This is a mini video documentary produced by Gavin McDevitt of The Teenage Symphonies, documenting their first trip to California together, in August of 2006…focusing in on the search for Eric’s beloved “Borders Chai” tea that is only available in select Borders’ Cafes. See the blogs “Tragedy with a capital Tea” and “REUNITED and it TASTES so good!” for more info on the journey..
REUNITED and it TASTES so good!
Current mood: 
cheerful
first of all, i’d like to say thanks to everyone for leaving their comments, writing me messages and suggestions during my whole “tea tragedy”. not only were they a joy to read, but they were also inspiring. it gave me hope. it gave me strength. i began to believe that somewhere out there, whether it be from an old warehouse in a neighboring state, a small cafe in a distant country, or even on ebay, “Borders Chai” still exists and is still very much alive; being sought after by many around the world, and not just by me.
as most of you may know, The Symphonies just took a trip out to California, not only to play a show, but to hang out. Me, Gavin, Pete, and Chris got in some good chill time on the west coast (ohh ooh whoa!). sorry..haha. had to do it.
but anyway, we got to spend a day hanging out in san francisco, watch pete devour an 8x8 from In-n-Out Burger (yes, that’s 8 patties and 8 slices of cheese), rock the hell out of “The Blank Club” in downtown San Jose, and of course, go to the beach. it was truly a blast. but almost more importantly, it gave me the chance to search various borders locations in northern california for my beloved borders chai.
it was tough, but thanks to everyone’s help…alas, i have emerged victorious:
that’s right. i have successfully smuggled 8 pounds of california-purchased Borders Chai mix to Boston.
and i am one happy camper.
special thanks to meg and jasmine for their extensive research, and extra special thanks to amy for “the list”. i tip my borders chai-filled tea mug to you all. :)
stay tuned for a short “video diary” documenting our trip to california..edited and done up by none other than our very own Gavin! till next time..
=eric=
Current mood: 
determined
everyone has their rituals. whether they take place daily, weekly, monthly, annually or even sporadically..whenever, whatever they may be. you name it. one of the things that i like to do whenever i get the chance is drink tea. but not just any tea. chai tea. and not just any chai tea. Borders brand chai tea. (insert trademark sign)
this fine drink was first introduced to me in the summer of 1999 and i’ve since been hooked. after moving to boston for school, i’ve introduced it to many of my friends/roomates. we all became hooked. this hot, creamy, cinnamony, spicy, sweet vanilla flavored drink was only available in Borders brand book stores, and the only accessible location was in a shopping mall in cambridge (which wasn’t very close to where we lived). so on occasion that we were in the mall, we would always make it a point to stop into Borders to grab a steamy cup full of this wonderful concoction.
after receiving our chai, we would stand in a circle and give a “toast” in honor of what we were about to enjoy. after our first sip, a collective sigh would generally follow.
“ahh..”
what a damn good drink.
a religious experience to say the least.
anyway, the drink was such a hit that Borders also offered it in powdered form, packaged in tin cans so that you could take them home and enjoy as much or as little as you wanted at your convenience. all you had to do was add hot water. pure genius.
we took full advantage of this. they came in 10 oz and 32 oz cans, and we would walk in and buy multiple 32 oz. cans at a time. we didn’t mess around. this drink was that good. my friend joe aptly described it as “liquid cinnamon toast crunch”.
anyway, last summer while in california, i stopped in a couple of the borders locations to grab a cup, and to my surprise, the cafes had transitioned into a “seattle’s best” coffeehouse. i thought for a moment, “ok, maybe the two chains just merged and are combining the best of both worlds..” WRONG! i ordered their chai and it just wasn’t the same. it was bland. it was boring. it just didn’t measure up. the same goes for starbucks, dunkin’ donuts and all those other coffeehouses. even all the nice, specialty type tea places. Borders chai just had a very distinct and unique taste.
