stack the tea boxes. It reminds me of the soda machine working to fill the Dr. Pepper bottles, that we saw evidence of in Dublin, TX. It is an amazing process. Seal the tea mix into little paper envelopes, seal the envelopes in a wax parchment bag, seal the bag in a thin cardboard box, seal the box in plastic wrap, seal the boxes in thick cardboard shipping boxes, set those on a palate. Watch the whole process take just a few minutes. Modern miracles.

After the tour, we went back to the front Lobby and got to taste teas for free. I tried a few teas. This is HUGE for me, because I don't really like tea. I figure now that it was much like beer. I can't stand the smell of beer. But, just maybe, the issue is that I have only smelled/tasted Bad Beer. Maybe, just maybe, the issue is that I have not yet had tea sweetened properly. I tasted a tea that was brewed and then iced. It was sweetened with Sugar (as opposed to honey or aspartame) and it was the fruity sweet taste I expected. My favorite was the Acai Mango Zinger. I even bought a box of it from the store.

We went shopping in the gift shop after the tasting. Oh, I spent way too much money, but that is what vacations are for, right? How many times will I get to go back there? We got mugs that have letters and words on them, licensed by Scrabble. We came back to our favorite coffee shop and played in a Scrabble tournament, and we had the mugs to help everyone. It was very fun.

I love buying tea, and I use the ones I don't like to drink for a mini crock pot of potpourri. I love the smell of tea steeping, and coffee percolating. But, it takes a phenomenal amount of sugar to get either to a point where I can feel good about drinking it. I have always enjoyed the Celestial Seasonings brand in my crock of good smells. This is the first tea ever to cross my lips with pleasure. Here are the prints of the Bear Feet that are outside the Lobby.

After this, we drove back to Niki's house. Niki and I were fading. It was a long day, after staying awake so late into the night. I don't know how Niki fared the rest of the day, but I took a nap while DH drove South. Stay tuned for more vacation adventures!

Rocky Mountain High Is My Kind Of Mile

We spent Saturday night, Sunday night and part of Monday with Niki's family. Heather stays at Niki's house every weekend, so they tell me. So often this happens, that she gets Zoe's room, and Zoe has a mattress in the boys' room. Thank you to Heather for volunteering to sleep in the living room on the couch, so that a couple of weary travelers could have Zoe's bed. We had the cheap insurance with us. We had borrowed dad's air mattress and the stilts to make it taller than the floor. We never once had to sleep on the floor. Everyone we stayed with had a spare bed to share. We were (are) so blessed.

We went to the Journey with the family on Sunday. Church services with a band and communion with the option of wine as well as grape juice. I didn't go in with my baggage. I heaved it off with a conscious effort and left it in the car. I went in knowing that God was in the place. I had a great experience. I know that, as a drummer, DH was listening to the band. We didn't know many of the songs. I recognized two of them, because of Christian radio on my digital cable. I listened with an unapologetic openness that I don't often allow out of the box. See? Niki stretches my sensibilities. Benny said that he would feel totally comfortable bringing their Street Kids to the Journey. You can't say that about all churches. This is Abi, Niki and Heather, on Sunday. I had to get on my knees and beg Heather to be in this picture. You all should feel the honor of this.

On Sunday afternoon, we ate the wonderful lunch that Benny and Heather had worked so hard for on Saturday evening. Yum, Potato and Bacon Soup. We had all been laughing and sharing and getting to know each other. Crock pots are wonderful things, and those liners you can get are awesome, too.

I wanted to see more people. I had to meet as many Blog Buddies as I could manage. Niki was awesome, setting up a meeting for us. Niki, Heather, DH, Paula and I drove to a distant (across a big city distant, not across the state far) Starbucks to visit with Jan. Here are all the Bloggy Babes. Left to right: Paula, Niki, Heather, Jan, Chelf.

For those of you who don't read some of the other blogs... I have stories to share from that day. Mind you, I am now more than two weeks removed from this experience. We sat in the sun, but under umbrellas, around two circular tables. A couple of the girls were worried that my fair skin (they were so nice to not point out that I am rivaling the shade of paper!) in the high altitude would burn. I got to sit in the shade. I also gave some of the sunshine to Paula, who was cold. Notice she was in the throw blanket. Someone (I think it was Heather, but I can't be certain. Anyone want to correct me?) said their next tattoo would be that butterfly from my shirt. I love that shirt. Turns out to be my Blog Buddy Meeting Shirt.

We made all the introductions, and DH even said "I am the DH." It was cute. Here he is, looking very Men In Black for us.

