The There There Letter: Bibliophilia, Bigelow Zin, and Builder's Tea.
Three things from DAH.
DAH is me, David Anthony Hance. I write, organize, plan, produce, manage, direct, act, sing, promote, and make change (not the coin kind).
First up this week, Bibliophilia …
I sit in a rather dark room (I do have one small desk lamp on) surrounded by books. Hundreds and hundreds of books. Most of them I acquired on my own, but some came from my wife and a lot came from my mother's library. I need to sell some. I need to sell a lot. But I drag my feet. Have I bibliophilia? A potentially unhealthy love of books? When there are so many I haven't yet read? I expect there are plenty I may never read. I'm practicing the Japanese art of tsundoku … piling up books (well, almost all mine are on shelves) without getting them read. They are coming in faster than I can read them, most months. But I'm thinking this isn't such a bad thing. I'm interested in every book I've got. I really do want to read them all. So, I'm thinking of them as lurking opportunities, a sort of antilibrary.
https://bigthink.com/personal-growth/do-i-own-too-many-books?rebelltitem=1#rebelltitem1
Second up this week, Bigelow Zin …
A few evenings ago I went outside to our wine refrigerator (it holds 120+ bottles, and lives in a locked, closet-like storage area outside our back door). In the dark, I managed to have several bottles come tumbling out, because, really, straight-sided claret bottles don't stack reliably on top of slope-sided burgundy bottles. Anyway, I brought these bottles inside and we've been drinking them. Drinking them, but not in the order, or on the occasions, which I'd planned. This Bigelow Vineyard 2016 Zinfandel from THREE Wine Company (that's the winery name) was fantastic. I bought it because I'm fascinated by the century-old sandy-soil vineyard blocks that yet survive in between suburban tracts and strip malls in Contra Costa County (east of San Francisco). Christine asked, "Is there more of this?" I answered, "Uh, probably not." But it was delicious, and I'll continue to seek out wines grown in this area. This link is about the 2015 vintage, but the wine information is the same (not much changes in a 130-year-old vineyard, vintage to vintage).
https://threewinecompany.com/store/?view=product&slug=2015-zinfandel-bigelow
Third up this week, Builder's Tea …
I didn't always know that this is what I drink every morning, and sometimes throughout the day. Strong black tea, in a bag, brewed for 4-5 minutes. Add a dollop of milk, and I'm saying, "Ooh, lovely!" Some years ago I was in England, visiting my Auntie Clare. She asked if I'd like a cup of tea. I said, "Yes" and she asked, "Is Builder's OK?" Builder's tea is a term used in England for the tea consumed by laborers taking a break. Brewed in a mug with a teabag (rather than in a pot with loose leaves), served with milk, and often with several spoonfuls of sugar (I skip the sugar). My cousin Jayne finds builder's tea rather unpleasantly strong and ordinary. I like it! My bag of choice is Yorkshire Gold, but I'll take PG Tips in a pinch.
https://www.yorkshiretea.com/
That's all for this week.
From Mary Oliver's poem "Sometimes" …
DAH is me, David Anthony Hance. I write, organize, plan, produce, manage, direct, act, sing, promote, and make change (not the coin kind).
First up this week, Bibliophilia …
I sit in a rather dark room (I do have one small desk lamp on) surrounded by books. Hundreds and hundreds of books. Most of them I acquired on my own, but some came from my wife and a lot came from my mother's library. I need to sell some. I need to sell a lot. But I drag my feet. Have I bibliophilia? A potentially unhealthy love of books? When there are so many I haven't yet read? I expect there are plenty I may never read. I'm practicing the Japanese art of tsundoku … piling up books (well, almost all mine are on shelves) without getting them read. They are coming in faster than I can read them, most months. But I'm thinking this isn't such a bad thing. I'm interested in every book I've got. I really do want to read them all. So, I'm thinking of them as lurking opportunities, a sort of antilibrary.
https://bigthink.com/personal-growth/do-i-own-too-many-books?rebelltitem=1#rebelltitem1
Second up this week, Bigelow Zin …
A few evenings ago I went outside to our wine refrigerator (it holds 120+ bottles, and lives in a locked, closet-like storage area outside our back door). In the dark, I managed to have several bottles come tumbling out, because, really, straight-sided claret bottles don't stack reliably on top of slope-sided burgundy bottles. Anyway, I brought these bottles inside and we've been drinking them. Drinking them, but not in the order, or on the occasions, which I'd planned. This Bigelow Vineyard 2016 Zinfandel from THREE Wine Company (that's the winery name) was fantastic. I bought it because I'm fascinated by the century-old sandy-soil vineyard blocks that yet survive in between suburban tracts and strip malls in Contra Costa County (east of San Francisco). Christine asked, "Is there more of this?" I answered, "Uh, probably not." But it was delicious, and I'll continue to seek out wines grown in this area. This link is about the 2015 vintage, but the wine information is the same (not much changes in a 130-year-old vineyard, vintage to vintage).
https://threewinecompany.com/store/?view=product&slug=2015-zinfandel-bigelow
Third up this week, Builder's Tea …
I didn't always know that this is what I drink every morning, and sometimes throughout the day. Strong black tea, in a bag, brewed for 4-5 minutes. Add a dollop of milk, and I'm saying, "Ooh, lovely!" Some years ago I was in England, visiting my Auntie Clare. She asked if I'd like a cup of tea. I said, "Yes" and she asked, "Is Builder's OK?" Builder's tea is a term used in England for the tea consumed by laborers taking a break. Brewed in a mug with a teabag (rather than in a pot with loose leaves), served with milk, and often with several spoonfuls of sugar (I skip the sugar). My cousin Jayne finds builder's tea rather unpleasantly strong and ordinary. I like it! My bag of choice is Yorkshire Gold, but I'll take PG Tips in a pinch.
https://www.yorkshiretea.com/
That's all for this week.
From Mary Oliver's poem "Sometimes" …
Instructions for living a life:
Pay attention.
Be astonished.
Tell about it.
Pay attention.
Be astonished.
Tell about it.
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