upon return to boston i found, much to my delight, that the borders book stores out east were still in tact. and so i was enjoying borders chai as recent as earlier this year. but the nightmare became a reality when me and my friends went for another one of our “mall rituals” to Borders, only to discover that even it had officially transitioned to a “Seattle’s Best”. we asked them if they knew where we could find anymore borders chai, but to no avail.
so i’ve gone at least 3 months now without a cup, and as of late, i’ve been having cravings for it. it’s hard for me to believe that something so good (and popular it seemed) could just fall off the face of the earth. there’s got to be some place where they keep supply of this stuff. i’m determined to find it.
i’m presently in california, as i’ve already been to 3 Borders locations, each time hoping that one of them just might have some sort of remnant or artifact that can at least provide me with or give me clues as to the whereabouts of this seemingly extinct beverage.
unfortunately, with each attempt, all i find are bright red signs that read “Seattle’s Best”.
which leads me to my next statement:
if you, or anyone you know has any information regarding the whereabouts and/or recipe of Borders Chai, please contact me ASAP.
ahh, i’ve always wanted to say that.
anyone else ever watch “Unsolved Mysteries”?
robert stack was the man.
and may he rest in peace.
rock on,
=eric=
Current mood: accomplished
so i logged onto my school’s website tonite and clicked on my “registration profile” to view the following information:
Student Information:
Your Start Term: 1999FA
Semester Level: GR
Overall Academic Standing: GOOD
Your Appointment Time:
Current Time: 10:24PM 06/21/06
Restrictions:
You have no registration restrictions.
all i gotta say is i beat rivers cuomo by 4 years. :)
Current mood: calm
“When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly.” (1 Peter 2:23) We as people don’t normally take insults in stride without wanting to get a jab in ourselves. Our first reaction is to retaliate with words of our own. Insults are demeaning, they’re hurtful and the best defense to such things seems to be to make the other person feel just as bad. Last night, I uncharacterstlcally allowed myself to succumb to these temptations midway through the second or first quarter as I began to feel as though the world was crumbling around me. (see previous entry on “A Game Of Patience) I wanted to defend my previous victories, and here I was losing. I allowed many small things to get to me, and convinced myself that it was everyone else’s fault except my own that I was losing. Down by 8 at some point in the first half, I began to pay special attention to how Nate (who had forfeited a game to me (PHX) after trailing 34-8 after the first quarter) was cheering for my opponent, Shwin (MIA) throughout the game. This was discouraging as I believed that he was doing it to get under my skin. Then, whenever I was shooting free throws, Shwin would be rocking his feet back and forth, which I thought he was doing to try to distract me. I let it get to me, and missed free throws in the process. I proceeded to ask him to refrain from these things or move out of my line of sight because I found it distracting, and then things just got worse. Both Shwin and Nate laughed at the absurdity of my request and looking back, I can’t blame them. I found myself falling victim to the mental game, and I was showing it, much like Nate has in the past. I was showing my frustration. Once Shwin said “I’m going to do whatever I want.”, I realized there was nothing I could do, except just play the game. “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.” -Winston Churchill Following this altercation, I fell behind by even more, perhaps by 12 or more at one point in the second quarter. It was at this moment that I stopped speaking altogether and became completely focused. I realized that there will always be mental obstacles you have to overcome in a game. Nate can cheer all he wants, and Shwin can rock his feet all he wants. You just have to deal with it. It’s the game, and we all do our own thing. All up until the final buzzer, Shwin kept rocking his feet, and Nate kept cheering for Shwin. Had I continued to retaliate, I may not have been so lucky. Perseverance is king. PHX 101 MIA 99 Final
Current mood: calm
Shwin and Christian pick me up from work, and it’s Thursday evening. We’re headed back home. After a brief dialogue, the car stereo is the only thing that we can hear. We’re quiet, perhaps some of us still a little hungover from the previous evening. A mutual “sigh” ensues, and then i say.. “Man, last night was such a great night.” Immediately Shwin and Christian both acknowledge the statement with excitement. The feeling was unanimously mutual. But Wednesday night was not necesarilly great just because our buddies were back in town for one night. I think that in some cases, one can become progressively disconnected to their friends over extended stretches of not being around them. But not Imrie House. Things are forever changing in all of our lives, but the relationships and bonds that have molded us seem forever constant. It’s amazing how everything was exactly the same. Time stands still in the land of Imrie. highlight of the night: A tequila toast to “Imrie House is in the House” @ “Our House”, while getting free champagne on the HOUSE! vg.
