Every restaurant offers iced tea, "sweet or unsweet?" but ask for a hot cup of tea and they look at you as if you sprouted a second head. The popular roadside stop, Buc-ee's, offers maybe 50 types of coffee . . . and not even one decent cup of tea.
When we first visited the Texas Seafood & Steak restaurant in Somerville two years ago, I asked for a cup of tea and was told they don't serve any. I commented that it is hard to be a tea drinker in a coffee-drinking world. We returned there this past week (they have really good food!) and the waitress asked what I would like to drink. Knowing they did not offer hot tea, I spoke anyway "I'd love a hot cup of tea" --- and she brought me one! Only boring Lipton's but it's a start. Now if I can just introduce her to some nice Earl Grey . . .
You are right, hot tea is hard to find in Texas. That is why I came over to the dark side and became a coffee drinker. : ) As always, I love your sketch. Your sketches have inspired me so much so that I am going to take a watercolor class in January!
ReplyDeleteI __love__ the way coffee smells! Just don't like the flavor. I carry tea bags in my bag, allowing me to enjoy a cup as long as the place we eat at is able to bring me a cup of hot water. Although some places actually don't understand how to do that . . .
ReplyDeleteEnjoy your watercolor class! A friend introduced me to watercolor in 2005; later I was inspired to start keeping sketchbooks in 2007 (through Cathy Johnson, the Everyday Matters group & Danny Gregory's books, and a book on J. R. R. Tolkien's art -- he was quite a sketcher) and now it's a habit I never want to quit.
Is Buc-ees that gas station that sells just about everything? My niece, from Katy, talks about stopping to shop there every time she heads up to college in Marshall.
ReplyDeleteDo you remember the name of the book on Tolkien's art? I love his books, but I haven't seen one about his sketches. I have one of his books called Mr. Bliss, and I just love the illustrations in it.
Yes, Buc-ees is the gas stop that sells everything! Also the cleanest bathrooms ever for travelers -- there's even a full-time attendant! There are several locations, some much larger than others.
ReplyDeleteI own a copy of the Tolkien book: "J. R. R. Tolkien, Artist & Illustrator" by Wayne G. Hammond and Christina Scull. The illustrations in the original version of "The Hobbit" as well as the cover art was done by Tolkien. He was an amazing talent in so many ways!
Thanks, Vicky! I just added the book to my Amazon wish list. :-)
ReplyDeleteI forgot about the Buc-ees bathrooms--my niece has mentioned them several times. It's funny, because she's a spa resort kind of girl, yet she raves about Buc-ees.