Novel-Tea: Part 3

The Last Summer (of You & Me) by Ann Brashares was one of those books that contained phrases so powerful that they left a lasting impression. You know by now that it's not my style to reveal too much about the book for those who want to read it, so I won't get into specifics. The story takes place from the viewpoint of multiple characters, and there is some unrequited (or seemingly so) love involved.

And according to Charlie Brown: "Nothing takes the taste out of peanut butter quite like unrequited love."


For anyone who has been in this agonizing emotional state, you'll relate to this story. The main character made me mad in the middle of the book, but I forgave her by the end.


Ann Brashares wrote The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series too, which was awesome.


Tea time!


I'm not going to review a tea this time, but a tea accessory (you know how I love accessories). I bought a Timolino travel mug from DavidsTea recently. I loved the color and was told the colored ones sell out fast so I scooped it up. They always carry the black and silver, but I think the colors are a lot cuter.

It has a loose leaf infuser in the lid, so you boil water, pour it in the mug, put the tea in the infuser, then screw the lid on and steep it.

Pros of this mug:
1) Keeps the liquid hot or cold for hours. I mean HOURS. The first time I used it, I actually scalded my mouth because I drank the hot tea a half hour after I steeped it. Lesson learned. When I take tea to work, it's still hot at lunchtime.
2) Comfy and ergonomic.  It fits my hand really well and the rubbery stuff that lines the rim where you drink from is nice.
3) There's a hidden compartment in the lid that holds extra loose tea. If you want a second cup, just find some boiling water.
4) Easy to clean. It all comes apart so you can throw it in the sink. It's not dishwasher safe or microwave-safe.

Cons of this mug:
1) You can't grab it and go right after you put the tea in unless you have somewhere to dump the leaves. Or unless you like crazy-strong tea. Most teas take 4-7 minutes to steep and I doubt my fellow commuters into Halifax would appreciate me pulling off to the side to shake my leaves out the window. Not to mention, that's littering. So I have to make my tea in time to empty the leaves at home before I go.
2) The enamel scratches easily. Mine scratched the first day I had it. I put it in a side pocket of my lululemon work bag and it was rubbing against a snap. Now it has scratches all over it. Sure, it was dumb of me to put it against somethng that could scratch it, but in reality, people are going to throw their mugs into bags where there are scratchy things like keys, coins, and zippers. If anyone has any ideas for disguising my scratches, let me know! Stickers would wash off and nail polish would just scratch off again. I might put tape over my snaps so it doesn't get worse. Or I could just wait til the scratches all blend together and create a white stripe!

See the scratches about 1/3 of the way down?

I think the pros outweigh the cons and perhaps by the time mine needs replacement they'll make them more scratch-resistant.

Yesterday was my birthday.... so let's have some Birthday Cake Oreos! Happy 100th birthday Oreo (I'm glad I'm not as old as they are). I might save the bag just so I can smell it. Dee-lish.

To the left, you'll see my birthday present from Sephora. If you're a Beauty Insider, you get a free treat that you can pick up two weeks before or after your birthday. There's a Sephora at Halifax Shopping Center, lower level. 

This year's gift is a set of two mini Fresh Sugar lip treatments. One is clear and one has a your-lips-but-better rose tint. Both are awesome, but the full sizes are way expensive ($23 I think).  

XOXO
Glitterary Girl