Congrats to GG Mathis, November 2011 Contest Winner!

GG Mathis is the winner of the November 2011 Contest on Keen Tea Thyme for answering: What are you thankful for this year?

Here is her winning entry (selected randomly!) in its entirety. Don't forget to stop by the December Contest page and submit your entries for a chance to win free tea!

GG Mathis:

On May 22, 2011, an F5 tornado demolished our home, our cars, and our community. We were home at the time. The hallway where we took refuge was the only piece of the house left standing.

A friend whose faith is strong asked me recently, “So, do you see just yet how your experience has made you better and stronger?” I (whose faith has taken a beating this summer) answered, “Not yet. It’s too soon.” But as we reach the six-month anniversary of the storm, I am able to see and recall with profound thanks the people whose care and concern have carried us through the hardest stretch of our lives.

I am grateful for the staff who met us, sopping and panting, at the door of the hotel where we took refuge immediately after the storm; who put blankets around our shoulders and asked, “Would you like a cup of tea?”

I am grateful for the total strangers who drove two pickup trucks of salvaged goods fifty miles to my parents’ farm so we could clean and store them.

I am grateful for the dear friends at my church who met me with open arms, Kleenex, and in some cases, sleeves for me to wipe my runny nose on when I collapsed on them in tears.

I am grateful for the crew from the William Jewell football team, who showed up in my yard unannounced, threw back a collapsed wall and put in my hands the hand-pieced wedding quilt my mom made me and a box of dry and undamaged baby pictures of my son.

I am grateful for the online friends I have made via Steepster, who sent cards and care packages, and generously restocked my tea pantry.

I am grateful for the friends—near and far-away—who have prayed for us this season, because there have been many, many days I was too tired and didn’t have the words to do it for myself.

From the bottom of my heart, I am grateful for my husband, who worked tirelessly at the site of our old house picking out bits and pieces that will help us have a home again soon. Quietly and without complaining, he has worked to make the rental where we’ve been camping a bearable place, seen to it that some of our creature comforts have been replaced, and has been my rock and anchor when I am falling apart at the strained seams.

From the very core of my soul, I am grateful that I know a God who protects my family, who meets our needs in unexpected and amazing ways, and who is faithful despite my attempts to jump ship during tough times.

May you and your family recognize more blessings than you have fingers and toes to count on. Happy Thanksgiving!

Thank you for sharing your story with us, GG Mathis. Best wishes for a wonderful, SAFE 2012!

Congrats to Uniquity - October 2011 Winner!

Here is Uniquity's (Tiffany) story about Halloween memories. She won two pouches of tea: Liquid Candy Corn and Vampire Lemonade. You can win free tea too! Head over to the November contest to see how! :)

"Hallowe’en has long been one of my favourite holidays – I know it’s not a “real” one, but I love it. My parents split when I was very young and all the religious holidays (Christmas, Easter) were a bit stressful. Hallowe’en, though, was the night of imagination! I was very fortunate that when I was younger my father made all my costumes from scratch – no matter howsilly. I had a wonderfully constructed horse one year (the face constructedwith Styrofoam and a bicycle helmet!), Princess Jasmine, Pocahontas and the ‘Funshine’Care Bear are other notable examples. He even bought and altered a weddingdress from a thrift store for me the year I was to be a princess.


While I don’t have a favourite Hallowe’en specifically, I do have great memories of my trips with my father. One particular house had an owl set up in the front yard every year that I held detailed conversations with. As with many childhood events, I’ve only realized as an adult that a microphone and speaker system was involved. Nonetheless, my father was sure to bring me by that house every year to converse with my favourite owl friend.


I have pictures chronicling every year’s costume and every year’s Jack-O-Lantern – another favourite trend that I still continue is drawing out pumpkin ‘options’ beforehand. My father would draw 5 or 6 differentpotential faces to carve and I was allowed to pick or alter them as desired. It might seem strange to plan out Jack-O-Lanterns, but I loved it! Now that it is October, I am already thinking about what I can create this year..."

Hope everyone had a wonderful Halloween! :)

Chai tea for Autumn; fave for October?

Chai tea mix

The results are in - over 70% of voters in September 2011 agree that chai tea is the best flavor to welcome autumn!

Other respondents:
40% prefer green
and 10% prefer either white, black or other

Be sure to vote in October's poll:

Hooray for October! What’s your favorite type of black tea this season?

