In my free time in between playing frisbee and working the information desk at school, I work at a tea shop.  We sell over 100 different kinds of tea and I love working there.  Today I worked for a couple hours, and drank more tea that most people drink in a week.  

My favorite thing about tea is the variety you can get.  With over 100 teas that I have complete access to, I am able to make hundreds of combinations to match my mood.  Today I was in a sassy, playful mood.  I spent a lot of my trying to sneak small pieces of paper into my coworker's pockets.  By the end of the day I have 17 pieces of paper, four business cards and a paper clip buried in the various pockets of the people I work with.  

To attempt to calm my mood I made one of the rarest green teas in the world, Gyokuro Imperial and I mixed it with a jasmine Oolong.  The slightly sweet vegetal taste of the green tea pleasantly blends with the floral jasmine.  Overall it is very relaxing and my favorite blend.  If I had to choose one blend for the rest of my life, that would be it.  

Fruitier blends were the hit of today.  We have many herbal teas and one lady bought an entire pound of only herbal tea!  It may not seem like a lot, but a pound of tea is over 200 cups of tea!  She said she likes to ice it and give it to her children instead of pop.  I support this.  

It wasn't a very relaxing day, but I enjoyed my time and especially enjoyed my tea.

Directions for the Perfect Cup of Tea:

1. Identify the kind of tea you are drinking.  If it is white or green tea, steep at 175 degrees F for 2 minutes.  If it is Oolong or Black, steep at 195 degrees F for 3 minutes.  
2. To get the temperature right, bring your water to boiling.  Then add ice cubes.  For a 16 oz (standard coffee mug) add 4 ice cubes for white and green teas, 2 ice cubes for oolong and black tea.
3. Add your sugar or honey, but don't use the cheap stuff.  White granulated sugar adds a chemical flavor to your tea.  Steep for the right amount of time.  

Feel free to blend teas and experiment. Some of my favorite blends seem weird to everyone else, but I love them.     Do what you want.  Enjoy, preferably with great company or a good book.