Tag: marriage

Moroccan Mint Tea

One of the stops on Lindsey and my honeymoon was Morocco. It was an interesting cultural experience. One of the few highlights of our day trip to Morocco was our meal, and particularly, for me, the mint tea that we were served afterwards. It was strong and sweet. Our guide explained to us that mint tea was a popular and common part of Moroccan culture. It is consumed in large quantities for health benefits such as rejuvenation and clarity.

Naturally, I’ve been eager to adopt the “Moroccan way” into my own daily routine. Today I purchased one ounce of Marrakesh Mint tea from the spice market down the street from my office. I’m on my second mug (I don’t have a proper Moroccan tea cup). It is a nice change from my standard coffee guzzling, however, the local stuff isn’t quite as good as what we had in Morocco. This is likely because I’m using pre-mixed tea (green and mint) and not green tea with fresh mint leaves. I’ll try that another day.

Here is a proverb regarding Moroccan mint tea, which is traditionally steeped three times:

The first glass is as bitter as life,
The second glass is as strong as love,
The third glass is as gentle as death.

Here’s to life, love and even death! (Raises mug of tea carefully above desk as a gesture of toasting the world.)

Movie Review: Life As We Know It

Lindsey and I saw Life As We Know It last night, which stars Katherine Heigle and Josh Duhamel.

The basic plot is: married couple living a dream life dies suddenly leaving newborn baby. The couple had planned for their close friends (played by Heigle and Duhamel) to be named the guardians of the baby. The twist is that the close friends, while close to the deceased couple, and in a way to each other, couldn’t stand each other – fought like cats and dogs. Sadness, reality and hilarity ensue as the close friends try to sort things out with their new responsibility – and figure out how to live with one another.

The movie was slightly over-length, which may account for the bad reviews by critics, but heartwarming nonetheless. We would definitely recommend it!

More importantly, we skipped all movie snacks! Yikes! … because we had just eaten Moomers ice cream.

The Timing of Childbirth

From an article about when to have a child, if ever and how it impacts a woman later in life:

Early mothers were the least satisfied and most depressed of all four groups, while delayed or late mothers were the most satisfied with their lives and the happiest.

All other things being equal, the childless women were about as satisfied and happy with their lives as the on-time mothers.

“In mid-life, being married or having a partner has a greater impact on a woman’s well-being than whether or not she has children,” Pienta said.

Early mothers were the most likely to be single and to have lower incomes—factors that largely explained their lower psychological well-being. Delayed mothers tended to have more education and higher economic status than other groups, and were much more likely than early mothers to be married.

The monetary committment necessary to obtain a post-secondary degree necessitates a delay in marriage and childbirth. Time management may be an issue, but I don’t see how anyone can be less busy with a full time job than they are while in school. Maybe it is a matter of the flexibility of a school day schedule versus the containment of a job.

There is also the assumption that most people default to, which is that you aren’t supposed to get married or have children while in school. A few people buck this, and they are the reason for graduate housing. However, getting married while in school could be easier if done correctly. No time off work, a common destination upon marriage, being with someone you love, etc…

It’s to be expected that younger mother’s would be less satisfied later in life. After all they have less to offer their children and are less developed personally. Kids grow up and move on, and while I am only 25, I would imagine that having personal interests, knowledge, and skills is critical to being personally happy.