Tea vs. Coffee
I enjoy the tea/coffee debate that rages in the USA. I mainly love to razz coffee drinkers by reminding them that in our country 8 cups of tea are drunk for every 1 cup of coffee. Fortunately, I am a humble winner, having no intent of rubbing it in. However, there is one aspect of coffee drinking that has us tea drinkers stumped. It seems to have become the socialization instrument of our age. Let me explain. In my reading of Presidential biographies, and in reading a book on Presidents' families and their use of tea, it seems things are different now. A "party over tea" has fallen on hard times in our culture. It used to be a major part of our regulars lives to take tea often with family and friends. That sounds quaint and obsolete now. Today's social huddles seem to gravitate around a coffee center. Starbucks and other well-publicized coffee establishments have, I'm sure, added to this cultural shift. Anyway, this apparent change in social mores fascinates me. W