Lovely Lunches

 Let me preface today's post by acknowledging the significant amount of economic and class privilege I have. As a teacher who's been employed steadily for 27 years (and counting), I know I am very fortunate to have two weeks off for the winter break AND enough money in the bank to indulge in dining at restaurants on occasion. 

I appreciated being home for the holidays. The first week of January, similar to my last week of December, was filled with a lot of reading, in preparation for the 2024 Forest of Reading. (In an attempt to continue to savor what I read, I'll post the book covers and some appreciations at the end of this post.) I also designed some presentations for an upcoming conference, some projects for social studies, and some pages in my school scrapbook. To paraphrase an old saying, "all work and no food makes Diana a hungry soul", so I had some delicious meals. 

One of the best meals I ate while on the winter break was from Los Vietnamita. This Mexican-Vietnamese fusion restaurant (recently featured on BlogTO) is owned and operated by parents of some students at my school. I began eating there when there was no store-front operation and only available via a food truck. (See my blog post from 2021 about my initial experience enjoying their food.) It did not disappoint.

The portions of the dishes I selected (the Saigon Fried Chicken Bites and the new Al Pastor Fries) were so huge that I was able to have a substantial meal of leftovers the next day.

(The Al Pastor Fries consist of Grilled Chili Marinated Pork, Cheddar Cheese Sauce, Chipotle Ketchup, Pico de Gallo and Scallions. It is going to compete with the Saigon Friend Chicken Banh Mi Tacos as my new favourite dish there!)

As I savored every bite, both on the day I bought it and the day afterwards, I enjoyed how it made both my mouth and tummy very, very happy. Then, it got me wondering - why don't I enjoy the lunches I have when I'm working, or at school? What's the difference? Why can't I replicate this pleasurable experience more often?

There are many reasons why I'm not engulfed by digestive delight when I'm scarfing down my microwavable meals in the staff room. (They fall into several categories.)

• Ability: I have to make or reheat lunch myself and I'm no cook
• Time: I am usually in a rush to get back to work or run a club
• Expense: Going out to eat isn't cheap
• Time: By the time I go out to collect something, that "eats into" a big part of lunch
• Distraction: I'm too busy chatting with coworkers to focus on eating
• Location: Some of my favourite restaurants are nowhere near my school
• Options: Some food doesn't keep well into the next day, limiting what I can bring
• Expense: Buying fancy pre-made meals can also get costly
• Consequences: Big meals at lunch make me want to nap afterwards
• Appetite: Sometimes I don't have leftovers to bring because I eat them all the first time
• Appetite: Sometimes I'm not really hungry at lunch 

One benefit of not having meals like the ones I had over the break means I can focus attention on breakfast or dinner instead as my "meal-du-jour". I have no clue how much I weigh, (we don't own a scale at home) so I cannot make any comments about slimming down or firming up. Trust me, I won't be suffering without glorious lunches like Los Vietnamita. We still have LEWIS (the acronym stands for Lunch Every Wednesday Is Salad) where each participant brings in an ingredient and the sum of the parts is a nice salad buffet at school, and when I remember to go to the staff room when it's Treats Day, there's always something tasty to have.

I'll savor those dining experiences instead. 

As for savoring reading moments ...

Here are some more author shout-outs. I slowed down in my reading from January 1-7, but still managed to finish several novels.

Thank you so much Michelle Kadarusman for your trio of protagonists (Malia, Ari and Ginger Juice) and for making sure this eco-themed book never devolved into being too preachy or didactic.

Thank you Natalie Hyde for creating a mystery with the clues front and center but not obvious (at least to me). Animal heroes abound!

Thank you Casey Lyall for making me root for Lemon even with her flaws (and I love her friends Marlo and Rachel) making me sad about how Alzheimer's is such a cruel disease, and for making gnomes that act like they are in Starfleet Academy just as engaging characters as the humans are. One day, we'll be ready.

Thank you E. K. Johnston for helping me enter the world of D&D more thoroughly than I've ever been able to do (and considering who my husband is, that's a big deal). The story is so accessible - you don't have to own a 20-sided dice or know the difference between a hunter and a ranger to be able to enjoy it - and I was so immersed in Doric's story that a few days after finishing the book, I sat down with my family and watched Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves as a companion piece. (Oh, and to be companionable too.)

Thank you Richard Scrimger and Melanie Florence for co-creating a story with two recognizable pre-teens, in a location I know, in worlds that I'm definitely in-between (i.e. I'm not so poor that I don't own a cell phone, but I'm not so rich that I have rooms in my house that can stand empty most of the time). The cameo of the tall children's author made me grin, since I'm rather a big fan of that author.

Thank you Kevin Sylvester (another well-liked-by-me Canadian children's author) for making the apartment (like Colleen's book) a character in its own right. The media educator in me loves the philosophy behind the book (that the reader brings just as much as the creator to the text) and you left enough clues to make me feel smart when I guessed where the book was headed.