Camellia Sinensis blossom My tea plant has had a beautiful flush (growth spurt) this autumn, including a profusion of flower buds. I ...

A formal mate gourd and the loose leaf brand my friend prefers I am very happy to co-author this blog post with my good friend, AM.  I...

I'm about a month late in writing about this... Back in mid September, the huckleberries were ripe in the Pacific Northwest.  I ...

Ti Guan Yin tea in Muzha, Taiwan What is oolong tea ?  This is perhaps the most difficult Tea 101 topic I've written.  The tea i...

GirlRising.org Today is the International Day of the Girl , a call to action on behalf of our tender world.  And I say world because...

NW Tea Fest 2013 Click image to enlarge The NW Tea Fest has become an annual highlight of my tea life.  This year's event was won...

Guitian preparing tea Living the tea life at the NW Tea Fest!  Euphoric is the right word. Tasting all day and drinking tea with fri...

Fairy House I recently had the great pleasure of spending several days with my niece.  F-U-N!!  We had glorious early fall weather.  ...

Image from Edible Portland Tea Growing in Oregon!  The fall edition of Edible Portland features tea growing in Oregon!  Read it here a...

Me, drying dishes after cleanup of the meal at a recent kaiseki class I have some serious foodie friends who will enjoy this post....

Whether, like me, you pronounce this "zee-nya" or say "zinn-ee-uh", the zinnia flower is worth a closer look. Old-...

Stone Fruit Skillet Cake We went for an early walk to pick flowers today and came back home with nowhere to be and nothing to do.  So...

One of my favorite experiences is to be around people who have imersed themselves in their passions and then share that with others. Th...

It's a wonderful Sunday afternoon. The DH is whiling away at the bicycle show at the museum and I'm tucked into a beautifully presen...

Last week I had the wonderful chance to visit with friends (from near and far) in a beautiful park.  I also got to use my nodate  picnic s...

I'm enjoying these two new thimble-sized teacups I picked up at the Chinese Garden. I'm calling them the Working Girl and the Priv...

Well here's a plant we could never grow in the Midwest...artichokes!  Fun to grow because the plant is BIG and pretty, and if you let...

Obon Festival Folk Dances I had the wonderful opportunity to attend our local Obon Festival this past weekend.  Obon is a Japanese c...

A foolish project Start a huge,  foolish project like Noah. It makes absolutely no difference  what people think of you....

 Picking tea in Muzha, Taiwan Happy Friday!  Just breathe in deeply and smell the fresh tea leaves. Breathe out and let your brea...