Mrs. Teabody Greets the Day

Well, Gentle Readers, the world stands poised to begin -- or for those friends in the Eastern hemisphere have already begun - - a brand new year. Network television news shows are flooding the world with images from the past three hundred and sixty-five days, and Mrs. Teabody cannot hope not to have an emotional response to this recent profoundly sad and moving history, particularly as Mr. Teabody is not in her company. Commitments will not allow Mrs. Teabody the luxury of being "profoundly sad" just now so "stiff upper lip and carry on" as Mrs. Teabody's mother was wont to implore when Mrs. Teabody attempted to languish in a fit of helplessness.  Mrs. Teabody distinctly recalls a day in her youth when she said to her mother, "Mother, I believe I must have an headache," to which her mother promptly responded, "No, you haven't!" And just like that, the headache--if that was indeed what it was-- vanished. Not many years later, Mrs. Teabo...

Good Friday, Gentle Reader! I trust your repose has renewed your flagging spirits? Very well.  Many of you, Gentle Readers, have inquired after the Teabody mousie, and to those of you who revere every living creature -- even ones who scavenge your cupboards laying waste to your hot chocolate and oatmeal packets and sullying the kitchen linens thus prompting DAILY launderings -- set your minds to rest. The Teabody mousie yet lives. Mr. Teabody gives assurances that every effort has been put in place to capture and/or subjugate the creature. In one mad moment, Mr. Teabody speculated aloud about the efficacy of smashing the tiny rodent with a sauce pot. Yes, Gentle Reader. Mrs. Teabody shudders at the thought. (Mon Dieu!)  Mrs. Teabody passed an especially delightful day at Tickle Your Fancy yesterday as she was regaled with Yuletide anecdotes from no fewer than half a dozen particularly cherished friends. Mrs. Teabody's friends are certainly among the world's most talent...

Darlings, All, Good Morrow to you! Mrs. Teabody feels quite bundled this frosty morning attired as she is in heavy robe, wooly socks and slippers. In truth, a pair of gloves and a warm hat and Mrs. Teabody would be ready for a mad dash on slats down a wintry slope -- a rather unsuccessful stab toward your funny bone, Gentle Readers. Mrs. Teabody has no intentions of exposing herself to the cruel elements. That is for hardier souls. January 6 is Twelfth Night - -some will argue it is January 5--of the Twelve Days of Christmas fame. On that date it is believed that the magi, the three kings, found their way to the stable where the Christ child lay. In some Christian beliefs this marks the day of recognition, Epiphany. In a less somber vein, the very idea of kings visiting a lowly stable shows a world turned upside down and it is this chaos that has led to fine merrymaking: According to Mr. Wikipedia It is defined by the  Shorter Oxford English Dictionary  as "the even...

"The best-laid schemes   o'   mice   an   'men   Gang   aft   agley,   An'lea'e us nought   but   grief an' pain,   For promis'd joy!"   Darlings, there has been tumult in the Teabody household this morning, and the plans Mrs. Teabody had made for a leisurely morning repast with Mr. Teabody before Mrs. Moppit's arrival were laid waste by a tiny creature made famous by Robert Burns: the Mousie. Sad to report that with the advent of chillier temperatures, the Teabodys have been made painfully aware of the  encampment of such a creature in the Teabody pantries. This is a yearly invasion and generally Duchess Ming, the odious cat, humane traps or simple good fortune make short shrift of this annoyance. However, the Teabody mousie is especially cunning this year, and Mrs. Teabody is not altogether certain of  human dominion at the climax of his attempted usurpation. Held hostage by the tiny terror for DAYS now, the f...

