April tablescape is in the cards.

 

Can you deal? Our April tablecsape is set for afternoon tea and a game of cards.

This month's table setting was inspired by a recent find while going through buried treasure in our home, aka, storage bins in our basement. There are still a few boxes with contents that haven't found their "forever home" in our condo.

I not only uncovered my very much missed pedestal cake plate, but a set of my Grandma Signe's card symbol glasses - ideal for iced-tea and an appropriate accompaniment to your next jump bid!

I remember these glasses in my grandma's china cabinet.  Grandma Signe was my dad's mom, and she lived in a small town in the upper peninsula on the Keweenaw Bay. She immigrated to the US,  from a Swedish settlement in Finland, when she was four years old. Once settled in Baraga, she never desired to leave and lived in the town noted to have the "world's friendliest people" for over eighty years.

In my formative years, I spent a few weeks every summer with my family (three older brothers and parents) at my dad's childhood home and I loved these visits. My grandma had lots of collections of china and glassware (must be a gene!).  I was captivated by her display of depression glass on top of her white kitchen cabinets and her array of fancy china in the pantry. (The latter also housed a bowl of sugar cubes which may have tempted a grandchild, or four, to sneak a few into their little hands for a sweet treat when no one was minding the store).




The card symbol glasses, though, are perfect for my grandma. She was the "card shark" of the upper peninsula, known to take most bids in pinochle and win. She was a master of not only pinochle, but bridge,  canasta and just about any other card game around.

But, true "old school" Scandinavian, my grandma's  cups, Depression glass or fancy china, would not have been filled with tea, but an unending supply of black coffee.

This month, I set the table with Grandma Signe's water (or iced-tea) glasses and her green depression glass plates, cups and sherbet glasses, along with some card-themed tiny serving dishes (from a long ago antiques store purchase), to round out the card-playing tablescape.

While I may have inherited my grandma's collector's gene, my brothers surely were given her card-shark abilities.  Have you ever heard of a jump bid on half a pinochle and three cards short of  a run?  Oh, and, in addition, that bid ends up winning?

I'm conservative in cards, but wild for the tablescape.

Quaratine succs without you! The Twelve Weeks of Social Isolation

Quarantine "succs" without you, a social isolation package brings cheer.

Last week, I got a wonderful surprise in the mail:  a delayed (in shipping) birthday present from my daughter, Rachel. It was a social isolation care package which included a sign that says "Quarantine Succs without You", a succulent plant in a white pot, a sweet smelling candle and a box of Peace Organics matches. While a true day-brightener, it also spoke to a few of my favorite things - a good pun and some delightful aromatherapy.

Wearing face mask when going out or tea

Win! Generic TP, but still my Prince Charmin

I immediately lit the candle and put the sign on display. As I sat down for a few minutes to enjoy this treasure bath, I began to take inventory of how I have been spending my weeks in quarantine.  I've been on Zoom trivia calls with the kids,  Zoom social calls with friends and a couple of virtual afternoon teas (latest from Victorian Rose).  Along with my husband, Chris, we've  cleaned out several closets and just in time to make more space for all our  recent Amazon purchases (including the coveted, though generic, bathroom tissue).

Seeing lots of turkeys on neighborhood walks

This guy came right up to our back deck.

We've also gone for long walks in our neighborhood and spotted more deer and turkeys than I can remember.  For essential shopping, we've secured some heavy-duty facemasks. And, adding to that list of accomplishments, we binge-watched all six seasons of Downton Abbey.

Binge-watched all six seasons of DowntonAbbey

Three virtual teas so far.

And, in the  minor inconvenience category, we've celebrated April birthdays at home: mine, my birthday twin, Pam, my future son-in-law, Sean and my brother, Glenn. However, I did treat myself to a fancy dinner carry-out from Forest Grille in Birmingham, and enjoyed a delicious dulce la leche cream puff for dessert. (some of the comfort foods may be having an impact on my bathroom scale).

