I am nothing if not a practicing writer and enviro-vibe curator. What TF is that? I think it means I am someone who enjoys curating the conditions, the atmospheric environment around a task, event, or experience. In this sentence, the thing is writing, and writing demands a vibe.
I work mostly from home, but when I would venture out to work in public spaces, I’d go to, say, Starbucks (EFF THEM), where the art of coffee and co-working grew wings, where it felt like everyone was working remotely. Visiting now feels like walking into a well-decorated subway station that so happens to sell coffee—it became a lot less appealing. Starbucks continues to lose its intimate appeal, its soul, its enviro-vibes. I find that now, working there is a challenge: it’s crowded, loud (umm, hello, those who use their speakerphone in public for work calls), and it’s not cozy. The chairs have a poor ass-to-seat ratio (I can only sit in the seat a couple of hours at a time), and the tables wobble. Man, I’ll never forget that time my drink, laptop, and cell phone were casualties of an ill-legged table—it was a flat-white mess. Hello, AppleCare
At some point, I’d stop and look around at the folks inside, working on one, even two laptops, chain-drinking coffee, looking miserable. I’d hear the musical cacophony of shaking drinks, machines steaming, the constant name/drink announcements, and odd conversations. Stress read like novels on folks’ faces. All of which got me thinking about the basic human need for outdoor spaces, fresh air, and nature, and wondering why are we here? I mean, IN HERE!
My point is, in many ways, it is easy to become a prisoner of our environment. Like how goldfish acclimate into their bowls and become only as big as their fishbowls, when those jawns grow larger than koi fish (which is frightening to think about), it is true. Taking some control over our environment can help us not be a goldfish, at least. And curating personal, intentional space is important for mental healthies, too.
And so, I went home. I wanted to find ways to insert joy into my day so that I could produce my best work and take care of myself. In doing so, I’d become an unofficial writing vibe curator. My environment has been safe, controlled (for the most part), and best of all, I don’t have to buy bad coffee drinks to be in it. Okay, back to the top!
I am nothing if not a practicing writer, and enviro-vibe curator, it take the right conditions to convince my psyche to sit and write. I am a routined person who enjoys making special moments from the mundane. Yes, I will do the same things, but it won’t be in the same way. When it rains, I am the first to crack a window, circulate the fan, and set a whole mood. I start to dim the lights, or strike a match for candlelight, and brew water for tea. In fact, every day, around 4 p.m., I begin my tea practice. I take a break from writing or working, set a pomodoro timer for 25 minutes, and practice self-care and grounding. Sometimes it will be taking black tea and making a London Fog* with milk and foam, others chai, and during the luteal phase, it’s an espresso. I gather the china, the syrups, powders, cubes, milks, spices, and tea. I’ll take some deep breaths, stretch my fingers and palms out, and await the kettle. I may fuddle around in the vinyls and play a song I haven’t heard in a while, walk barefoot, or call a friend and pace.
Crafting the drink is very ceremonial, because I keep saying to myself, “Self, you have nothing to do in this time except for this.” Knowing this, I enjoy the process of experimenting, creating, or just the familiarity of a tried-and-true drink. This daily ritual can be relaxing, can give the wind-up or wind-down kick in the pants one needs after working or being so hard on oneself). It also invites time to introspect, meditate, do a quick yoga flow, read up on something interesting without going down the rabbit hole of the news or social media. Tea time also marks the delineation of time between the working day and evening leisure.
I’d invite anyone to try, especially as a low-risk entry point into self-care. Ugh—I hate that phrase, let’s just use, “kind awareness to self” instead.
I have included three recipes that are my favorite and don’t take much resources or time. I hope you enjoy, I hope you get to develop a practice to just sit and breathe. Just Be. Especially with the stresses of day to day and the uncertainty of this changing world.
Holla at me,
F.
(If you try these, let me know what you think!)
#1 Fee’s London Fog
Ingredients:
1 cup of cold filtered water
1 bag Earl Grey Crème tea
1/3 cup of Milk of choice
1 teaspoon Vanilla Torani Syrup
1 teaspoon of raw honey
Instructions:
Boil water at 212 degrees. Pour over tea bag into mug and cover for 8-10 minutes. Froth milk, set aside. Squeeze and discard tea bag, stir. Add honey, stir, add vanilla syrup, stir. Add milk, divide the liquid from froth as you pour, then stir. Spoon out froth and dollop on top.
Serves 1.
#2 Fee’s Double Espresso Noir
Ingredients:
Double espresso pod
2/3 cup Milk
1 tablespoon Torani Dark Chocolate Syrup
Dutch Chocolate finishing powder
Instructions:
Coat the bottom of your mug with chocolate syrup. Make double espresso, and pour in mug. Steam and foam milk, dividing liquid from froth, stir. Dollop foam on top and sprinkle with finishing powder.
Serves 1.
#3 Fee’s Hot Lemon Bourbon Tea
Ingredients:
2 cups of cold filtered water
2 bags of lemon herbal tea
1 tablespoon raw honey
1 raw sugar cube
4 tablespoons of Angels Envy Bourbon
squeeze of lemon juice concentrate
Cinnamon
Instructions:
Boil water at 202 degrees, pour into mug(s) over 2 tea bags and cover for 6-10 minutes (depending on how strong you’d like it). Squeeze and discard tea bags. Add sugar cubes, honey, a squeeze of lemon juice, stir. Add Bourbon and top with a pinch of cinnamon.
Serves 2.
Cover Art by Author, Fièra M.M.