Hazelnut/coffee flavor

Chocolate/dessert flavor

Chai/spicy

Pumpkin spice

Cranberry/fruity

Other

If you want to win free tea, submit an entry for this month's contest - Halloween Memories. Entries are due October 26, 2011. Send me a story about your favorite Halloween memory for a chance to win! All entries will be posted by October 26 and readers will have the chance to vote on the top five entries.

Each Top Five Entry will each receive a free sample of Pink Pearls, my new blend. The final winner will receive two pouches of my signature blends from Adagio:
-Liquid Candy Corn
-Vampire Lemonade

Happy October!

Please note: November and December's contest will be joined, so winners will have the chance to score four pouches of tea, plus a 2 oz sample of Pink Pearls. So if you miss out on this month's contest, mark your calendars for Nov. 1; details of the new contest will be posted then.

Back-to-school Jitters

Teazanne (Maryann) sent in the winning entry for the September 2011 Monthly Contest at Keen Tea Thyme and scored two pouches of free tea - Toasted Marshmallow and Autumn's Walk.

Her winning entry is below:

I always loved back-to-school time as a kid, shopping for school supplies (and new clothes!) and getting set for a new school year. It's no surprise, then, that I opted to become a teacher when I grew up. After earning a Masters in Early Childhood Education, I taught kindergarten for several years. I enjoyed the kids, and let's face it, kindergarten is pretty fun! But I decided to expand my horizon and teach "older" kids - fifth grade. I went back to college for a few "refresher" classes on teaching, and while I didn't earn another degree, I did feel confident I would be a terrific fifth grade teacher.

I made sure I had fresh supplies - lots of construction paper, stickers, posters, glue, crayons...and then I panicked. What was I doing?! Fifth graders are nothing like kindergarteners! I didn't even know how to dress; normally I wore pants and a shirt that I wouldn't mind getting fingerpaint on, or construction paper stuck to. But what to wear for the older kids? I opted for a nice pair of khakis and a button-down shirt - so I still looked like a "fun" teacher, but also one with authority.

The first kids started walking in and sitting down. "We have assigned seats? Man!" They said. I thought quickly, what's the harm? I could take away the name tags...but I stopped myself. I was a their teacher and I wanted assigned seats until I learned their names. I could do that. I was their teacher.

The rest of the class filed in, and once the bell rang I said hello to my new students and introduced myself. "I'm new to fifth grade, just like you guys, so let's take some time to introduce ourselves." I learned about summer vacations, family pets, favorite sports teams and players, and what these - no, my - fifth graders liked to do for fun.

We laughed. We learned. (Hopefully!) My students learned about new experiences; I sure did.

Now I've taught fifth grade for almost a decade and I can't believe I was ever scared. Don't let my students know that! :) I just calmly brew a pot of tea in the morning and carry on.

Congrats to Teazanne (Sept. 2011 Contest Winner)

With just one entry in this month's contest, I'm pleased to announce the winner of the September 2011 Keen Tea Thyme Contest - Teazanne (Maryann)!

Her story about back-to-school jitters will be posted in a separate entry later today.

Her prize? A pouch of Toasted Marshmallow customized blend from Adagio, and a second pouch of Autumn's Walk, another of my signature blends from Adagio. And as a special treat, a 2 oz sample of my new blend Pink Pearls!

Want free tea? Then submit an entry for my October contest by emailing me a memory about your favorite Halloween. Winners will receive two pouches of tea from my Adagio signature blend collection:

-Liquid Candy Corn
-Vampire Lemonade

The top five entries will be posted for readers to vote on by October 26, 2011. All top five winners will receive a sample of Pink Pearls.

Happy Brewing! :)

Back-to-School Contest

It's time for another Keen Contest! Since there were no entries in the August contest - for the Toasted Marshmallow pouch - there will be TWO pouches to give away at the end of this contest: the Toasted Marshmallow pouch and Autumn's Walk.

What do you have to do to enter? Tell your favorite back-to-school story by emailing me. Deadline to enter is September 23, 2011 - so you've got almost a month.

I'll post all the stories by Sept. 25 and we'll vote for the top two winners - BOTH will win BOTH pouches, so there's two chances to win. Voting will be done strictly by readers, I'll only moderate. Winners will be announced by the end of September, just in time for the October contest.

