Coffee or Tea For Me?

What do you drink first thing in the morning? My beverage of choice would be a glass of Ovaltine. Joe has to have coffee. I like coffee, but having to drink decaf, it's too much bother to make both kinds. I've tried using instant coffee, but I really don't like it. I take a swallow and think, "Why am I drinking this stuff that really doesn't taste good to me." Sometimes I have turned to tea. I have been trying to get used to green tea, but that flavor isn't much better....if I'm really honest with myself. I like other herb teas, however and I drink them later in the day. My old neighbor, Ruth, had parents who were born in England. They introduced her to tea at an early age. She developed the habit of drinking a big mug of hot tea with her meals. When I was invited for a meal, she would put a big steaming mug at my place too. I really enjoyed this. On cold mornings I would like a hot beverage. It seems that I just can't get into the habit of making myself a cup of tea. You'd think at my age, I'd have that habit formed, but without the caffeine urge, you wouldn't have that craving of addiction. So, I continue on searching for the answer. Making tea is quick and even quicker if you boil water in your cup in the microwave. I have burned myself doing this several times and feel that it isn't really safe for me to do it this way. So searching for the answer, I am always interested in what different people do for a good cup of morning brew.

I have been reading blogs where people set up coffee stations on their counter. Coffee cups, pots, cute utensils, different things to add to coffee...it all sounds so enticing. I have toyed with the idea of getting a Keurig coffee pot. We've had coffee pot after coffee pot....Bunns, Mr. Coffees a big one and a little one, Cuisinart, Chemex, percolators and on and on. I thought that finally I had the answer...a Keurig where we can have both tea and coffee at the same time and not fool around with two different appliances. Then I checked the price of the pot and the little K cups. Not worth it in my estimation. I don't even know if we would like this. Wish you could try one out without buying it :) Now, up in my cupboard I have a tea kettle that I'm not using. It's electric and plastic. It heats water in an instant and it pours safely. I used to use it all the time and it worked well for me. Then I started hearing about how it's not good to drink water that has boiled in plastic. BPA's are released in water. Maybe at my age, I shouldn't have to worry about this, but everytime I used that kettle, I was concerned and didn't really enjoy the drink or whatever I used the water for. So, I put it away a couple of years ago and went back to my old way of heating in the microwave. We seem to want everything in an instant these days. When I make Joe's coffee which we set up the night before, I want my drink done at the same time. No waiting for the tea kettle to boil. I bought my daughter an electric tea kettle a year or so ago. She loves it. I decided to buy one for myself and started researching them. They are all prices. We found one, that had all the features we wanted, at Walmart. $29.95...only one left. So Joe bought one and brought it home. It's made of stainless steel....and boils water so quickly. I think I'm going to like it. My first cup of tea, using the kettle,was one by Stash...cinnamon, apple, chamomile tea. Very good. Then I tried a licorice flavored one...yuck, and I love licorice! Thankfully, I only had two packets of these in the assortment.One of my favorites are the Bigelow teas. I used to love going to a restaurant in Geneva, Illinois...where they brought out a wooden box filled with different kinds of tea for me to select from. It seemed quite elegant.I'm a big believer in ginger tea for when I have a cold. I'm trying now to develop a habit of drinking tea first thing in the morning. I want to look forward to that first cup, like coffee drinkers do. I'm going on 74 years of age...it's about time I develop that habit I think.

Balisha