Melissa’s Cozy Teacup

Looking for unique ideas for your next tea party? Check out THIS. I have been following Natasha’s creative journey for about a year now. I have always been entertained and amazed at her creativity and, she is genuinely kind and a joy to talk to and has a cutie pie little boy to boot! Why not go, ‘down under’ (she lives in Australia) for some inspiration and a respite from the day?

Hello dear readers. Last week, I received my newsletter from Elizabeth Knight. Elizabeth, for those who don’t know, is an author and speaker specializing in tea. She has a new book out: Celtic Teas with Friends.

If interested, please do visit her site to purchase your own signed copy of her new book.

I purchased a Broyhill chair at a garage sale yesterday. It needs some TLC, but when I’m done, it will go nicely in my office. So for today at least, have a nice cuppa and a cookie and we’ll resume Chesterton next Monday.
Happy Sipping!

It’s a bit over cast and cool today so a nice cuppa and some cookies are in order.

I am sad to tell you, Tasha Tudor has passed away. If you do not know who she is, please take a moment to visit her website, or her memorial website. Among other things, she recently auctioned off a large collection of antique dresses she used to let her friends try on, to their great delight, and I’m sure hers. Tasha was a gifted illustrator, grew her own food, had a small farm, hand dipped her own beez wax candles and always had afternoon tea at 4:00p.m. every day.

Even the Dark Lord turns to tea for a refreshing pick-me-up during those long ours of battling for universal dominance.

Please remember to copy the badge and use it as a link back to my site if you are following alone with the book club and write about it on your blog.

Reading Chesterton has been surprisingly difficult. I’m not merely talking about the differences in past writing styles to today’s writing styles or the references to people and things of Chesterton’s time that I keep having to research like a term paper. I rather enjoy reading Chesterton in the ‘original Klingon’ as my husband would say about such writings, and I also have enjoyed looking up the things and people he mentions. I can almost feel my brain cells expanding. No, none of that is really what is weighing heavily upon my heart.

What troubles me the most, is that, we are not learning from our mistakes. We are repeating history, to our detriment. It is not surprising so much as it is disheartening. Christians know who the god of this earth is. His reign is limited as is the time he has left. Those who do not know this, continue living as if their lives have no eternity, no consequence. They believe they are, ‘lining large’ in their sin and that those who follow Christ are small. Small minded, small hearted, tiny in their understanding of worldly things. Oh, they could not be further from the truth.

Insights to chapter three.

1. Enjoy the small things. They really are what make life worth living. Assignment? Romanticize something that you would normally view as mundane. Read chapter three and figure it out for yourself.

2. I cannot say it better than he, so here is a quote from Chesterton from chapter three,‘The evil of militarism is not that it shows certain men to be fierce and haughty and excessively warlike. The evil of militarism is that it shows most men to be tame and timid and excessively peaceable. The professional soldier gains more and more power as the general courage of a community declines. Thus the Pretorian guard became more and more important in Rome as Rome became more and more luxurious and feeble. The military man gains the civil power in proportion as the civilian loses the military virtues. And as it was in ancient Rome so it is in contemporary Europe. There never was a time when nations were more militarist. There never was a time when men were less brave. All ages and all epics have sung of arms and the man; but we have effected simultaneously the deterioration of the man and the fantastic perfection of the arms. Militarism demonstrated the decadence of Rome, and it demonstrates the decadence of Prussia.’

The word, America, could very easily replace some of the other references to countries.

3. How large, or small, is your world?

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In our cold, plastic filled world of technology, I surround myself with things of beauty, large, tea carts, and small, paper art, to remind myself of a time when things were not designed to look like a race car. This is one of the reasons why I love Steampunk so much. Would you like to sit down before a computer monitor and key board made with accents of brass and marble? I would. Would you like to type on keys from a Royal type writer instead of these square things, whose faces, on my keyboard at least, are fading? I would. Sometimes I write with a pen that I dip repeatedly into a tiny ink well. Scritch, scratch, dip. I imagine I’m sitting i n my parlor at my writing desk in my beautiful gauzy summer dress while I’m scratching away, occasionally pausing to sip tea from a thin china cup. If I had the resources, I’d hire a seamstress, I don’t sew, and have a wardrobe of fine Victorian and Edwardian outfits to wear. I wouldn’t care if people thought I was eccentric and odd. Maybe they are for not dressing this way. I’d dine by candle light every night being served by staff in white gloves. When it was time to go to bed, I’d dress in the softest white linen gown wrapped in a silk robe of green upon which would be embroidered gold peonies.

Okay, time to stop dreaming and head off to church. My family is coming over for Father’s Day this afternoon for a bbq.

Click on any picture to make it bigger.

www.houseofcommonstea.com

Jessica’s website is down right now but please do visit it soon and often and if you find yourself heading to Denver, please do visit her. Here is her address:

2401 15th St
Denver, CO
303-455-4832

Here is how you get there going North on I-25. Take exit 23. You will pass by the aquarium which will be on your right. Keep on the road and follow it around without turning. Cross over 15th street. House of Commons is on the left about 3-4 doors down, just past the bar and grill. I had had a terrible morning in down town Denver. Homeless men by the droves kept coming up to me and begging for change and breakfast (perhaps Gov. Ritter should do something about cleaning up the downtown area instead of passing bills that rob the majority of the populace of privacy in the bathroom.) Feeling completely unsafe(one man in particular seemed to be everywhere I was. It was too coincidental to be random.) and harassed, I left the downtown area to spend my money elsewhere.

After visiting the Denver Art Museum (no panhandlers there!) I went to find the House of Commons. I didn’t realize how far south I had gone (I’m not so good with directions) I thought I would drive a bit to the mall and eat there but then changed my mind again as I really wanted to spend money on small business owner. I know that not every person in the mall is part of a large chain store, but there is just something appealing and satisfying about spending money outside the mall where all the stores look the same and carry the same thing everyone else does and I didn’t want fast food which always seems to make me sick to my stomach.

I turned my car around and off to House of Commons I went. It took some doing and I got a bit lost because I exited too soon but a nice Denver police officer (sorry again to have disturbed you on your lunch break!) pointed me in the right direction. I found it! By the time I arrived, the streets were quite busy and I had to park a ways away. I ended up parking across form a green belt that ran the length of a river. there were nice sized trees offering shade and many park benches. I decided to come back to that spot to while away the rest of the afternoon until it was time to pick up Tech Hubby from his meeting.

Once inside the HoC, I ordered a pot of Lady Grey and a curry chicken salad sandwich. Both were quite delicious. I visited with Jessica, the owner, telling her about my previous visit (sad to say (wishing I could go more frequently) it was about three years ago, shortly after she opened). She was delighted I had come back- how could I not? -and recommended some local shops to me. I thanked her and left and promptly went next door to, well, you’ll have to see in tomorrow’s post. You won’t want to miss it. We definitely need one of these in my city. I’d open on up tomorrow if I had the money and I think it would do well.

p.s. I gave Jessica my introduction card. She asked me what I speak about and I told her about the things I do involving hospitality. She said she used to open her restaurant every Tuesday to moms with new born babies. It has waned over the years but she said while it was going, it was a great group.

‘See’ you tomorrow!