The Rules:
1) One entry per person, per contest.
2) Word limit is 750 words total, not including a title, nor your name.
3) Keep it clean, folks.
4) The story must be your own, no plagiarism. Don't mess with me on this one!
5) Have fun!

Send entries to me at keenteathyme@gmail.com, and include a statement that it is OK for me to publish your story, giving you full credit of course. I'll post entries once a week and repost all of them right before voting.

Voting will begin Sept. 25 - instructions will be provided then.

Good luck, have fun, and happy brewing!

Toasted Marshmallow Campfire Contest

August 30th is...National Toasted Marshmallow Day! As you may know, one of my Adagio signature blends is Toasted Marshmallow so I came up with another contest idea.

From now through August 23rd, submit your favorite campfire ghost stories for a chance to win one full-sized pouch of Toasted Marshmallow from Adagio along with FIVE (5) 1-ounce samples of ANY of my custom-made blends including:
-Pink Pearls
-Summer Sunshine
-Vampire Lemonade
-Peachy Keen

And others available on Adagio.com. I'll post a complete list of tea samples available closer to the date, so the winner will be able to pick from what is freshest and available.

How to Enter
1) Post your favorite campfire ghost story below or email me at keenteathyme@gmail.com.
2) I'll post all entries by August 25.
3) Then we'll vote on the favorites. YOUR vote will count!
4) The top three stories will be entered in the drawing for the tea. I'll select the winner using a random selection online tool.
5) I'll post the winning entry, as well as the selection of tea the winner from which the winner will choose.

So get in the "spirit" - brew a cuppa and think of your scariest, funniest, or most surprising ghost stories. One entry per person. Deadline is August 23 so get crackin'!

It's Always About Popularity; 5000 Hits Contest

I am so proud of my blog - and for everyone who has been telling friends and family about it. :) Since my blog went "live" in March 2011 (just a couple months ago!) I have over 2800 hits!

I'm halfway to 5000 hits, and my goal was to reach that within nine months... I think I'll make it.

Help get the word out about my blog! Post a link or two below (or on the mirrored site: http://keenteathyme.teatra.de/) that illustrates your promoting my blog and be entered to win a tea sampler pack from a variety of tea companies.

I'll randomly select a winner and post the winning promotion, winner's name and/or blog, and what the winner won.

And don't forget, I love promoting your blogs too. If you post your tea blog below and it's not already a part of "Tea Fiends & Friends," I'll add it -  winner or not.

5000 hits here I come! :)

Tea-ku Contest - Haiku about tea

This contest is in full swing - but you still have time to post or e-mail me your tea haiku. We'll vote on the favorites here. So post away! This contest runs from now through May 31. We'll vote on the favorites in June. Winner will receive a grand prize related to tea... (of course)

Need help on the rules & all that jazz? Refresh your memory here.

Get crackin', teaists! :)

Contest Winner - update

Congratulations to Tom Wing! He correctly identified the accidental inventor of the tea bag: Thomas Sullivan, of New York. Mr. Wing wins a collection of tea - many of my own custom blends. Wanna get in on the contest fun? Check out my Spring 2011 contest for Tea-ku: haiku related to tea. We'll vote on the faves in June; contest closes May 31. So you've got some time. We'll also have a celebriTEA involved...one hint, she writes a haiku about every cup of tea she drinks on steepster....


Here are the deets on this contest: who invented the first tea bag?


From wikipedia (and verified by sources):
The first tea bags were made from hand-sewn silk muslin bags and tea bag patents of this sort exist dating as early as 1903. First appearing commercially around 1904, tea bags were successfully marketed by tea and coffee shop merchant Thomas Sullivan from New York, who shipped his tea bags around the world. The loose tea was intended to be removed from the bags by customers, but they found it easier to prepare tea with the tea enclosed in the bags.^[1] Modern tea bags are usually made of paper fiber. The heat-sealed paper fiber tea bag was invented by William Hermanson,^[2] one of the founders of Technical Papers Corporation of Boston. The rectangular tea bag was not invented until 1944. Prior to this they resembled small sacks.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tea_bag

First Keen Tea Thyme Contest - Hurry, Ends March 25 @ 11:59 p.m.

If we still used tea as currency - as the ubiquitous "they" did until the nineteenth century, I'd be filthy rich! I've got more tea than I know what to do with. Plus my 30th b-day is around the corner and I'm ready for some fun. So I've decided to host a tea giveaway!

