"Tea Bags versus Loose Tea"

Tea Bags versus Loose Tea

I've always used tea bags and I'm not afraid to admit it.
I have some loose tea that I bought from my friend Marsha when she still had her cute, little tea shop...and I have to say....I STILL haven't even used it yet.
Ugh.

My friend Marsha, ALWAYS uses "loose" tea.
But I, who is usually in some sort of a rush..do not take the time to do it that way. It does taste better I think.

They "say" they, the big tea companies, put the "chopped up leftovers" into the tea bags. Yuck. But who knew. I didn't even know that until someone told me.

I read Frank McCourts "Angela's Ashes" years ago.

After reading it, I HAD to read McCourts second book to see what happened next.
Some where in the book he recounts a story where he's been living in America for quite some time and his Mother "Angela" whom the book is based off of, comes from Ireland to live and at some point...she sees him making tea with "tea bags" and is appalled.

I guess after living such an impoverished and sad, life you wouldn't think she'd notice such a small imperfection in her child but notice she did and she wasn't a happy camper about it. Tea bags. Wow.

Oh well Frank, we can't always please our "Mum's" totally.
I mean you did go on to write a pretty intriguing AND "Pulitzer Prize" winning book based on your Mother's wretched life.

And most importantly you did get her ashes back over to Ireland after she died.
Even if you couldn't make a proper cup of tea in her eyes.

Frank McCourt is a great story teller but hang on to your hats, or cover your eyes when you read his stuff.

Angela's Ashes and the rest are laced with so much "language" and other disgusting artifacts of the McCourt family. Too much information people Frank. I could have done without some of that stuff.

Plus his books are filled with that favorite Irish word of all...
the infamous "F" bomb.

And mind you, not once, not twice but about two thousand times or more.
Good golly Miss Molly are you kidding me?

By book number 3....."Teacher Man" I had learned to "check" his books out at the library.
I read a tiny bit of it....then....I checked it BACK into the library.

I like Frank McCourts story telling.
I like to hear him on the radio or on TV.....doing interviews and such where the
"FCC has a few airwaves codes."

Love the accent of course.

His writing is vivid.....you can see it and it was horrible the life they led.
No denying that part for sure.
But some of us can only take so much. I am the kind of person that wants to "help people" so books like that "undo" me.

Especially if I see "no light at the end of the tunnel for the writer."

How would I know that Frank would eventually go on to own the L.A. Dodgers?
mean I totally didn't see that coming when they were having a "pig head" for Christmas dinner because they were so poor when he was growing up in Limerick.

I made my husband take me to the movie "Angela's Ashes" when it first came out.
He was so disgusted with it all. I figured that would happen. It is very oppressive actually. I had read the book so I sort of knew what was going to happen.
I remember Don saying at some point during the movie.......
"Oh my gosh, does ANYTHING GOOD happen to these poor people????"

I whispered back over to him...."yeah the guy writes a book, it wins a 'Pulitzer Prize' they make it into this movie and now he's a bizillionare."


Here's a bit of "Tea Bag" trivia....

The tea bag was invented in the U.S. in 1908 by Thomas Sullivan, a thrifty tea importer, who replaced the large sample tins of tea he was sending to retail customers with small, individual silk bags of tea. Filter paper has since replaced the silk and the tea bag has become a staple.

Many people automatically assume that loose tea is “better” than tea in tea bags. In the U.S., this assumption is based in part on consumers’ familiarity with supermarket-grade tea bags, which are made with lower-quality tea.

While the very best teas are sold—and brewed—as loose tea, there are many excellent teas that come in tea bags. Here are some things to keep in mind when making your choice.

The English, who are very particular about their tea, use tea bags for 87% of the tea they drink.

I'm sticking with my tea bags people. The Brits know best. Plus I saw the Irish using them too with my own eyes.
Works for me.

Sláinte