Yesterday two friends whisked us away from our rather plain and dull plans to a lovely English Pub and then a nifty fusion kinda tapas joint where we indulged in food and conversation and company.  It was a very lovely time and I don't think I've eaten that much food in a single sitting since I was in Basic Training.  

http://www.tapas177.com/

I started with the house salad because I like salad.  It was lovely.  The bread basket that came out with it held lovely dense white bread with flecks of herbs and a dish of oil and balsamic vinegar.  The tang and sour of the vinegar on the bread and the fresh greens was a perfect balm after the agony and drooling of having to choose from the menu.  

I do not see the entree that I had on the online menu, but it was seared salmon served on a bed of risotto (which had  been tickled perfectly with white pepper)dressed in a cranberry orange chutney kind of thing with dried and blanched cranberries, and surrounded by a ring of lightly sauted baby spinach.  

The company at the table was such that bits and tastes of every dish were passed around and shared and discussed generously and joyfully.  

Dessert was delightful.  I managed to snag a forkfull of Katie's slice of the uber super bombastic chocolate cake and then focused on my amaretto creme brule which maximized the best part of a cb while minimizing the lamer bits.  That is, it was a half inch thick and six iches in diameter.

I suspect that the Germans have a word for heart and mind sickness caused by having the senses overwhelmed by beauty.  It would be nice to have an experience like this every other year or so, but it would be vital that one not know that it was about to happen.

Moments of great beauty and sensory delight cannot be scheduled, although the opportunities for them to happen often must be scheduled.  It is of vital importance that we allow and arrange for the possibility of beauty while reserving the expectation.  When someone asks you, "Do you want to try something new?" clear your heart and your mind and say "Yes." without reservation.  

It may be awful, but even so it may be beautiful.  

It may be wonderful, but even so it may be kinda lame.

It may be nothing special, and yet comforting and lovely.

Your attitude makes the difference.

I may never head back to that place, even if I manage to save up the money I would need to intentionally go back there.  I just hope that I can hang on to the memory of that beauty and that joy and that openness to experience that was the perfect pickle for every dish I tasted that evening.

Today I woke and wandered around, trying to take care of The Boogie while feeling like poo myself.  I took a five hour nap and am considering another nap after I check in on TB again.  Perhaps my senses just need a little coddling, as they would after a particularly fun melee or dance party.  Vitaman E oil and a hot bath with lots of salts, lots of water, and lots of stretching and being patient with myself.

It is an amazing thing to be a living, tasting, touching, sensing being.

Say, "Yes."