This is fantastic...

Many thanks to C* from school, who sent me the following...

In Dr. Edward Pocoke's translation (Oxford,
1659) of The Nature of the Drink
Kauhi, or Coffee, and the Berry of which
it is Made, Described by an Arabian Phisitian,
we read:

That which makes for its coldnesse is its stipticknesse.
In summer it is by experience found
to conduce to the drying of rheumes, and flegmatick
coughes and distillations, and the opening
of obstructions, and the provocation of urin.
It is now known by the name of Kohwah. When
it is dried and thoroughly boyled, it allayes the
ebullition of the blood, is good against the small
poxe and measles, the bloudy pimples; yet
causeth vertiginous headheach, and maketh lean
much, occasioneth waking, and the Emrods, and
asswageth lust, and sometimes breeds melancholly.

He that would drink it for livelinesse sake,
and to discusse slothfulnesse, and the other
properties that we have mentioned, let him use
much sweat meates with it, and oyle of pistaccioes,
and butter. Some drink it with milk,
but it is an error, and such as may bring in
danger of the leprosy.

New Holiday Experiences

Thanks, London, for the following new holiday things that had heretofore gone un-experienced by me:

1. mince pies...yeah, you can keep those

2. actually seeing people eat and enjoy fruitcake...you know, in the States only people who don't like you very much give you fruitcake for Christmas...and nobody eats it. nobody. it's like a big paperweight that gets moldy.

3. getting kicked out of a church...well, more like standing in line in the freezing cold waiting to get into st. martin-in-the-fields carol service only to be told there's (insert obvious "no room at the inn" joke here). so you can't really get kicked out if you were never allowed in. hmmm wonder if there was a VIP list...

4. a complete, total, utter lack of candy canes...this was a shocker. y'all really should get you some candy canes...they are the business.

5. UK office christmas parties...see previous posts...boy are they a hoot and a half, just like in the movies!
(side note: speaking of movies...if you've never been to London, you may be shocked to learn that all those movies that portray a snow-clad London...are full of poop. it really doesn't snow here. that scene where bridget jones runs through the drifts to meet colin firth in her skivvies...totally false advertising.)

6. christmas crackers and those big balloony things that fly around the room when inflated...very very fun, especially when they land in other people's dinner. in my opinion they should pull those out much more often.

7. no tube service on christmas day...ok, that's just insane. what about all those people rushing off to christmas services they aren't allowed into??? or like, the i don't know, millions of people of other faiths who happen to live here and probably don't celebrate christmas? or what if you have to get to heathrow (that one was for you, DH).

8. boxing day. ok, that's brilliant. another day to recover from the previous day's gluttony and to be gluttonous all over again!?!? sign me up.