Current mood: calm
Everyday you learn something new. Today gave me a lesson in understanding the importance of patience, and it came from the most unlikely source. So there’s this videogame that we play, called “NBA LIVE 2005”, which is essentially a basketball simulation game on nintendo’s gamecube. It plays and feels like a real basketball game at your fingertips. Anyway, all of us @ imrie suite play this game, in fact we recently started a tournament. I always used to pride myself in being one of the best at this game, but recently I’ve been in a slump. I had lost 4 out of 10 games going into tonight’s matchup against Shwin and felt a little nervous, because last time we played one another, he had beaten me. I knew that I had to come out with my “A” game. So I began to brainstorm and think of a gameplan. I thought of my previous losses, and I noticed that in all games that I lost, I was shooting very poorly. We’re talking below 20 percent. I also realized that a lot of my shots were careless shots. I’ve noticed a common trend among most losing efforts, (even those aside from me) and one of the biggest culprits in a loss is frustration. Let’s take Nate for instance. Nate has been known for being very passionate and emotional when playing NBA. So passionate that at times when he’s losing, he vocalizes his frustrations during games. Lines like, “These teams aren’t fair.” “This game is cheap”. “This isn’t a simulation.” “This controller sucks.” “That’s such B.S.” start to make their way into the gaming atmosphere. What I’ve noticed, is the frustration usually marks the end of his game. Whenever he is being dominated, it’s as if the world starts to crumble around him and he becomes almost helpless. Then all he can do is complain about how and why the world is crumbling around him, as opposed to what can be done to prevent the disaster. It becomes a domino effect. His shots become rushed, careless turnovers are made. Most of his plays are done in haste, in a sort of retaliation to the opponent’s good play, or in an attempt to “even the score” as quickly as possible. However, in most cases, this method has proven ineffective, and unfortunately for Nate, a lost cause. Not to single out Nate, but Nate started out this season 2-0 but since has fallen to 4-6. In fact, after a disappointing loss today, Nate prematurely decided (most likely out of frustration) that he is forfeiting the rest of the season. Even though, he probably didn’t mean it, that’s when I decided to try an experiment. I knew that all of us, not just Nate, fall victim to this same frustration through extended stretches of losing. Christian, who had the best record going into today, lost to Shwin, who had the worst record. Reason for loss? I suspect it was due to careless play down the stretch in reaction to a heightened level of play from the opponent. So, going into my matchup against Shwin, I kept in mind the importance of patience and made a solemn vow to myself; to never show frustration for the duration of the game. I wanted to keep playing hard, take it one play at a time, and be smart about each play. When we started the game, Shwin jumped to a 12 point lead. I thought that it were the end of me, as i felt the frustration just screaming to be let out. I thought, “How in the world could I be down by 12 points this early in the game?? I better show him who’s boss!!” The tendency was there. I was ready to take my frustrations out on the game. I wanted to run and gun it, regardless of what the defense presented. Instead, I took a step back, collected myself, and kept playing hard. Most importantly, I became focused, and content that no matter how much i would lose by, I had at least put my best foot forward. As the final horn sounded, a glance at the outcome displayed that I had beaten Shwin by 30 points. I shot over 60 percent, and the win earned myself the best current record in the league @ 7-4. Now I know it’s just a video game, but the understanding and exercise of patience through various obstacles can prove critical for success in any situation. Applying these functions to real life situations can only be beneficial. So thank you, NBA LIVE 2005, for teaching me a valuable life lesson.