Dulce le leche cream puff for a birthday treat

Zoom Quiplash with the family

To all these activities, I humbly submit, and in no particular order of occurrence: The Twelve Weeks of Quarantine:

On the first day of Q-tine, my true love gave to me (and you know how the rest goes):

1. A succ-ulent in a white pot
2. Two mega facemasks
3. Three virtual teas
4. Four April birthdays (in seclusion)
5. Five Zoom Quiplash wins!
6. Six Downton Abbey Seasons
7. Seven facetime friend dates
8. Eight bags of stuff to donate
9. Nine turkeys grazing
10. Ten pounds a'gaining
11. Eleven packages from Amazon (this week!)
12. Twelve rolls of (generic) toilet paper

There are many things I know we all miss during Quarantine, but following rules to keep us all safe is a priority. It does succ without you all, but while we're in the many weeks of Q-tine, may I suggest calling a friend, texting a neighbor or sending someone a social isolation care package. I can attest most recently to the latter, it will bring a smile to the recipient and they will love it.

Afternoon tea from Tonia's Victorian Rose: Curbside pick-up or delivery now available for tea time treats at home!

Tonia's Victorian Rose Tea Room now offers take-out afternoon tea fare

It is now possible to have a luxurious afternoon tea at home courtesy Tonia's Victorian Rose!

The Rochester tearoom announced this week that they are offering curbside carry-out or delivery on many of their favorite dishes (chicken pot pie, spinach quiche, Victorian Rose salad), as well as  three-meal package deals and -  this is where my heart skipped an extra beat! - afternoon tea, if ordered two days in advance.

While we here at Barb's Tea Service have held a few virtual tea times of late, one thing that has been missing is the full afternoon tea fare. With Victorian Rose's pick-up  service, we were able to have artistically crafted and exceedingly delicious  scones, savories and sweets in the comfort - and confines - of our own home this weekend.

Virtual tea, teapot, sweets and savories - pearls optional

On-line with Rachel, also having Victorian Rose tea fare

I ordered afternoon tea for two for curbside pick-up this week - one for me and one for my daughter, Rachel. My husband, Chris, was our delivery guy and he dropped off one serving at Rachel's place and brought the other serving back home.

We refrigerated most for a Saturday afternoon face-time tea.  I set a proper table with a tiered tray and brewed a fresh pot of Earl Grey. When I dialed up Rachel, she had tea in hand,  attired in a pretty burgundy dress. I decided to do the same (and accessorized with pearls).

Victorian Rose savories include quiche, croissant, cucumber sandwich. Scones come with cream.

Our afternoon tea consisted of a scone, with a dollop of lemon curd and/or fresh whipped cream, a chicken salad stuffed croissant , a cucumber/cream cheese sandwich (in a delicate butterfly shape) and a quiche all literally topped by absolutely scrumptious desserts. The sweet treats were: lemon curd tart, carrot cake and, my favorite (although difficult to choose!), a dark chocolate torte bite. 

Top-tier desserts: carrot cake, lemon curd tart, dark chocolate torte bites and a variety of fresh fruit.

I talked with Tonia Carsten this week, owner of Victorian Rose, and her passion for both culinary delights and the guests she serves are clearly driving forces for her business. Before purchasing the tea room in 2016 from original owner, Loretta Curry, Tonia ran a cooking school for children. In a bit of serendipity, as Tonia was looking to expand her business, Loretta was ready to retire from her tea room after twenty-one years. 

Visiting Tonia's Victorian Rose in 2017 with my cousins, Dianne and Kathy

Victorian Rose holds a special place in my heart for more than one reason, but among the top -  this is the first venue (outside of home parties) where I presented a tea talk. It was Mother's Day 2006 and the event was covered by the local newspaper, Troy Times (see photo below).  The Rochester tea room was also a favorite place for tea with friends who donned pink and red hats back in the day (see same photo below).

Left photo, from Troy Times article- Mother's Day tea talk

And, we were right there at the door in 2017 when Tonia made this tea room her own (see blog story, May, 2017, Tonia's Victorian Rose Tea Room:  New owner and updates to Rochester favorite).

Now that Victorian Rose is still open for take-out, we're thrilled we still have  a place to "go to" for afternoon tea.

To order afternoon tea or other great items from Tonia's Victorian Rose, call 248-652-8595.  Currently, open hours are Tuesdays - Fridays from 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM.

Fred Harvey Desert Tea: From Harvey Houses to Harvey Girls, there's a lot of history in this spicy drink!

