100 days left
A small ritual I’ve developed since my return to Durham from our much-needed holidays has been to start my mornings by heating water in my electric kettle. The use of an electric kettle is a habit I’ve carried from my time in the United Kingdom, where my consumption of tea and biscuits (of the custard cream variety, and not accompanied by gravy), was at a lifetime high, while the practice of drinking warm water is one I’ve inherited from my family in Hong Kong. Back home in Hong Kong, hot water dispensers (which also function to brew tea) are as ubiquitous in kitchens as fridge water dispensers are here in the United States. Chinese culture possesses a general aversion to the consumption of cold water, stemming from the precept in traditional Chinese medicine that cold water disturbs the balance of the body. You would be hard pressed to find restaurants in Hong Kong that serve the American restaurant standard of water with ice. Hot tea and warm or room temperature water are usually preferred.