Friends in Tea

Friends In Tea 2009 successfully completed

Thirty-four of us gathered together last week at Dai Bosatsu to spend four days making tea, talking about tea, listening to lectures, looking at dogu, sharing ideas plus yoga and walks around Beecher Lake. Take a look at some of the photographs we've posted.

A commitee was formed to search for the next Friends In Tea conference for 2011.

In the meantime, we have created a Membership site that is open to all serious Tea enthusiasts. If you're interested in knowing more please write Morgan or Bettina for information. Please let us know a bit about yourself in your email.

Morgan Beard - morbeard@gmail.com
Bettina Mueller - bettina@amacord.com

Here's a sample from Sue Kotulak's recent firing

Hello Tea Friends,

I just went to the opening of an anagama kiln which had been fired for five solid days at Cone 12 - which I understand is really hot. Here are some of Sue's pots that just came out of the kiln. She'll be bringing hanaire, mukosuke, sake cups and two gorgeous mizusashi to our Tea Conference.

For those of you still waiting to decide whether or not to attend, don't miss this chance to join us June 10 - 14.  Register here: https://amacord.com/friendsintea

Registration is now open

Registration is now open for the June 10-14, 2009 Friends In Tea conference.

Please register through our secure online order form here:

https://amacord.com/friendsintea

Arrival Time:
Arrive Wednesday afternoon, June 10. Depart Sunday, June 14 after lunch. More details regarding schedule, transportation etc. will follow upon registration.

Space is limited. Don't wait until the last minute to register.

June 10 - 14, 2009
Dai Bosatsu Zendo
Livingston Manor, NY

Here are some of the lecturers and workshop leaders

Soon we'll be sending out detailed info on the schedule and accomodations for the Friends In Tea event this June but we just wanted to show you some of the people who will be leading workshops and giving lectures.

We're grateful to Eido Roshi of Dai Bosatsu, Meiya Wender of White Tiger Sweets, Asher Browne landscape designer, Sachiko Chernin of Tea-Passage, Sue Kotulak, potter and Jimin, DBZ's Yoga teacher for joining us this year.

The schedule is filling up. It's not too late to let us know what you'd like to participate in.

Please fill out the survey here if you haven't already done so.

Schedule for June event

Hi All,

We've got some very exciting workshops and lectures already in the works for our next gathering at DBZ in June 2009. Here's an update of what we have so far...

Lectures:

1 - Eido Roshi will be giving a lecture on calligraphy and scrolls for tea. He will also have his calligraphy for sale so if you have a particular scroll you would like him to do for you, please email bettina@amacord.com and let me know what that is.

2 - Asher Browne is a landscape designer trained in Japan. He worked in the gardens of Yabunouchi Senke. He will be giving a lecture on Roji and it should be excellent.

3 - I have just met a wonderful American potter, Sue Kotulak,  who works in the Shigaraki style and makes fabulous hanaire. She just had a show in Tivoli, NY and I helped arrange chabana in her vases for the show. She will give a talk on Anagama firing and pottery making in the Japanese style.

She will also bring her work for purchase. I had to restrain myself at her show from coming home with armloads of her work - it's great.

Classes & Workshops:

Sachiko Chernin of Tea Circle will be offering a class on making Shifiku. The class will meet everyday. More details later. Sachiko makes beautiful custom Shifiku that you can see on her site http://www.tea-circle.com/. We're very excited to have this opportunity to work with her during the event.

Meiya Wender of White Tiger sweets will be leading us in okashi making.

Chashaku making and Chabana. These are in the works.

We're open for suggestions, so if you want to offer a class or workshop - please write us. Better yet, if you've attended a Friends in Tea event in the past and haven't yet filled out the 5 minute survey, please do so here:

Click here to take the survey

Yoga

The DBZ Yoga teacher has become intrigued with Tea and I have invited her to come to our event and offer yoga for us everyday. I can tell you from experience that she intuitively knows just what you need when you need it. Tea people put a lot of strain on their legs, back and knees (not to mention most every other part of our bodies) and it will be great to work with her in a gentle manner on strengthening and loosening our bodies.

Roji & Tea Space Slide Show - In Santa Fe people sent photos of their tea houses, tea spaces and gardens which were put together into a slide show. It was great to see and we hope to do that again. We'd also love to see slides of some of your memorable tea events. 

Tea - The entire upstairs of the guest house will be fully covered in tatami.

We'll have a formal opening chakai on Thursday morning and then a closing one on Sunday morning.

We're envisioning one or two kettles going all the time for informal  "Open chakai". No host, no guest, find your place on the tatami and freely share tea.

We'll be asking participants to bring dogu - those from far away bring small items, those closer to DBZ and who can drive bring larger items like furo and kama.

More to come. This will be a wonderful event and we hope you can make it. Let us know your thoughts and ideas. Post on the blog. This is your event and we welcome everyone's participation.

Best,

Bettina

Friends in Tea

June 10 - 14, 2009
Dai Bosatsu Zendo
Livingston Manor, NY

1 year old guest for tea today

Hi All,

It's the end of summer here in upstate NY. The days are still very hot, but there are hints of fall in the air and some trees are starting to change their colors.

I wanted to invite my new tea friends as soon as possible before we moved into autumn because I just got a fabulous summer glass chawan with white swirls like river eddies and flecks of gold in the bottom of the bowl. It's so beautiful. Made by Sai to Masaki.

I was stunned when first using it today. Hot water in the bowl made the pale white brush strokes dispapear to a clear bowl with gold flecks, then it returns to misty white swirls. Truly an awesome chawan with real life to it when used!

I made the sweets with kanten, mostly sugar and three blueberries in a mold that is a round swirling eddy.

Gomei 'kawa doko' river bed. It's a bit late - but I had to seize this moment. One of my guests asked about the sweets (thank you for not having to be prompted!) and I said the sweets were made in Tivoli.

Tivoli has a population of about 200. Don't  you think she could figure it was me that made them! No, in the tearoom - mystery reigns supreme. She had no idea I made them this morning at 8AM! Geesh, the work that goes into this simple 'hot water for tea' thing we love so much.

Anyway, yes there was a one year old baby who came as a guest. It was a bit distracting; howling baby while trying to interpret the words of the scroll. Not so much the howling as it was the dis-attention of the parents.

But here in Tivoli we're very happy to invite any and all - and yes -  mother and baby did have to leave to stroll around in the garden while I made bowl after bowl of tea.

New guests for tea are so enthusiastic and want to drink at least two bowls of tea each. Meanwhile, the kensui is getting fuller and fuller. Kettle is getting lower and lower. As host, nothing could make me happier.

While I love making tea for my friends who know nothing about Tea - it makes me even MORE appreciative of our group Friends In Tea. What host doesn't know the heaven of a wonderful first guest?

So please -  Let us all know what you're doing. Send photos and get active!

DBZ - Friend in Tea 2009
June 10 - 14, 2009
Dai Bosatsu Zendo
Livingston Manor, NY

2009 Friends in Tea Conference

The dates have been set for the 2009 Friends in Tea Conference.

June 10 - 14, 2009
Dai Bosatsu Zendo
Livingston Manor, NY

Please fill out this survey for the 2009 conference:

Click here to take the survey

Make sure you also subscribe to the blogs feed in the upper right corner. You'll get emails whenever someone posts a comment or topic - it makes it easy to stay in touch.

Name change for Tea Beyond Japan

At the 2007 Tea Beyond Japan conference in Santa Fe we voted to change the name of the group to Friends in Tea. We also voted to hold the 2009 conference at Dai Bosatsu Zendo in NY.