It’s been a busy week. Yesterday I finally went to the doctor to have my aching back checked out. It’s been hurting since June and I finally decided that my “ignoring the pain and it will go away” strategy was failing. I went in hoping to get a referral for physical therapy. Check! But I got a little more than I bargained for with the additional prescription for muscle relaxers. Though the doctor said they would only last 8 to 12 hours after taking them, I think what she meant was that they would only last 8 to 12 hours after you wake up from 8 hours of drug-induced sleep. In a word, I was completely unproductive yesterday because I was, well, relaxed. But in a zombie-like way of being relaxed. Not in a lazying about on the beach sort of way.
Anyway, being so “relaxed” didn’t help me grade any papers yesterday (to be fair, writing this blog post isn’t helping either). So today, I opted not to take the muscle relaxers and instead brewed up a batch of chai tea, now known as “grading juice”.
I don’t drink coffee. Or soda. The only caffeine I ever have is in chai tea and let me tell you – IT WORKS! Should you have your own pile of essays to grade, I highly recommend brewing up a batch to help you through the seemingly never ending pile of fun that awaits you.
Chai Tea
1 inch ginger root, sliced
6 – 8 cardomon pods
12 whole cloves
12 peppercorns
3 – 4 c. water
1 c. milk
3 – 4 black tea bags (caffeine, baby!)
1/8 c. maple syrup
Place spices in a bag and slightly crush. Put spices and ginger in water and bring to a boil for about 10 minutes. Turn down heat. Add tea bags and steep for about 3 to 4 minutes. Add one cup milk. Warm again as needed. Add maple syrup. Enjoy!!
*Note: All the amounts are approximate. Adjust to your tastes!
VVG - Very, Very Good 