Dear Gentle Readers, Good Morrow to you! Yesterday Mrs. Teabody had a lovely early morning visit from a dear friend and in the custom of the season Mrs. Teabody queried, "Are you ready for Christmas?" Instead of hearing  of the few small tasks that lie ahead -- a fairly typical response on DECEMBER 22 -- this friend answered, "I haven't started yet." Mrs. Teabody nearly fell into a faint but bracing herself against the counter she listened as the friend went on to say she would start preparations on Friday. Start, Gentle Readers. Mrs. Teabody implores you to think of all the activities you have engaged in preparatory to this festive season and try to IMAGINE doing it all in forty-eight hours. Mon Dieu! Mrs. Teabody's tiny little brain reels. Mrs. Teabody remembers an entire evening given over to decorating the  fireplace mantle alone. True, Mrs. Teabody is quite slow, but it is a planned slowness. Life after all is not a destination; it is a journey. T...

 Good Morrow, My Dears! Mrs. Teabody wishes everyone a brilliant winter solstice day. This day is important to Mr. and Mrs. Teabody because it is the shortest day of the year. Starting tomorrow the days will become longer. Incremental at first,  the lengthening day becomes more and more noteworthy, and everyone can begin thinking about spring. But Mrs, Teabody digresses . . . Yesterday, Mrs. Teabody arrived early at Tickle Your Fancy because the new teas had arrived and she was eager to try Key West. This is a melange of tropical fruits and flavors and a treat to the taste buds. When Lady Betsy arrived, Mrs. Teabody was eager to see her friend's response. Surprisingly, Lady Betsy's eye caught the words "Raspberry Patch" on another new packet and soon both ladies were in a rhapsody over yet another new flavor. Delightful! Another friend who eschews publicity of any kind -- Mrs. Teabody respects that! -- arrived and under the encouragement of Lady Betsy and Mrs...

G ood Morrow, All! Mrs. Teabody had wonderful snippets of dreams through the night so she was thoroughly entertained.  Mrs. Teabody believes that hot chocolate inspires such nocturnal creativity. Regardless, Mrs. Teabody wakened herself with her own laughter. There are worse things, Gentle Reader.:) Yesterday marked Mrs. Teabody's monthly visit to  the (mysterious !) Mme. Sophia. Once again, Mme. Sophia assured Mrs. Teabody that her chestnut locks shall never succumb to the ravages of time.  Also noted previously, Mrs. Teabody should like her to have some sort of international recognition for that. Mme. Sophia entertained Mrs. Teabody with tales of her adventures and was most appreciative when presented with a bottle of champers along with other various accoutrement of this festive season. Mme. Sophia certainly merits it, and Mrs. T reminds her gentle readers not to ignore those who deliver the post, maintain one's coiffure and whisk away the refuse as they make lif...

Mrs. Teabody is all at sixes and sevens this morning as so many tasks remain to be done before Tickle Your Fancy (TYF) can open its doors to custom. Floss, the ever UN-dependable Floss, has decided to swan down to a neighboring village for Christmas preparations leaving the running of Chez Teabody to its owners. Mon Dieu! Mrs. Teabody has no idea where her aqua-colored bath towels may be or where any towel may be for that matter. Mr. Teabody  has been nattering on about the dishwashing machine. Even Duchess Ming is at odds insisting she has NOT had her morning repast even though the uneaten segment of a croque-monsieur left on the kitchen counter --- FLOSS! -- has vanished, and gentle reader,  all  must remember Duchess Ming's behavior at the summer party and her fondness for croque-monsieur. Mr. Teabody is  now becoming quite surly towards the dish-washing machine -- so much so that Mrs. Teabody must intervene. After all, Mrs. Moppit did not slave away yesterday t...

Good Morning, Sweetlings! Today is Friday, and many of you, my gentle readers, can see the freedom the weekend affords almost at your fingertips. Mrs. Teabody hopes you will take some time  just for yourself and put the "duties" of the season on a back burner. Speaking of back burners reminds Mrs. Teabody that she needs to relate a recent episode at Chez Teabody where the happy couple engaged in a drama-filled attempt to make peanut brittle. Even one as ancient as Mrs. Teabody has not forgotten that candy making is always fraught with danger-- molten sugar, butter and corn syrup  chortling along at THREE HUNDRED DEGREES is no sane person's idea of a  casual cooking endeavor. Mrs. Teabody had made a PROMISE, you see, gentle reader. Recalling her  long ago days at the intermediate school, Mrs. Teabody prepared   Mise en place, e ven pre-measuring the baking soda and water and vanilla, putting said items in those darling little glass vessels one sees the e...