Current mood: content
Got back to boston last night, after about a 5 hour drive with my brother. I overslept yesterday and got to the studio around 10am and started mixing hardcore. I even found myself adding some guitar parts in the process. After 2pm, I realized that I wasn’t quite getting the mix that i wanted and that if I were to just settle for it, then i wouldn’t be happy with the mixes. So, I discussed some things with Allen, and I’ll have to make a seperate trip back down to PA to finish mixing. Maybe take 4 days out in June at some point if I can spare the cash. The tracks definitely sound good so far, but could use some tweaking, and I also want to go back and remix “Summer” and “Spend My Time”. Anyway, so we arrived in boston at 10pm last night and the guys were all still hanging out so it was cool. It was great to see everyone again, and I got to play them the mixes in progress, and thankfully they dug it. So that’s always pleasing to know. I don’t thnk it was what they expected, these songs are a little less sophisticated, and a bit edgier, but I think they overall the response was good. Anyway, as it turns out, I’m scheduled to work today, so I’m going to go in today, 3-9:30pm and get back to making some cash. First day of school is tomorrow…whoa..i’m a bit nervous.. not really.
Current mood: accomplished
Another very productive day. Got to the studio around 10am and was pretty much there for the duration of the day. Left the studio at midnight. I am in the final stretch, as mixing is almost complete. My brother just came into town to pick me up to go back to Boston, so I will be leaving tomorrow afternoon at some point. I’m kinda bummin about that..but it’ll be great to get back to Boston. I need to get back already, school starts this week and I still need to check in.. The mixes are really coming together. Unfortunately, the piano track will not be completed here in PA, as I’ve decided to focus solely on getting the two more “involved” productions sounding good. I will complete the piano track up in Boston, since there isn’t too much involved in the production other than voices, piano, and maybe percussion. My voice just wasn’t really happening for that song, so instead of rushing it, I’ll hold out on it, because I can. Anyway, on the mix side of things..”West Coast” is sounding great and “Dream Girl” is really coming together. My brother listened to a mix in progress and he liked them both and was immediately drawn to “Dream Girl”. What originally started out as 3 chords on the guitar with a little melody hovering on top has now become probably one of the more moving tracks that will be on this record. It rocks, it shimmers, it mellows out, it gets heavy, it gets kind of spooky, and it gets hopeful. This song I’m very excited about, and I’m quite proud of it. It’s emotional too, the song has become really close to me. The lyrics have grown on me and the overall feel of it is just right. That said, 2 days after my last “dream” i had another one last night. It appeared to be a continuation of the first dream i had this past week about the girl that I’ve had a crush on. It’s crazy. 3 vivid dreams in 6 days, separated by a day each, and alternating between two romantic interests of mine. I don’t know what to make of it. Maybe I need to do something about it. “Maybe somewhere down the line, you’ll be more than a dream… ” haha…sorry…super lame for quoting my own song. But seriously though, it’s amazing how powerful dreams can be sometimes. They can influence you in many ways to look at things differently, to act on things etc. Like, I totally feel the urge to call up this girl. Dreams can be so random sometimes, but sometimes they just seem to make sense. I guess people can see what they want to see..but still. I wonder if my “dream girl” has anything like this going on about me. ahh..probably not, but that would be cool. oh well. anyway, gotta wake up early tomorrow, and wrap things up. Going to mix, and master, and then get on out of here. This will likely be my last post from Roseto, PA…i know it’s sad, but hopefully i’ll be able to continue writing blogs up in Boston. The past 2 weeks have been an amazing experience and I’m so thankful for everything and everyone that has helped make this possible. Thanks to Josh for rockin the drums, Allen for the hospitality, patience and creative input, my bro for picking me up and…oh wait a sec..i’m gonna save all these for the Thank You’s in the CD! Coming this July (hopefully)..The Teenage Symphonies “Summer” EP! Featuring 5 wonderful tracks of pure sunshine! haha.. Till next time… peace out out from PA..
28 year old musician living in New York City.