We talked about everything. DH fared pretty well. He had a few things to say. We didn't just leave him out. He reads this thing, too. Jan brought the chocolate. I don't get the joke with the purse, but free chocolate is the best thing that could happen on a vacation.

We talked about the current term for a lady who cuts and designs hair. Niki told Jan that "hairdresser" made her sound old, and she might as well say "beautician". We decided that the term should be "hair stylist". I went inside, to use the restroom (laughing makes that important, girls) and to get a coffee confection. While I was in line, I was approached by a woman I had seen outside. She had made a bit of a production out of tying up her little dog on a chair near us, trying to listen in. I hadn't really thought about it, though. We were too busy laughing at ourselves and our conversation. She was shorter than me (takes a bit to be noticeably shorter than my 5 foot 2 stature), and was wearing comfortable layers, and red Crocs. "I learned something today." I said, "Oh, what was that?" I was thinking that it was a strange way to start the conversation, and wondering why this stranger was speaking to me like we were in the middle of a discussion. "I learned that the proper term is 'stylist'." I laughed out loud, trying not to be as loud as I was outside. I think she said it would make a good story, because I told her I was going to share that with the rest of the girls, and that it would get out there, since we are all writers. We did get a good laugh about it. Tickles me to think of it now. I love Jan's laugh. It is contagious. A little note for those readers and writers of Christian fiction: I was in the middle of reading Kristin Billerbeck's Split Ends. A book about a stylist (she used the word "hairdresser" in the book!) who makes a new start. We were all sad to leave, but we had to get Paula back to her family by a certain time. Here is me, trying not to look too sarcastic. I prefer to be behind the camera, truth be told.

On Sunday evening, Niki and Heather took DH and me to see Downtown Denver. We rode a bus that reminded me of the trains in St. Louis. We stopped at one of the 16 Starbucks in the 6 or 8 blocks of the district. We got to see all sorts of stores. This one is for Suezque.

Oklahoma City doesn't have that kind of shopping in our downtown. We have Bricktown, but that is mostly bars and restaurants. These were stores like one would see in the local mall. I didn't get many good pictures from the bus. We drove around more, and got to see the Convention Center.

We got to see areas around the art museum (Niki calls these the Naked Aliens).

We got to see the outside of the Library. Yes, that is a horse on a huge chair. All I could think of was the old bit on TV, with Gilda Radner sitting in the big chair, and saying “and that's the Truth-thththth!”

We went to the Capitol Building. DH had been there many years ago, and remembered there was a step that said “One Mile Above Sea Level”.

He wanted to get a picture of us sitting on that step.

I got a picture of this plaque. Keep in mind it was dark, and I had a camera with a flash. I thought this was a neat thing to have posted on the building. If you click on the picture, you can probably read every word, including the author's signature at the bottom right corner. On a column on the other side, was a plaque showing the order that instituted Memorial Day, I think. That picture didn't turn out so well.

I took this picture for my Dad, the collector of arms.

I liked this little wrought iron decorative fence. The best picture was backwards... but this one looked really good, too. Yep, we took the picture, and then noticed the C in the Colorado Flag on the thing. I felt really silly for not noticing sooner.

Sunday night, Niki and I stayed up way too late. Early? We didn't even bother to go to bed until about 3:45 am. We “..spoke of many things, fools and kings...” I don't know that we resolved any of the world's problems, but we certainly have a better understanding of each other, and we were cultivating our friendship. I really like having someone close to my age, that has such a mature outlook. I don't know if it comes from the experience in life, or from motherhood, or just from God's touch. Maybe a bit of each of those. I truly respect her.

My body had been on Oklahoma time the whole vacation, and Monday morning was no exception. I was awake at 7 am. That's right, I only got three hours of sleep that night. I was awake before Niki was.

On Monday...

I think I shall save that story for the next post.

The Animals, They Came In By Twosies, Twosies

Saturday April 5, we decided to go to Denver, by way of sightseeing. When leaving Loveland, we passed the neatest store. It has been there for over 100 years. My grandmother, upon hearing the name, told my Mom that she didn't think Mom talked that way.

There is a Dam Tower (upper left of the picture) to look at the Dam, and the Dam Shirt, one of which I purchased. One of the sales girls was wearing Bear Feet slippers. They look comfy, don't they?

