Tea, Earl Grey, Hot

I drink lots of tea because as a diabetic I need to almost constantly hydrate. Tea hydrates, coffee dehydrates, and juice has to be sugar free or that's going to dehydrate too. I went through a lot of different teas, green and black, asian and indian and english and Southern and my overall preference for black tea is Earl Grey from Stash. It has the best overall consistent flavor, and the highest quality black tea leaves and oil of bergamot, which I learned last week is actually from Seville oranges, like marmalade. This is probably why it tastes so good with bitter marmalade, btw.

Way back when on Star Trek the Next Generation, a show I admit to watching even when it got really terrible with Wesley-Stu turning into a chortling God-Mode jackass (something the actor who played the role complained about bitterly on his blog actually), Patrick Stewart, who played Captain Picard used to order "Tea, Earl Grey, Hot". It was his thing. That and pulling down his uniform jacket which rides up like crazy. They called the move the "Picard Pull" on the set. It was mentioned in interviews after a couple seasons on the air.

I suspect the WORST thing about that show is the diet. Not the divorce rate of 100% for all captains (actors) and most of the stars thanks to 18 hour days. No, it is the insistence of being entirely lean and looking to be in perfect health. The workouts and low fat restrictions must be brutal. I can't imagine a life without butter or cheese. And those people went without for 7 years of that show. Yes, its a paycheck and a ton of beloved fans to keep you going through the convention circuit, but still. I would never be an actor. Its just too hard for too little money. I you don't keep signing on your contract at those low rates, they kill off your character and that's it for you. Good luck getting work elsewhere.

But at least I have tea, earl grey, hot. And Marmalade.