Friday, July 05, 2013

Five O'Clock


I was reading and there was this story about 'Five O'Clock Tea' by Anne Thackeray Ritchie.

There's a magical time of the day for many of us. For me, definitely. Is there one for you? Never mind about that special hour between 6am and 7am. Most days, I don't wake up early enough to savor that quietude. But that feeling comes round at 5pm. Five o'clock. That's my magical hour.

That's also the hour that I cannot have any sort of caffeine. Caffeine can only be ingested before 2pm. My body takes a full six hours to process it. Whisky does fine. Alcohol is generally welcomed in the late afternoons and evenings.

No matter how draining the day is, if I can, the hour from 5pm to 6pm, is this magical period that would either be spent alone, or with friends. It doesn't have to be over a cup of tea or on the intarwebs. I can be doing anything, and it's about that frame of mind- a kinda winding down for the day, an oxymoron especially if there's an event in the evening. Still, it can be treated as the consolidation hour, like the calm before the storm.

What's your five o'clock?

2 comments:

Yuling said...

If I'm home, 10 am is my five o'clock. The day feels long enough ahead for things to get done, but it isn't too early that I'm cross-eyed. And I get lovely morning light at home that makes me smile.

On work days, yes, five o'clock is my five o'clock too!

Now I'm curious about the book you are reading! :)

imp said...

It's one of the stories in Katrina Ávila Munichiello's 'A Tea Reader : Living Lfe One Cup At A Time'.

Awww. I know how beautiful the morning light is on your table! It IS a magical 10am!