I have wonderful friends who live in Ft. Collins. I used to live there, when I was small. I don't know what it was, but I had a feeling that we would be too busy, so we would pass going to Ft. Collins, and go directly to Estes Park. My mother was not happy to know that I had not taken DH to see the friends in Ft. Collins. My friends (actually Mom's friends, who had been my babysitters when I was little) were anxious to meet DH, but we were driving West instead of North. Don't get angry with me, there is more to the story.

I really am not happy that we skipped showing DH around Ft. Collins. The joke was that when I was a child, I was riding home from church with a college student that was coming to our house for lunch on a Sunday. She was asking me (I was 3 or 4 years old) all sorts of questions. She asked me where I lived, in relation to the mountains. I apparently stared at my shoes, wiggled my toes, and thought about it for a long time. Then, I replied, “The Toe-Hills.” She was going for “foothills”. I could have seen if the nice neighbor lady still lived next door, and I wanted to show DH the school I went to for Kindergarten. Alas, we didn't have time.

The first thing I saw in Estes Park was the Estes Ark. It is a boat-shaped building on the edge of town. I convinced DH to stop, and we shopped. I bought a measuring stick that is one cubit. For the American in me, it is 18 inches. The measurement of a cubit, if I am remembering right, was the distance between a grown man's elbow and fingertips. I love the last plank on the sign.

We went on to the Visitors Center, and looked around. We used the time to plan our shopping, and call our mothers. We then walked along the Big Thompson River, sneaking into little shops along the River Walk. If you ever get the chance, this is a great way to spend a lot of a day, and you get exercise and fresh mountain air. Just be careful, because some people get Altitude Sickness. I guess if you are used to low altitudes, the thin Mountain air is sickening, especially if you are exerting yourself walking up and down the hills to shop. This is the Big Thompson River, near the Visitors Center in Estes Park. That big hunk of rock in river on the right was actually a heart-shaped stone, and I took a better picture of it for Niki. I couldn't exactly get it out of the river to bring to her... so I settled for the next best thing.

We grew to be hungry, and we started looking for options. Dairy Queen! No, they don't have the chicken fingers I was hoping for. No, I don't like hotdogs. Subway! No, I worked there for over two years, and the smell of wheat bread yeast that lingers in the air may be attractive to some, but it sickens me. That looks like a Burger joint! No, it is a bar with food. Finally, we happened upon a cute little diner at the farthest end of our walk. We settled on Penelope's. There was a sign (and it was printed on their cups!) that they had been voted the best Burger in Estes. We ordered and sat down to eat. After only a bite or two, a man walked past me, looking for a place to sit, or maybe in search of the bathrooms. I did a double take. I said to DH, “That looked like Steve.” When I looked back to the front of the store, I saw Steve's dad.

The world is small, and shrinking every day. I did see Steve, his lovely wife Kristi and their two beautiful children, as well as Steve's parents. These are the friends we had thought about visiting in Ft. Collins. If Dairy Queen had served Chicken, if Subway had not been a former job, if we had driven to Ft. Collins to show DH the “toe-hills”, we would have missed these dear friends. Although, I could have shown DH where their house was. I don't have pictures of them, because the camera was in the car, at the other end of town. It was just too heavy to carry while shopping. I didn't figure I would need to take pictures of the shops, at any rate. They might have gotten mad at me.

We wandered back to the car, refreshed by our walk, our food and our visit. We then went to Boulder, and the Pearl Street Mall to shop some more. I had my sights on only one destination: Into the Wind. This is a kite shop that my Dad found when he was in his kite building phase. I went there, and did not buy a kite. Somehow, that is just wrong. But I got dice to add to the collection, and we bought a Frisbee with their logo printed on it. The mall is at least three blocks long, and cars can go across it, but prohibited along the length of it. There were street performers every so often. I heard guitar and bagpipe music. I saw a man up on a very tall unicycle, who was juggling firey bowling pins. There was a group of men, drumming and dancing. They were very strong, and agile. There was a group that stood on a corner, and played guitars and sang. They called themselves The Curb Feelers.

We left Boulder, and drove to Denver. We went to Casa Bonita for dinner. Now, everyone who heard this had their own reaction. Suffice it to say that our main purpose was NOT food, though I believe the food is pretty good. There used to be a one in Tulsa, but it closed over two years ago. The one in Denver was better, anyway. Two stories high, with a dive show, a 500 lb. Gorilla (didn't see him, and was sorely disappointed!), and so many places to explore. When I was small, I used to scream at the puppet show. I was afraid of masks. Huge Gorillas, the dancing puppets, and the mysterious Gypsy fortune teller in a box all freaked me out. They still do, even though I am older, wiser and braver.

More to come soon!