Fred Harvey Trading Co, desert tea is a blend of tea, spices and fruit bits mixed with a long history of Harvey hospitality 

Fred Harvey Trading Company Desert Tea, with all its fruit flavors, tangy spices and a bit of sugar, could really be called a dessert tea, as it's a sweet treat served hot or cold.

But, what is the Fred Harvey Trading Company and where can one buy more of its tea?

Well, after sampling my first cup last week, I dug deeper into the Fred Harvey name and its history dates back to the latter part of the eighteenth century. There was an actual Fred Harvey, who immigrated from England at the age of seventeen, and began a career as a freight agent with the southwest railroads. A keen entrepreneur, he saw the opportunity to provide travelers with a high quality dining experience along train stops.

This idea burgeoned into partnerships with the railroads to build several hotels, restaurants and, eventually, passenger-car catering.

The Harvey Houses were known for delicious food served in ample portions by waitresses in long, black dresses covered with starched white aprons. These young ladies inspired both the book, "The Harvey Girls" and the 1946 musical of the same name starring Judy Garland (queue up the band:  "On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe"!)

Sipping Desert Tea today, it has connections to the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe!

The Harvey heritage continued adapting through the mid-twentieth century, setting up restaurants in the  Illinois Tollway "Oases", a new concept of dining establishments built over the state's interstate highways of the 1950's.

Eventually, the company was sold in 1968 to the Amfac corporation in Hawaii, changed its name to Xenterra Parks and Resorts in 2002 and bought the Grand Canyon Railway and its properties in 2006.

To borrow from another famous Harvey, "here's the rest of the story. . ."

Last week, I was introduced to this powdered tea drink by my daughter, Rachel and her fiancé, Sean. It was a birthday present  - a tea treasure  they found on their trip to Utah in early March.

Bryce Canon (photo courtesy Rachel Gulley)

An amazing coincidence found both of them attending business conferences in Sault Lake City in the same week. They are great national park enthusiasts (in fact Sean proposed to Rachel last June while they were hiking in Sequoia!) and they were anxious to combine a bit of business with pleasure by visiting a few more parks while in Utah.

Zion National Park -gift shop not shown (photo courtesy Rachel Gulley)

They made it to  both Bryce Canyon and Zion National Park, and the latter is where they found the desert tea at the park's gift shop. (As we know, a visit to any great landmark is not complete without a stop at the souvenir store.)

After I brewed myself a cup,  I found I enjoyed not only the taste, but the sweet and spicy aroma that stirred up from the cup.  And, I wanted to learn where I could get more.

And, that's where I found that Fred Harvey products are sold at many of the national parks in the west however,  currently, no on-line shopping is available. But, should you want to try it, check back at the Xanterra Fred Harvey Trading Company on-line shopping page and try a little desert tea for dessert.

Enjoying desert tea in my Michigan backyard

Hosting a Virtual Afternoon Tea! New traditions to carry on long after quarantine

Virtual Afternoon tea time is a great way to take a delightful break with friends and family. "Come-as-you-are" - a plus!

With shelter-in-place constraints, we're all getting creative in connecting with family and friends. We've participated in holiday group chats with the family and on-line happy hours with good friends. It's only logical that we apply those same principles to afternoon tea and today we did just that with heartwarming results.

This afternoon, my daughter, Rachel, and my sister-in-law, Cara, arranged to meet at 2:00 PM for afternoon tea via FaceTime. (There are quite a few connecting aps available - we've used FaceTime, Zoom, Houseparty and Google Duo with varying rates of success).

On-line Easter chat and Trivia game with the family - Happy Hour with friends

The only requirement was to bring a favorite tea cup (or mug) and have it filled with tea for the call. And, on the plus side, there's no dress code, so come comfy! There's no need to get fancy or spend time fussing with hair - the tea table is the only object that needs  adornment.

I took the opportunity. as the hostess, to set an elegant tea table. (It also served as motivation to gather many of my  tea cups that had been stored away since we moved three years ago and bring them back to a more appropriate home in our dining area.) 

