DRIVEN TO HEALTHY
The pleasant sound of rain we heard outside our window all night long. It was still sprinkling by the time I set out for my run this morning and I wondered whether or not I should go. Then I reasoned this is Ireland and waiting for the rain to stop is like waiting for cooler weather in Austin during the summer months. So, I went in search of the park I stumbled upon yesterday.
Somehow I made a wrong turn and ended up at the community college on the opposite side of where I should have been. I backtracked until I saw a sign letting me know I had one kilometer to the town centre. Once I saw the bridge by Rowan Tree hostel, I knew where I had to go and was on my way to the park.
Though I had already walked over two kilometers in search of the park, I did my two rounds of mostly jogging and stopped by the outdoor gym area to use the two pieces of equipment I used the day before. On my way home, I bought sourdough bread from the Polish bakery around the corner from the apartment. Such a thing I could never do at my home in the States but am glad I have the chance to do so here.
He was awake and had a feeling I might have gotten lost as I had taken longer to return home than yesterday. After a shower, I made us a smoothie from bananas, milk, and vanilla bean yogurt. When you have someone with whom to share meals, and someone who appreciates it, you are driven to a more healthy way of eating and tend to take care of yourself better than you would if you were alone.
Around noon we walked out together and parted ways by the coffee shop. I went upstairs for my cappuccino and he went to work. Later in the afternoon I went to visit him for a few minutes but not before my shopping for food at various shops.
The good thing about living in the town centre is that if you forget an ingredient, you can easily walk around the corner to the shop which has it. One of the several health food stores is located right outside the front door of the apartment building. It is where I bought the couscous for dinner and cinnamon and raw cane sugar for dessert.
I must have walked up and down the 61 stairs four times today with the various items I purchased throughout the day. The lift has been non-functional for the past three weeks and there is no sign of it getting repaired anytime soon. Yet another drive to be healthy and not something common back home in Austin as we drive around half the day just to gather our groceries.
Dinner was an experiment. Vegetarian stuffed red and yellow peppers of which we were able to eat only one half each. Couscous with shallots, shredded carrots, cumin, fresh mint, and feta was the filling for the peppers which were baked for half an hour or so. The salad was composed of arugula, avocado, cucumbers, baby tomatoes, radishes, feta and was seasoned with Aleppo and Urfa peppers, salt, and balsamic vinegar.
Dessert was puff pastry with sliced apples, raw cane sugar, and cinnamon and was topped with freshly whipped cream. He had merely a bit of dessert as he was already full from all of the vegetables. Tomorrow there will be no need to cook as there was plenty left over for another meal.
As I looked outside our bedroom window, I was glad to once again be facing the setting sun. The bright orange sunset was a beautiful site and one most of us take for granted until it is something we no longer have as in my case of moving to the 'cave'.
For these next three weeks I will relish in nature's beauty and be thankful to be in a place where love abounds and where the drive to be healthy is much stronger.
