Tea Wench

We had the oven repairman in yesterday, and he asked if it was okay to use our loo whilst shaking his head jokingly and mumbling something about "all that tea."  Now it makes more sense.

HA When that happened to me I thought it was weird~ When we had Sky installed 2 guys came and DH offered tea/coffee and one guy asked if he could use the loo and then went #2 and stunk up the house.
I thought wow I have never seen that happen..
2 cups of tea later they were gone.

one guy asked if he could use the loo and then went #2 and stunk up the house.

I know when you gotta go, you gotta go, but dang! That's nasty 

To clarify, I'll really miss getting iced brewed coffee I don't have to make at home. I dunno, I just rarely seem to make coffee at home. I know Starbucks or whatever makes iced latte/espresso drinks but it's not quite the same. Make a bunch of shots over ice with just a little bit of water would work.

If you try some independent coffee shops you might have a bit more luck finding brewed iced coffee.  There's one in the West End here that offers it, or did last summer anyway.  The independent ones don't have a specific set menu that they have to stick to, so even if they don't do it, if you're a regular and suggest it they might make it for you!    I do tend to make my own, however.

I did manage to get an iced americano from Starbucks last summer, and it wasn't so bad.  Not quite the same, of course, but when you're desperate and don't want a blended up drink full of milk and syrup... 

Yeah, Starbucks will do the iced americanos.  The shop that used to be our regular place would ice any coffee drink for me as long as certain people were working.  I've never been a big iced tea drinker, but when it's hot, I always crave an unsweetened iced tea like my grandmother used to make.  It's good to know McDonalds do it.  It's unsweetened like they do it in the States?  I really can't stomach sweet tea. Blech.

Funny thing on the original topic. I always offer tea or coffee to workers, and I always did in the States if it was early in the day.  Even in the summer I would offer hot drinks along with cold.  Not sure why it feels normal to me.  Maybe it's the upbringing thing. 

The other day something reminded me of this topic though.  We had a gas/boiler inspection, and it was a team of two guys from down near Brighton.  We were the first stop on their day in London where they do as many clients here as possible.  Our street is horrible for parking, so the one bloke had to sit out in the van.  He used the loo (which is something that happens about every other time we have workers in) and muttered about not being able to get a cup of tea "around here" and I felt guilty.  But it turns out he was just moany (old guy) and was just complaining about being outside.  I didn't offer the other man a drink because it wouldn't be fair, but for a split second I thought "well, maybe I am meant to offer it the second they darken the door".

I've never seen iced tea here at MacDonalds and it is all I drink at home, so I have looked.   

I don't know.  I got excited when TamaMoo said she saw it at McDonalds.  I figured I wouldn't have to take up room in my fridge in the summer if I could just convince Mr A to bring me home a cup of unsweetened tea.

HA When that happened to me I thought it was weird~ When we had Sky installed 2 guys came and DH offered tea/coffee and one guy asked if he could use the loo and then went #2 and stunk up the house.
I thought wow I have never seen that happen..
2 cups of tea later they were gone.

Yeah. Well, I've seen the next door neighbor's yard workers taking a leak in their backyard (or over into mine?) Wondered if they left further offerings in the bushes 

We're going through the same renovations, and it's taken me a little while to get used to the tea thing here (my in-laws also bring and make their own, I think they believe I'd let them die of dehydration otherwise). I'll reluctantly confess that I use it to my advantage now though -- whenever I have a workman coming I make sure to have a good stock of tea, coffee and cookies or homemade cakes. A few cookies go a long way -- DH is shocked sometimes at the little extras I get some of these guys to do.
 

Happy builders build happy homes!

We're going through the same renovations, and it's taken me a little while to get used to the tea thing here (my in-laws also bring and make their own, I think they believe I'd let them die of dehydration otherwise). I'll reluctantly confess that I use it to my advantage now though -- whenever I have a workman coming I make sure to have a good stock of tea, coffee and cookies or homemade cakes. A few cookies go a long way -- DH is shocked sometimes at the little extras I get some of these guys to do.
 

Happy builders build happy homes!

I concur!

As a man, I feel funny that one of the ladies in the office comes around every morning to offer to get myself and the other male in my section tea/coffee. I bring my own in a travel mug, so, thankfully, I don't feel like a heel having her wait on me. Just a case of me feeling that way from being raised in the states where you'd never ask a female co-worker to get you coffee (At least I wouldn't)

As a man, I feel funny that one of the ladies in the office comes around every morning to offer to get myself and the other male in my section tea/coffee. I bring my own in a travel mug, so, thankfully, I don't feel like a heel having her wait on me. Just a case of me feeling that way from being raised in the states where you'd never ask a female co-worker to get you coffee (At least I wouldn't)

Good for you!  That wasn't always the case in the US though. Once upon a time, one of my first jobs was as a secretary (to a man) and I had to get him his coffee every morning because the kettle, etc. was located in the ladies' lounge!

As a man, I feel funny that one of the ladies in the office comes around every morning to offer to get myself and the other male in my section tea/coffee. I bring my own in a travel mug, so, thankfully, I don't feel like a heel having her wait on me. Just a case of me feeling that way from being raised in the states where you'd never ask a female co-worker to get you coffee (At least I wouldn't)

Yes, when I was in the US working as an assistant I made it a policy to never make coffee for anyone.  I never offered and no one ever asked me. The people (always women) who did make coffee for others always offered - nobody ever asked them to do it.

People in the US either bought coffee in a shop near work or else made their own coffee in the communal coffee pot.

In the UK, I could never really get used to the idea that if I wanted to have a cup of coffee or tea, I had to make a cup for everyone in my team, according to their specifications (and I was not an assistant).

Luckily, our office isn't like that - we do have a coffee shop downstairs, so nearly all of us just buy there on our way up, or already have travel mugs prepared on our way in.

If I need coffee in the afternoon and don't want to use the stuff we have in the office, I do ask if anyone wants anything from the shop downstairs, but it's not an expectation that any of us do (or pay!) for it. 

I guess it's like the tradition of buying rounds in the pub. (I mean the part about having to go and get everyone a drink, not the part about paying.)

In my office it was most often men who did the communal tea run.  I never did it myself, but that was because I could never figure out how they always seemed to remember who wanted what and in what cups--way too confusing for me.