Setting the tea table can be a motivation to "unearth" some packed-away treasures

We started by holding up our selected tea cup for the day and sharing what tea we were drinking. Then, it was off-to-the-races chit-chat with topics ranging from graduation dates to wedding plans. Lamenting some of the disruptions to our daily life and canceled trips, we were also in agreement that we still had plenty to be grateful for - like the ability to see each others faces while sharing a  hot cup of tea.

We also exchanged room tours of our abodes with updated pictures and furniture that the other parties hadn't seen before.  While life has slowed us down a bit, we're not only making lemonade out of lemons, but stopping to smell the rosehip tea.

We're looking forward to more of these afternoon tea times and to carry on a new tradition that, while initiated during challenging times, can serve to remind us to celebrate the small things  and connect regularly with each other when we're all back to the "usual" busy.

Saturn Booksellers in Gaylord: Shop at this out-of-this-world book store on-line!

Saturn Booksellers in Gaylord, Michigan. Although, shopper's can't go into the store, purchases can be made on-line!

Special weekend edition - Tea and Tomes and Shop Local!

In these times of uncertainty and self-isolation, many of us are not only looking for positive ways to spend our time in confinement, but how we can support others and our community without leaving the driveway.  Ordering on-line from Saturn Booksellers is one way to accomplish both with just a click! 

This week, Barb's Tea Service met up with the Gaylord, Michigan bookstore owner, Jill Miner, to get the story behind one who sells the stories.  In an  interview via email, Jill gave us some history on  Saturn Booksellers, the reason for the locale and some of her recommended reads!

Jill Miner owner of Saturn Booksellers

BTS: How long have you owned Saturn Booksellers (I know you moved locations in recent years) and what brought you to owning a local bookstore? 

JM:  I bought Saturn Booksellers in 1998 with a partner, Jackie Allsopp.  After five years, life took Jackie and her family in other directions, and I've owned it solo ever since.  When we purchased the store, it had been in business almost six years and was in a strip mall in town.  I bought a building and we moved it downtown in 1999, then I sold that building in 2017 and we moved the shop to its present location, 33 steps to the East of our old shop (We painted 33 green footprints on the sidewalk out front and out back to help people 'find' us!) 

BTS:  Also, why the location in Gaylord? 

JM:  My husband was a doctor in the US Navy, and when we decided it was time for our family to settle in one place, we began looking around Michigan as he grew up in the state and most of his family had cottages in northern Michigan.   Gaylord was looking for an OB GYN at the time, and back then Otsego County was the fastest-growing county in Michigan.  It seemed like a friendly town and a good fit.  Personally, I'd owned an ad agency in New Orleans and then did freelance writing work while my kids were little and we moved with the Navy.   (We came to Gaylord from southern Spain!!)  I'm a dilettante  - I'd always said I wanted to work in advertising (did that), stay home with my kids when they were little (did), own a bookstore (do) and go to law school.  (Probably never will).

BTS:  What's the best part of owning a bookstore? 

JM:  There are a lot of great perks of owning a bookstore!  We have fantastic customers, I have a fantastic and very loyal staff, and I've met some of the most intelligent people on the planet in other store owners, authors and publishing folks.  Being able to mentor  the kids who begin with us in high school and stay with us throughout their college breaks has been very rewarding, as well.

BTS:  I'm keeping up with your recommended reading. If you had to choose two or three recent "must reads" recommendations, what would they be?   

JM:   Ooooh. Now you're putting me on the spot. Probably Therese Anne Fowler's A Good Neighborhood, The Pilgrim by  Terry Hayes and  The Mirror and the Light by Hilary Mantel.   But there are always books I'm loving in all genres.

BTS:  I see Saturn also offers other shopping services, such as Easter gifts and other specialty items. Customers can select gifts and have them shipped directly to who the gift-giver wants to receive it, correct? 

JM:  The games and toys and gifts are not on our website (www.SaturnBooksellers.com), but we are happy to ship out of the store any time - books, games, what-have-you!   During our mandated closure now, we have a staffer in the store several days a week to receive shipments of new books and take care of questions, etc.   I'm mostly at home and  placing all of the web orders. 

BTS:  Anything more  you'd like shoppers to know? 

JM:  Our shipping is $1.99  no matter how many books are in your box (this is media mail shipping, so only applies to books, not games, etc.)  You can choose this option on our website, too.

