Okay, it looks like somebody hasn’t been trimming the dill
I realize I’ve been relatively silent for long stretches lately, and the last time you’ve heard from me, I painted a picture of myself trapped inside my unit, probably surrounded by the rain and flood. The storm has since left the country, and as luck would have it, I’m also home for the weekend. Home. My hometown..you know, the one I left for greener pastures and whatnot. It’s only for the weekend, because not only is my country peppered with erratic weather, but it’s also peppered with convenient holidays.
The first thing I do is jump on the bed and relish a few uninterrupted moments of doing absolutely nothing, without having to lift a finger for anything. I take in everything around me and I decide that nothing, and everything has changed if it makes any sense. The bits and pieces that make up my life are still there, haphazardly strewn around, but given my current situation (cooking school is amazing, by the way), the tables have turned and home becomes the vacation…the heavily anticipated escape from reality. It’s pretty surreal.
With the exception of my mom, nobody knew I has coming home so there were more than a few pleasantly dumbfounded looks when I stepped inside the house. She made my aunt prepare a personal favorite, bicol express, which is essentially ground pork, string beans, eggplant and chiles stewed in coconut milk. I miss dinners like that. The flight I was on was delayed for a few hours so it was a really late dinner and airplane food is expensive.
And I made sure to have a glass of ice-cold coconut water before going to bed, for full effect. It was a great night.
As if nothing has changed, the following day I went back to my usual ritual of checking on my herbs first thing in the morning. Before I left I did leave a few reminders to ensure their survival. And just for the heck of it, I also sowed two pots with a few basil seeds, with the hope that maybe, just maybe, they’ll take off.
And took off they did!
ain’t it cute?
the tarragon is bushier
the celery has survived!
The mint hasn’t been doing well.
This morning, I broke off a rhizome (a little underground stem) and planted it in a new pot with the same intention. I might come home for the Christmas holidays, so this is me crossing my fingers that mint would live up to its reputation of growing and spreading like crazy.
Of course, you’ve met the dill, which has become a tree at this point.
That’s it for now. My weekend isn’t supposed to be jam-packed and stressful because that would defeat the purpose of having a mini vacation, but that doesn’t mean I’m rolling in the doldrums. At least, I hope I’m not!
Masterchef AU All-Stars has also been keeping me company and like home, is also making me feel warm and fuzzy. Kumar (Season 3) inspired me to make something with a few choice shellfish we have here. Stay tuned for that! But for now, while things are still uncomplicated, I’m running with it. If you’re as lucky (or luckier!), you should too. (toothy grin)
