The Sound that Made me Remember

Hola Bloggies:

I’ve heard it said that sometimes memories are triggered by smells but this morning mine were triggered by sound.

I was awakened this morning by the noise of construction, traffic, beeping, and people talking. Given that I hadn’t slept very well, you’d think I’d be annoyed. But I have to confess I wasn’t. Instead I enjoyed the slight breeze coming from the open window and allowed my mind to wander . . .

(source)

It took me to my time spent in Paris; I lived on Boulevard Saint Michel, one of the main arteries running through the Latin Quarter. The foyer I lived in was housed in a very old building. I don’t know if you’ve ever had occasion to spend a significant amount of time in a building centuries old but they don’t generally have great ventilation. If I left my room locked up for any period of time it would become really musty. To remedy this problem, little grates were built into the exterior walls of the building; when opened they left a small whole completely open (and directly I may add) to the street.

As a result of my little grate, every morning I was treated to the sounds of the city coming alive. I could hear the university students laughing with each other on the way to class, the workers gossiping about the daily news, the sounds of cars whizzing by, and even the older gentleman who liked to whistle classical tunes on his walk. This last fellow was a staple of my everyday life in Paris.

I loved those sounds.

This morning I found myself thousands of miles from the City of Lights. But for an instant, if I closed my eyes and listened to the sounds I was back there all over again. Twenty-two. A student. Loving every second. On Boulevard Saint Michel.

 

 

The Eats

Yesterday’s eats were pretty delicious! I was kind of proud of my clean eating self!

Cue the Breaky . . .

 

My breakfast happily (tee-hee) included my usual chia, banana, almond butter, oatmeal base with the exception that this morning I chose to add half a tablespoon of coconut oil and a sprinkling of shredded coconut. With some carob chips for added effect. Overall it was pretty delicious but I still heart my maple butter concoction just a little bit more.

Cue lunch . . .

Monday court took me a bit further afield from home. Instead, of eating out (at the delicious but not really good for me Italian restaurant) I opted to pack my own lunch. In my trusty container I packed 2 cups of greens, four pieces of oven roasted chicken, two eggs, half a tomato, a handful of sugar snap peas, nutritional yeast, and a bit of balsamic-olive oil-mustard vinaigrette.

As delicious as my lunch was I did learn one lesson: it’s not a good idea to eat in the car then drive for hours. It’s a pretty sure fire way to make yourself nauseous. Next time I’ll make sure it’s not quite as much of a lunch on the go.

 

Cue Snack Face Time . . .

 

Notice how I took a picture of my cherries in the car? I’ll confess these were actually eaten while driving (although I was stopped when I took the picture – I’m not that crazy). I don’t know about you loves but I totally look forward to cherry season!!!

 

Cue Dinner . . .

This was volume eating at it’s finest!!! I’m justifiably proud of how fantastic dinner was last night. First I tossed a quarter of a red pepper, a quarter of a yellow pepper, and half a baby eggplant in aged balsamic vinegar and parsley flakes. I grilled all the lovely veg. along with one Amy’s California burger (my favourite veggie burger!). I paired my cooked ingredients with a handful of sugar snap peas and three strawberries.

I was so full after eating all of this – but in a really good way. Although I knew I wouldn’t need to eat for the rest of the evening I still felt light and energetic. Clearly volume eating is where it’s at boys and girls!

This clean eating thing is going really well. And I have to confess I think it’s getting easier. Bonus.

Join me tomorrow for a Healthy Mexican Tortilla Soup recipe and a recap of P90X days 2 and 3.

 

 

Question: I have a bit of a dilemma bloggies. My regularly scheduled Monday dog hike has been rescheduled for tomorrow afternoon. Problem is it’s at the same time as the Zumba class that I’ve been trying to get to for weeks. It never seems to fit it in with my schedule and this week was finally going to be the week I could attend! Did I mention it will be my first time doing Zumba. What would you do if you were me? Go on the doggy hike (the Fiancé could take Daisy on a hike during the day instead) or go to Zumba!? Help!!!