We have five book-of-the-month selection clubs, one for newborns (board books), one for babies and toddlers (picture books), one for intermediate readers, one for young adults and one for adults.

We're so very thankful to everyone far and wide who have been ordering on our website during this COVID-19 shutdown time.  Without them there would be no Saturn Booksellers!

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We thank Jill for taking time out to talk with us this week. We look forward to when we can get back inside the brick-and-mortar bookstore, but in the meantime, we'll be shopping on line. Also, look for an upcoming Tea and Tomes on my latest purchase from Saturn Booksellers!

At a special book signing event at Saturn Booksellers in 2017

Latest purchase from Saturn, future T & T

Tea and Tomes: To Kill a Mockingbird

To Kill a Mockingbird author Harper Lee said she wanted to be the Jane Austen of south Alabama. 

Many stories from classic books come to some of us first via the movies - for me, certainly, "Pride and Prejudice" and more recently, "Little Women" (see February's Tea and Tomes) but, surely my very first such introduction was "To Kill a Mockingbird" circa, 1963 at a drive-in movie, sitting in what a five-year old mind thinks is luxury accommodations: a Ford Country sedan station wagon, filled with popcorn, soda, my three older brothers and my Mom and Dad up front.

I don't recall understanding much of the plot from that summer night in a long-gone drive-in show, but I do remember being frightened when the little girl in the movie and  her brother were being chased by something in the woods. Since that first viewing, reinforced by many TV airings of "To Kill a Mockingbird" in my formative years, I became very familiar with the story of Scout, her brother Jem, and Atticus, the sibling's wise and principled father who stood up to racism in a 1930's Alabama courtroom.

To Kill a Mockingbird on Broadway

Fast forward to August, 2019,  while visiting my son, Matt, in New York City, Aaron Sorkin's version of "To Kill a Mockingbird" was playing at the Shubert Theater, featuring Michigan native, Jeff Daniels.  Walking by the marquis on our way to dinner our first night in Manhattan, we unanimously  decided, if we could secure tickets, we'd make that our Broadway outing for the weekend.

To our surprise, and great fortune, we did get tickets and, in an AARP-member's idea of "luxury accommodations" we nabbed front-row seats at same-day-order-risk/reward discount prices. Half a century-plus since I first saw "To Kill a Mockingbird" on the big screen, I was experiencing this incredible story up-close and personal, with a greater appreciation of the heroes and villains of Maycomb County, Alabama, but without having to roll down the window to get the sound hooked up.

Front row seats at the Shubert Theater, To Kill a Mockingbird. So great and no need to attach a speaker to the car window!

All of this is my long way of getting to the actual book written by Harper Lee, published in 1960, and yet, until 2020, unread by this tea blogger. Prompted by my daughter, Rachel, who, while we were talking about a bunch of stuff that somehow lead to "To Kill a Mockingbird" and my confession of never actually reading it before, said that if I did pick it up, she would reread it and we could discuss it together afterwards. Motivation accepted. . . and now accomplished!

I’ve often heard that the  “To Kill a Mockingbird” movie is one of the best adaptions of book-to-film, and after reading the three-hundred and twenty-two pages of Scout Finch’s narrative of two  both ordinary and extraordinary years in a small town in the deep south, I subscribe to that opinion as well. But, it's definitely a great read and I highly recommend it - whether you have seen the movie twenty times or the play once. The book brings you closer to the Finch narrative.   Like Atticus often advised his children, Scout forces us to “walk in the shoes” of Tom Robinson, Bob Ewell and Boo Radley. Often an uncomfortable - if not odious - fit, we're given the backstories of the intertwining townsfolk that provides a deeper understanding of the acts of bravery as well as cowardice.

I recently viewed a rare interview of Harper Lee in 1964, four years after her book had been published and two years after the film had been produced. Asked why many great books come from southerners, Lee reflected that there weren't as many great activities like movies or concerts (at the time) to go to  as there were in the north. Without such ready-made entertainments, folks were forced to create their own through great story telling . . . or gossip.  She said she wrote about her particular life, but one that had characters and tales that were universal. She concluded the interview stating "all I want to be is the Jane Austen of south Alabama".  

We think that's a perfect fit!