State of Mind: Tuesday Edition

Last night, I texted my sister, K2: "Sitting here, drinking Twinings Orange, Mango, and Cinnamon, tasting the Aran Islands, and thinking of you." And I was. Tasting a squall that blew up just as we got back to our hostel in 2000 after a walk to Dun Aengus, very nearly slamming the door behind us as it hit, then laughing through it as we sat in the kitchen with our hands warming around mugs of tea and soup.

It was a Galway kind of day yesterday, all cold rain and wind, Assam in my Stanley thermos. I've said before that I think since my first introduction to Galway was in the winter and the rain, that's how I prefer my Ireland. And last night, in the warmth and cozy of my tiny apartment, drenched in low lamplight and surrounded by the insulating power of my books on my shelves, the steam from my mug of Twinings--tea bags hoarded since the last time I was in Ireland in 2007--tasted of All is Right With the World.

This morning, the rain has moved past and there was sun when I took out the garbage and recycling. It's Viennese Earl Grey in the pot this morning and the brightness of the morning sun is highlighting the dust on the shelves and the pieces of cardboard Maeve has strewn around the floor in the last two days. And it is time to vacuum, refill the pot of tea, cats sleeping in various parts of the apartment, blues on the iTunes. This too, has its own flavor of All is Right With the World.