Good Morning, Gentle Readers! Here it is December 8 already ! December just flies by with all our to-ing and fro-ing, doesn't it? And it's not as though the laundry pile stops growing or the dust bunnies stop tripling in size almost overnight just because we are all getting ready for Christmas. All last week Tickle Your Fancy was as busy as a beehive in summer as folks came by to purchase special presents. One gentleman had seven different women to buy for including his grandmother, mother, wife, and daughters. He spent well over an hour choosing his gifts, and each one was chosen with love and a desire to please the recipient.  As I wrapped each present, I thought about how pleased each woman will be when she opens her  personally-chosen gift. Mrs. Teabody herself ADORES presents and thinks  the current practice of exchanging gift cards takes away much of the surprise/delight of Christmas, or any other special occasion. Besides that, perhaps you are not aware of t...

Good Morning, Gentle Readers, Mrs. Teabody trusts you have had pleasant slumber.  Often after a stressful day, sleep is elusive, but Mrs. Teabody finds a cup of herbal tea such as Tea Forte's Raspberry Nectar or Adagio's Berry Blues or Hush can help. Stop by Tickle Your Fancy to pick up a sample. If you are charmed  by Christmas decorations and lights, then do visit  the little village of McConnellsburg where the Christmas spirit is made manifest through carefully planned and lovingly executed displays. First of all, the wreaths and snowflakes hanging above the town along Lincoln Way and Route 522  are just beautiful and heartwarming.  Mr. and Mrs. Teabody are so grateful to the Borough Council, the Chamber of Commerce and to the gentlemen who hang and remove the lights each year. Mrs. Teabody is quite fond of neighbors' Summer and Shane ( and Kara!) Stiffler's wreath-in-every-window and pine roping with lights and ribbons display. Perfect on their lovely ...

As most of you know, Floss is Mrs. Teabody's helpmate, and while she is indispensable when it comes to keeping Merrywoods tidy, sadly,  Floss eschews any and all baking chores. At no time of the year is this more obvious than now. Mrs. Teabody has found herself up to her fragrant elbows in flour and spices in recent days to produce a perfect fruitcake ( Yes, Virginia, there is such a thing) along with several flavors of scones. Scones are the perfect accompaniment to tea. On the other side of the pond, one can find a teashop offering fresh scones with jam and clotted cream in almost any village. Those faraway kin use unprocessed flour, dairy butter and sultanas to produce airy, palm-sized cakes that are neither very sweet nor very savory. On this side of the pond, Americans insatiable desire for creativity in food  means an open season on flavor combinations. Mrs. Teabody will be offering at Tickle Your Fancy on Thursday and Friday her own clever creation: The Sugar Coo...

 Good Morning, Gentle Readers, Let Mrs. Teabody just take a moment or two to apologize to all the friends who have stood by through the past few months as activities kicked into a frenzy. Never would Mrs. Teabody have dreamed that her little woodland shop would find itself transported into the very epicenter of commerce. Dare I say it has been quite an adjustment. But, as the old chestnut goes, "Every cloud has a silver lining," and this has proven the case. With many more shelves now, Mrs. Teabody will be able to share many more varieties of tea with her fellow imbibers. Mrs. Teabody has encouraged others to try Tea Forte's Flora , an especially fine hibiscus, and now Flora is among the most popular of teas.   As you all well know, the word chai  means tea literally but on this side of the pond it more commonly refers to some combination  of spices - - generally cardamon, ginger, cinnamon, cloves and pepper mostly served with milk and sugar. Mrs. Teabody en...