Birds of a feather
By Christa Terry
My grandmother on my mother’s side has a special tea cup she uses. The rest of us use Russian tea glasses while she drinks her blend from a dainty bone china cup and saucer covered in colorful flowers. It’s really a rather lovely thing to see on the table in the cold winter months because it’s so evocative of springtime.
Were I to choose a special cup of my very own, it would probably be a coffee cup and I’d more than likely pick the Chirp cup from Lenox. What can I say? I’m a total sucker for bluebirds…too bad I have a little trouble justifying the $25 price tag.
For now I’ll have to settle for my oddly-balanced yet beloved jade glass cup and saucer I bought at a Cracker Barrel store ages and ages ago. Do you have a special cup or mug or bowl or plate?
April 29th, 2008 at 9:08 am
Mmmm…Russian tea glasses. I’ve always wanted some.
My favorite coffee mug would make The Manolo say Ayyyy! It’s a dark matte blue mug with a nice sturdy handle that fits my fingers perfectly and is wider in diameter at the top than the bottom. Why would The Manolo weep? Because of the legend in big, black letters reading Birkenstock! Mwahahahahaaa! Really, though, it’s the perfect size and shape, I love the color, it keeps my coffee nicely insulated somehow, and the handle is having a love affair with my fingers. I wouldn’t care if it advertised kitten flavored snack cakes, I’d still drink my coffee out of it.
Mmmm…kitten flavored snack cakes. No wonder my cat sometimes runs in terror from me.
April 29th, 2008 at 11:52 am
I have two special mugs. One is wider at the top than at the bottom and has a design of Christmas packages on a red background. It was a present from one of my college roommates. The other is green with a yellow “Happy Bunny” on it and says “Go Away.” The Christmas mug is perfect for happy afternoon tea or evening hot chocolate, and the green mug is perfect for morning coffee. It should probably say, “Go Away, and don’t come back until this mug is empty.”
May 6th, 2008 at 8:42 pm
A good mug is worth it. Think about this: how often do you use your favorite mug? It’s like a bed; you use it every day. I have two silver spoons I use only for my coffee and tea, and they make me feel just a little bit more pampered every day. Not a bad way to start the day.
Remember that guy whose boss bought him a cashmere scarf and he kept it in the box for a year before finding an occasion special enough to wear it. Well, he lost it and whined to Oprah about it. She said, “What does that teach you?” and he said “To take better care of my things” and she said, “No. It should teach you to enjoy the things you have when you have them, because EVERY day is special.”
May 8th, 2008 at 7:15 am
I use my favorite mug as often as it’s clean…but I have a favorite cup and saucer that doesn’t get enough play. I’m going to use it tomorrow, methinks.
That’s a great cautionary tale…reminds me of this post. Sometimes I forget to heed my own advice! I am, however, happier for having taken the pretty vintage silverware out of hiding so I could use it. It brightens my day, every dang day.