You've got until 11:59 p.m. on Fri., March 25, 2011, to answer the question below by e-mailing me.

Please do NOT post your answer below. You can post that you will e-mail me the answer so I'll know to look out for your entry. If you post the answer below, your posted comment will be removed and you'll be disqualified. Sorry to be so touchy about that, but I want to keep this fair & fun. I'll select a winner randomly based on the number of correct entries onSat., March 26, 2011. After contacting the winner, I'll post his/her name as well as the correct answer.


Who (unintentionally) invented the tea bag? 

Why bother entering? 'Cause you'll win tea, silly! :) The winner will receive a goodie bag of at least five samples of my custom blended tea from Adagio, including the following:

• Vampire Lemonade
• Toasted Marshmallow
• A Love Affair
• My Name is Bruce
• Sassy Cupid

The winner also gets a choice of five other samples from my Steepster cupboard, which is updated regularly. All samples will make at least five cups of tea. I'm generous when sending; ask around. :)

So, when answering, please include the five additional tea samples you'd like. Again, please do NOT post the answer below. And remember, the contest ends Friday at 11:59 p.m.! The clock is ticking! :) :)

If you have any questions please feel free to e-mail me. Good luck! :)

First Keen Tea Thyme Contest - Hurry, Ends March 25 @ 11:59 p.m.

If we still used tea as currency - as the ubiquitous "they" did until the nineteenth century, I'd be filthy rich! I've got more tea than I know what to do with. Plus my 30th b-day is around the corner and I'm ready for some fun. So I've decided to host a tea giveaway!

You've got until 11:59 p.m. on Fri., March 25, 2011, to answer the question below by e-mailing me.

Please do NOT post your answer below. You can post that you will e-mail me the answer so I'll know to look out for your entry. If you post the answer below, your posted comment will be removed and you'll be disqualified. Sorry to be so touchy about that, but I want to keep this fair & fun. I'll select a winner randomly based on the number of correct entries on Sat., March 26, 2011. After contacting the winner, I'll post his/her name as well as the correct answer.


Who (unintentionally) invented the tea bag? 

Why bother entering? 'Cause you'll win tea, silly! :) The winner will receive a goodie bag of at least five samples of my custom blended tea from Adagio, including the following:

• Vampire Lemonade
• Toasted Marshmallow
• A Love Affair
• My Name is Bruce
• Sassy Cupid

The winner also gets a choice of five other samples from my Steepster cupboard, which is updated regularly. All samples will make at least five cups of tea. I'm generous when sending; ask around. :)

So, when answering, please include the five additional tea samples you'd like. Again, please do NOT post the answer below. And remember, the contest ends Friday at 11:59 p.m.! The clock is ticking! :) :)

If you have any questions please feel free to e-mail me. Good luck! :)

Bagged Tea vs Loose Tea

Welcome to the battle of the year! (At least the battle of the year on Keen Tea Thyme.)
In one corner is the tea bag, another corner there's the loose tea. Which do you prefer? Pros/cons of each?

Post away! From now through March 2012, post your comments on both. Let's see who will prevail! Vote on your favorite comments. We'll do a contest of some sort for the winners.

Which do you like: loose or bagged?

High "Thyme" for a Contest - Spring 2011

(You should be warned: I am crazy about bad puns. I'm sorry. I'll try to do better.)

Awaiting Inspiration

Each month Keen Tea Thyme will host a contest. Winners will receive a selection of tea (what else?). Depending on the month, winners may be able to choose which teas they want.

So without further adieu, here's the contest for Spring 2011: Tea Haiku.

Post your tea haiku here and have fun. Winner(s) will receive a selection of tea and/or teaware. **Updated: since the blog was slow to start, I'm changing the contest to every three months. So this is the Spring 2011 contest. Submit through the end of May. Winner(s) will be chosen in June.

To refresh your memory, haiku is comprised of simple 5, 7, 5 beats or syllables per line. For a complete explanation, see what Wikipedia has to say.

Here's an example, written quickly by me:
A fresh brewed cuppa
awaits eager lips for a sip
relaxation time.

Post yours below. If you are having trouble posting, please e-mail me your haiku. Post as many times as you'd like - but a different haiku each time. Make sure to sign your name (web name is fine). Contest runs from March 1 - May 31. We'll start voting for favorites in June, with winners announced at the end of the month.

So brew a cuppa and get crackin'!