I'm back like that unsociable ailment that you just can't shift, no matter which balms and salves you rub in.
Imagine not having a gongfucha session for six whole months. Half of a year. 0.5% of a century.
It wasn't easy, but nothing lasts forever. With a feeling of great relief, we unpacked our teaware from the crates in which it had been stored during our house renovation. In celebratory mood, we baptised the new place with some of Prof. GV's eternally delicious 1986 Sunsing (grazie mille, and see you soon!).
Some days, you just have to drink the good stuff
During my six months of exile, wandering in the outer darkness, and for the six months prior to that, I've been accumulating pu'er in my office at work. In fact, it was beginning to make the old place smell rather good.
I recently moved out to a different office but, as fate would have it, my dear wife moved into the old one, and so the tea didn't have to move.
Yesterday, with our house renovation reaching a landmark stage such that tea could now be consumed on the premises (at long, long last), we brought it all back to the house (making a taxi smell rather pleasant in the interim), where it got to join the rest of our stocks:
There's no place like home
It's not quite finished, but it's home. The three boxes on the left (yellow, red, and yellow from top to bottom) are real spine-breakers, as each one holds about seven or eight tong. I still wince to think about moving them again. The plan is to get some shelving made to fit the alcoves such that we can dispose of the large plastic boxes, but that's a few months away.
Being a borderline obsessive-compulsive quantitative type, I keep records of which teas we have. It speaks volumes of testimony to my tragic nature that I spent two long hours cataloguing the newcomers. I can live with my flaws...
Anyway, it's great to be back! Thanks once again to all who sent me care packages in the interregnum, and thanks for your patience with me taking so long to send things out to you (Terje, in particular, has been on my list for several months; sir, I prostrate myself before thee).
Lei's mother is staying with us at the moment and thinks the pu'er quantity to be quite absurd, but I look forward to changing her mind!
"(yellow, red, and yellow from top to bottom)"
ReplyDeleteMmmh, what would it be from botton to top ;-)
Can not wait to see regular posts by you again.
ReplyDeleteI hope your puerh managed to be stored well throughout all the moving. I know cabs, at least in America can have rather odd smells, but hopefully you were not in one for that long.
Dear anonymous,
ReplyDeleteI like a little redundancy in my writing, which I like when I write...
Dear Adam,
Thanks, it's great to be back in the saddle. My saddle-sores have completely cleared up.
Toodlepip,
Hobbes
Ah, at last! For me it hurts just trying to imagine going half a year without a good tea session. I lack your fortitude, obviously.
ReplyDeleteI truly hope you'll love every moment of tea sessions to come.
Most kind, Lew!
ReplyDeleteFortitute takes second-place to necessity, this time!
Toodlepip,
Hobbes
Mother in law's are always, always right. You have too much. Haha! You know perfectly well that she has had a "talk" with Lei about this absurd obsession. Mother in laws always have a way of having a better idea than you as to what you should be spending your time on. Maybe fixing up the baby's room,something really needs to be done with that back garden etc. But really, do you really need that much tea? When you see the light I think you already have my address. I wish there were some way of getting to your Mother in law, she'd have it boxed up and on it's way in no time.
ReplyDeleteBret, that's so true. My mother-in-law strays from the stereotype, however, by being entirely lovely and highly discreet. It's a real pleasure (and rather an honour) to have her here in England, as she's never left China prior to her daughter becoming pregnant.
ReplyDeleteI'll bear you in mind should the worst come to the worst, however!
Toodlepip,
Hobbes
Hobbes, welcome back! It's a great article - whenever will my girlfriend say I have too much tea, I will just show it to her. Thank you, sir, you have my eternal gratitude :-)
ReplyDeleteTomas, I'm glad tobe your fall-guy!
ReplyDeleteYour mother-in-law is complaining about your tea; well, if that's all, you're lucky!
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I'm looking forward to reading your blogg again.
We talked about me sending you some more samples, so please let me know which of the following you would like - I mentioned some ChangTai, Douji and YS you might not have tasted yet:
2005 Changtai Tea "Yiwu Zheng Pin"
2009 Changtai Tea "Qian Jia Feng"
2007 Changtai 7538 "Changtai Hao"
2009 Douji "You Le Shan"
2009 Douji "Yi Wu"
2009 Douji "Jing Mai"
2009 Douji "Red Shang Dou"
2009 Douji "Xiang Dou"
2009 Douji "Blue Shang Dou"
2009 Yunnan Sourcing "Nostalgia"
2009 Yunnan Sourcing "Dong Fang Bu Bai"
2009 Yunnan Sourcing "Lao Man'E"
Terje
Less is more, the thought of a older man.
ReplyDeleteThat Wuyi sounds quite exquisite...a nice and definitely deserved treat to enjoy.
ReplyDeleteDear Terje,
ReplyDeleteI've sent an e-mail, thanks! Perhaps you could also give me an idea of what you'd like me to focus on when selecting samples for you.
Best wishes,
Hobbes
It's really great to have you back on the daily read, Hobbes.
ReplyDeleteNot post-related, but I am the only one to experience excruciating slowness in scrolling down your posts since the blog re-design? I have a reasonable broadband that's never caused problems but that lovely background calligraphy you have input seems to be making my computer sweat.