Tea humor

One of our stops in Providence was this place.


We had to, since we are such fans of Tealuxe. Plus, it was right on Thayer Street so it was a prime location.

Also, I do have this at my desk.


Anyway, there were some tea-related quotes on the walls. In amongst quotes by people like Ralph Waldo Emerson ("There is a great deal of poetry in a chest of tea") and Tien Yiheng ("Tea is drunk to forget the din of the world.") was this one.


(I'm guessing that's the *first* star date that line was uttered, because there were certainly plenty of other star dates to choose from! Jean Luc loved his Earl Grey ...)

A little slightly nerdy tea humor ...

Unexpected day trip

Tom had an adventure in mind on Friday evening, and asked me if I wanted to be surprised. I said, "Sure!"

So we got in the car the next day and he started driving, and it didn't take me too long to notice a general direction and come up with a guess.

The surprise destination -- Providence, Rhode Island!

For some reason, neither of us had really ever been there before, even though it's just over an hour's drive away. Most of our day trips, we drive north.

We really liked Providence!

We didn't have any specific plan when we got there, so we did a lot of walking around.

The area of town where RISD and Brown are is very hilly -- one big, steep climb. We saw a few students walking bikes who'd just given up.

The city proper was pretty level, though.

It was a gorgeous day out.

I liked the walkways all along the canal.

There were at least two different street fairs/outdoor concerts going on that we found just by strolling around.


One of them even sold kettle corn but I controlled myself.

We had a nice dinner up on Thayer Street, up by Brown, and when we left we both felt like coming back again soon.

What's a street fair without one of these?

I happened to run across a very modest street fair over the weekend -- must've been half a block long. But it was just big enough to be making this:


It was a gorgeous Sunday afternoon, I had a book, I had iced tea, and then KETTLE CORN!

So I had no choice but to sprawl on the grass in a park and snack.

I barely put a dent in it that afternoon, though. In fact, we only just finished this popcorn yesterday (it was still good!).

Labor Day footwear

Stylin', aren't they?


No, they're not mine, I was just trying them out for a few minutes. See, there was this Labor Day barbecue, with food, drink, and outdoor toys.

Like these Jumping Jax bouncy boots.

They fit sort of like ski boots, and the bottom is very springy but somehow resistant at the same time.

They definitely take some getting used to. Plus I had a little trouble getting them to fit just right, so my ankles felt a bit wobbly.


I wouldn't have taken off in a full sprint in them, but I eventually got the hang of a good springy job.

Fun, but definitely a leg-muscle workout.

And just like with actual ski boots, your feet feel so nice and light as soon as you take them off ...

I had ice cream after that.

On Bearskin Neck

This is my favorite part of Rockport. Just walking around here makes me happy.



There are lots of artisan shops and places to get fun food. We had a light lunch in a cafe that overlooks the water. Afterward, there's a cupcake store that also sells ice cream and I got a very great chocolate milkshake (Tom got a cone).

Then we had to do the rock-scramble out to the end of the point.

If this is 6, then where are 1 through 5?

This street always captures my imagination. It runs parallel to the main shopping area, just paces away from it, but it's quiet and residential.


What's it like to live right there, I wonder? I think it would be fun to find out, just for a few weeks. Just to see what it's like.

Plus there are often signs for apartments to rent on top of store fronts. The sign in the window, which you can only just make out here, says "Summer Rental" and a phone number.

Granted it's a bit late for a summer rental, but I bet they'd rent it out for a couple weeks.

I think it would be really cool.

And so does Tom!

After we're satisfied with our walk around Bearskin Neck, on our way out we have to stop here.


It has two locations -- the more central one is easier to find than this one, which is why it was mobbed yesterday. This one's a bit of a walk but it's worth it. I mean, you just have to leave Rockport with a bag of candy.

Mmm ... chocolate almond bark ... candied ginger ... white chocolate ...

My legs are a little sore from climbing on the rocks but it's worth it!

Long weekend

And I need it!

We went to Rockport for the day. Aside from the usual chilling out on Bearskin Neck, we went to Halibut Point State Park for awhile first.

It was a great day to be right near the water.


I love looking in the tide pools and seeing all the colors and fuzzy seaweeds.



There's a former granite quarry there, too, that has over the years filled with water from underground springs. There's a rocky trail that goes all the way around it.


There's no swimming allowed in there, though. Too bad.

There's actually a very fun but tiring rock-scrambling "trail" that leads from this park along the coast all the way back to Rockport center. Tom and I did it several years ago. We didn't do it today, but it was a gorgeous day out and it made me want to revisit that hike again sometime soon.