A shout out to my sister in law

My sister in law has been the butt of many a family joke at this time of year. Okay, to be honest, I think her husband and I are the only ones that give her shit. We do an annual exchange of gifts and she always has a knack for finding the most interesting items. Toothbrush sanitizers, batter operated candles, etc. Not "bad" gifts by any means but for someone who is happy with a nice bottle of liquor or a great jazz CD or vinyl, they just never worked. The icing on the cake came several years ago when she bought a mulling spice kit for our exchange and after a few rounds of folks "stealing" gifts from one another, it became apparent that no one wanted it.

I ended up with that gift (I would say "got stuck with it" after my father in law took my bathrobe for it in the last round of trading but that sounds kinda rude). Anyway, it has sat unused, for about... ...8 years? The spices are long gone but the spice ball has sat in the cupboard. I made tea tonight from fresh tea we got at a local tea merchant. I didn't want to make an entire pot and was trying to figure out how to brew a cup since I didn't have a tea ball. Then it came to me, I realized that the ball from the mulling spices is perfect for my huge mug Starbucks mug from China.
Carin, cheers to you, for a great gift. It just took me a little while to figure out what to do with it. God bless us, everyone!!!