Lunchtime Olympics II

[Note: This is Part II of a previous post]

So the next day I’m up against the following:

1. Spaghetti Bolognese
2. Spiced Chicken
3. Nopales tacos – nopales are the pads from the cactus plant found on the Mexican flag. They’re very spicy and delicious. They’re eaten with pico de gallo, fresh avocado, bistec or pollo (steak or chicken), and salsa verde or rojo (or both).
4. Caesar salad
5. Fresh bread
6. Wine
7. Coffee
8. Water

Here is a quick little video illustration of the olympic area where I am involved in this training:

Could I handle it, you wonder? Must you ask? Here is how I dispatched this lineup:

1. Two heaping platefuls of spaghetti bolognese.
2. Two large legs of spiced chicken that arrived in the middle of my 2nd plate of bolognese. I carnivorously ripped the meat from the bone and divided in between three fresh tortillas, then added some pico, fresh avocado, and salsa rojo. Then straight into my belly.
3. Small break to eat half my caesar salad.
4. Rest for a moment, have some wine, ignore initial stomach distress signals.
5. Nopales tacos. Sliced fresh avocado, pico, queso, steak, and salsa. Half a lime squeezed out to cover fresh tortilla and contents with proper taste envelope and lubrication. I dispatched two of these tacos, proving yet again to my stomach that I am the boss.
6. More caesar salad. More wine. Water. Finish salad. Relax. Tell my stomach to stop whining or else I might have a piece of cake.

Did I eat more than I did yesterday? It is difficult to say, but I don’t think I ate quite as much. Another possibility is that my stomach has stretched more to accommodate the additional capacity it has been experiencing recently. Either way, I grubbed down fiercely today. And yesterday. And all the other days. You want an action shot? I thought so… (this is early in round one):

Here’s a good picture of the spread. My family thinks it is funny that I take videos and pictures of lunch. I tell them I need proof:

After all this, I wanted to take a nap. Instead, I went to the gym where we have a temporary membership and played two tennis matches, both of which I happened to win. Then to the pool for swimming races with my friend Diego, who could not believe I beat him in tennis. He is 21 years old, and swam competitively in high school. He calls his family over (our Spanish professors), as well as four of the girls who are in my class with me. He is sure he is going to take care of me quickly, and wants everyone to see it. We’re swimming freestyle, diving into the pool from the Olympic-style launching pads mounted at the edges of the pool.

I beat him. He couldn’t believe it and demanded a rematch.

I beat him again.

Then my body engaged in a total and complete coup d’État, preventing me from further competition due to physical exhaustion. We went out that night (last night), and I was falling asleep everywhere we stopped. I went home early and slept quite well. Now I’m blogging the experience, and I have lunch again one and a half hours. This is a great cycle…

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