TeaTalk:101

  Every time I’ve gone somewhere with my friends, somehow, we end up at a coffee or tea place. I usually never want something to drink beforehand, but the chain reaction of everyone getting something cascades, and before I know it, my AMEX is out, and some latte is in my hand. If anyone asks me what kind of bubble tea I like , I’ll say brown sugar with light ice and 75% sugar because that’s what my friends get.   The hive mind mentality is low key taking over, and I’m going to be honest; I am so sick of everything.   I don’t know if it’s because SAT scores are released at the end of this week, or if midterms are creeping up on me a bit too quickly, or if just the overhead of college applications being something I actually have to worry about now are all getting to me, but it’s happening. The environment around us, especially as Juniors—an ironic name as the reality of college and the working world is finally reaching us—is affecti ng our perception of self, puttin...

Tea and Coffee, much to my dismay, do actually have much in common.   Both provide caffeine, are comforting, usually brown in color, and are one’s best friend the night before a test you procrastinated studying for. ..but they aren’t replacements for each other.   The United States has taken pride in being a country living on coffee ( and d estroying tea for that matter ), having many fast-food chains specializing in having coffee ready for the graveyard shifts.   India’s pride, if not Virat Kohli or Hrit hik Roshan , has got be chai. Every household has a slightly different way of preparing it, yet we can all agree our dads need it at least twice a day.   The concept of ‘home’ is a complex one, maybe even more than my mom’s masala chai recipe , but much like chai, it’s a little different for everyone. While watching The Swimmers, I initially felt so proud of myself for being able to understand a good amount of the Arabic spoken, but it quickly shifted to gu...