Maddy Barone Send Message

I had this one today. My nose is at the point where nothing has any kind of flavor. It was fine, but I suspect this is one of those teas that is amazing when you can taste it. As it cooled it became a tad bitter.

But I’m not giving up on this one.

The ENT confirmed that surgery was a failure. (although she said “it wasn’t effective.”) So our next step is to try Aspirin Desensitization. I am one of those fairly rare, lucky individuals with AERD, also called aspirin Triad or Samter’s Triad. I have asthma, nasal polyps that grow back only weeks after being surgically removed, and aspirin sensitivity. I once took aspirin accidently when I didn’t read the label of the Alka Selzer Plus. I ended up in the ER with a very scary asthma attack. So the idea of purposely taking aspirin over a three day period is frightening. I’ll be at the Mayo Clinic under doctor supervision.

This won’t happen immediately. I only called the ENT to agree to it today. We’ll have to do an MRI here in Fargo, then the ENT will send it to Mayo with a referral. But it has to be before the end of the year, because I’ve met my deductible and I don’t want to start all over again next year with another $3200, plus the additional $6,000 I have to pay to meet my cap. The thing is, if this works (and the success rate is 70%) I’ll be able to breathe easily and maybe even regain my sense of smell on a permanent basis.

So I’m going to set this tea aside and hopefully be able to fully enjoy it in a few months.

Yay! I finally got to the post office to pick up my kickstarter package from 52 Teas. This sinus infection has me so wrung out and tired that as soon as I’m done with work I just pour myself into my recliner and stare at the wall. LOL

Anyway, I squeed over the different teas in my package and couldn’t decide which to try first. I settled on this one because it’s getting on in the day and I didn’t want to battle caffeine. I’ve never had a honeybush before so I wasn’t sure what to expect. My sense of smell is gone so I don’t know what this one smells like, but I bet it’s marvelous. I brewed it overly long, since I forgot about it. Can I blame that on the sinus infection too? But 14 minutes didn’t ruin it at all. I didn’t get any particular flavor, but the tea was smooth. Not bitterness to make me squinch my eyes shut, no stinging astringency to make me pucker my mouth.

It’s a shame that I can’t smell, and to be honest I feel mighty sorry for myself. The few faint whiffs of scent I got in July make it even harder, now that I know what I’m missing. But it is what it is, and whining isn’t going to change it. At least I have tea that goes down smoothly. I can recommend this one .

Made a jug of this to battle the nasty hot weather we’ve been having. Don’t shoot me, anyone ,but I’m looking forward to fall so I can enjoy my hot teas again!

I guess I’ve been on a little bit of a DAVID’s kick lately. Tonight it’s Cold 911. This sinus infection is really miserable. I’m at the point where my back teeth ache when I blow my nose and touching my cheeks hurts. I don’t think this tea will cure my infection. Heck, the last three courses of antibiotic haven’t, and the fourth one doesn’t look much more successful so far. But it still feels nice to sip this. The steam helps hydrate my nose, and the warm liquid soothes my throat. And when I drink it I remember visiting friends up in Winnipeg, which always makes me feel happy. :)

Well, it’s done. No more sense of smell, even what little of it I had for a few weeks. Life isn’t fair and that’s just how it is. Luckily, you don’t have to have a sense of smell to be able to live. It’s nice, and it makes every thing taste better, but it doesn’t keep your heart pumping, so maybe I shouldn’t complain. I still enjoy this tea even if I can’t taste it.

I cold brewed this one today. It was nice. Not fantastic, but nice. My brother is here to stay for the weekend and he liked it better than I did. He added sugar to his, but I am not a fan of sugar. He knew right away from the smell that it is watermelon. I’ll be happy to drink the rest of the tin, but I don’t think I’ll buy it again.

I had a cup of this this afternoon, and when I opened the bag I got a whiff of the scent of a chocolate mint. It was sooooo nice. MY sense of smell is still weak, and some days it’s non existent. This afternoon it was strong enough for me to really enjoy this tea. :)

This tea is still the bomb! Love it. So smooth, so creamy and buttery smelling. I wish I could smell it even better. The sense of smell is fugitive. That is, it comes and it goes, and it’s never really strong. But I get hints of this, and it is delicious. I’m just about falling asleep in my chair, so I wont do a second steep tonight. I wonder if I could pop the tea sleeve into the fridge and re-steep in the morning? Really, this tea is too good to not use up every bit of it.

Another hit from Mariage Freres!

I had this one on my mid-morning break. Pleasant flavor, not too strong, not bitter or astringent. I couldn’t taste individual flavors, but it smelled sort of buttery, creamy. Really nice!

This one really is lovely. It’s a good tea to mark the historic decision by the US Supreme Court today, being both slightly sweet and slightly bitter. You see, for my brother this is a bittersweet day. It’s a victory for him and millions of others, but came too late for him to legally marry the man he loved, who died of a brain aneurysm some years ago. He was in a coma for weeks and my brother had no legal right to decide his treatment. So here’s to the future. May it be full of love.