Tea Break

Tony and a few other guys have been working on a farm lately, disassembling the bricks to an old barn. The bricks are being given to a family in humble circumstances, so that they may rebuild their house, which recently burned to the ground.

Mid-day, even in temperatures above 90 degrees, they insist on stopping for a mate (hot tea) break. I find the Argentine custom of drinking hot tea in the summer odd at best, but there are serious, die-hard, hot-mate-in-the-summer fans out there.

There is no electricity or way to heat their water on site, so here is how they prepared the hot water for their mate one sultry afternoon.

1. Search for high tree in which parrots make their huge meter-wide nests.

2. Gather several parrot nests that have fallen from the trees due to the blustery Patagonian winds.

3. Pile several nests and random pieces of wood in a little pyre.

4. Light fire.

5. Place plastic bottle filled with water close to fire, heating until very warm.

Lastly, show your wife the pictures so she can pray you don't get cancer from the toxins leached into the water from the plastic.