Loja do Chá

last steep, so it’s time to mourn this wonderful brew
at the moment I have entirely too much tea in my cupboard, so I’ll probably only be getting this next summer — we all agree green tea matches warm weather, right?
let’s hope my local tea store does not discontinue this in the meantime!
(btw, if any of you come to Aveiro, HOP BY LOJA DO CHÁ!! it’s a café+tea store, and the ‘tea lady’ definitely knows her stuff)

I measured the tea I still have, and after today’s steep, I have 4g left, which luckily is the exact amount I use on the other to-go bottle I have—yay luck!
today and tomorrow are the last days work will be open until mid august, so maybe I’ll be able to take a couple weeks off! yay! I also got in contact with the big boss regarding my PhD; he seems excited and looking forward to working with me, which is WILD! what do you mean a top researcher in my field is looking forward to working with ME! WHAT!!!!

sipping while reviewing a hellish extended abstract, but at least the weather is much cooler now!

green tea is a life saver in this weather; sad they didn’t have Nortada when I got this, as mint would be a great addition here :)

fully back to work after the defense!
today is a really hot day for me (32C!), so the lemon here is very welcome; I don’t tend to let this tea cool down much, but it’s great!

Teca is still tense, but I think she has slightly forgiven me.

I officially have a jury table for my dissertation defense! Every step in this process makes everything much more “real,” which is scary. Then again, I have so much to do that I’m not sure I have the time to worry about that :)

Here’s to drowning in work!

guess who had to go to the vet again!
Teca’s thyroid values were bad, the worst they’ve ever been, so either she’s been spitting out her medication, or there is something much more serious going on
So, back to the vet, blood was drawn, this time for extra tests
the values probably resulted from her spitting out her pills and us not noticing, but considering her age and everything else, I’d rather be safe

vet days always suck, and I have to both calm myself down and try not to fall over sleeping from sheer exhaustion; with the panic the lab results gave me yesterday, work has been getting hectic

so, sipping while working, from home, desperately trying to calm down, stay awake, work, and not panic about everything else happening — july is going to be a busy, busy month

sipping on this while looking at the “work” I did while I unknowingly had COVID — I’m not sure any of this is salvageable! I’d ask “what was I on?” but… yeah, COVID brain fog, checks out
Teca has somewhat forgiven me, or maybe is plotting my demise, she slept by my head

the old lady did NOT behave at the vet!
but her vitals are good, and now we have to wait on the bloodwork
this is both a ‘refresh, take a step, calm down’ and a ‘come on, move at least a little bit’ brew
in part, because Teca screams her little lungs off at the vet, and it’s an overall stressful experience for both of us
on the other hand, I do need to practice my presentation

this tea, however, is as nice as ever

feels like I haven’t had this in forever, but with the thesis delivered (yay!) I can calm down in the caffeine department :)

with the sunny weather, this looks like the perfect choice for the next weeks; fruity, light and refreshing (would be even better if I had Nortada, as that has mint, but it sold out! this was the closest blend they had)

made this to sip on while giving my thesis one last look through before handing it back to my advisor before leaving for Paris!

the weather is really nice, sunny and slightly warm (yesterday it got HOT, we went up to 28C!)

it feels weird to be almost done with my thesis; on one hand, it is my own flesh and blood and i love it so very dearly; on the other, it is a monster I created, as though I’m frankenstein and this is my monster, it has ruined my life, it is an aberration, and i hate it with every bone in my body

made this beautiful brew to both celebrate the holiday (yay May 1st!) and to have something to drink while reading
I’m currently making my way through Convenience Store Woman, so a green-white-fruits blend makes waay more sense than Lady Grey :)

light and airy, but I feel that my steep is not as blended as it needed to be (probably scooped it wrong)
it has a clear pineapple something, and with the mixed-in green and white tea, it makes for a nice brew for a sunny day

goodbye, my dear friend, you were a great tea :)

this is probably going to be the last time i bring this tea to work, which is a shame, but there are more teas to be had :D

the next one will probably be the herbal I talked about, that way I can cut back on the amount of caffeine I drink throughout the day :)
(also OCD says I MUST drink the one closest to its expiration, and honestly I have bigger fish to fry in terms of energy, so….. I’ll let my OCD decide this time)

On a personal note, my country had elections and it seems that the new government does not care about science and research, which is great considering that my career in that field is about to start… :)
But as my mom’s godfather always says: what is ours will be ours (in English it sounds weird, but it’s something along the lines of “if something is meant to be for us, then it will happen, no matter what”; it’s just a saying, but it always gives me hope)

my stash of this tea is almost over, which is a shame :(
I’m getting to the point that my tin needs to be at an angle so I can get the tea with a spoon, which is super awkward
however, I’m excited to get another one in my weekly rotation! probably going to go for my Lady Grey, which I’ve been neglecting… or maybe go to whatever is closest to expiring?
On one hand, I like having caffeinated tea during the morning, however, my oldest tea is herbal, and I REALLY don’t want it to go bad….

choices are hard!

okay, I stand corrected, the 3min steep is the optimal time for this tea (yay scientific method!)
this tea is incredibly heavy on the cinnamon, has a smooth black tea base and there’s… something? that sort of clings to the tongue in a pleasant earthy-acid way — reminds me of the way hibiscus has a very specific taste!
it’s an overtly winter brew, and I wish they had more teas they made specifically for each season; alas, not all seasons have a ‘magical’ (consumerist) … vibe, I guess?

(on a personal note, my advisor FINALLY started reviewing my thesis, yay! enjoying this tea as I listen to the new Capitão Fausto album and continue trying to find stuff to cut to send my work to a conference as well)

Back on the 3min steep time, and I think this may actually be better than the 4 minutes.
Although the black tea itself is pretty disguised, the ingredient that apparently leaves a film on my tongue is gone as well.

My philosophy for this tea is basically: considering how the shop advertised the different bases of this tea as basically interchangeable, I don’t think I’m actually SUPPOSED to be tasting the black tea and all its subtleties

found the sweet spot between funky and earthy! four minutes seem to be the right steeping time for me :)

the five minutes make a huge difference!
It’s still heavy on the cinnamon, however, the black tea base is more noticeable, and there are other subtleties I lost in my first brew