It was our date weekend. Thank God for date weekend. We had it all planned out – hiking the BCMC, fixing up our dining chairs, beach volleyball, suika. All in all, a very good plan. We started with the hike up the BCMC trail, harbouring minor pangs of trepidation because the last time we did the GG (grouse grind) it was gg (good game = game over) for us.
Regardless, we were determined to do a good hike because of the only reason we get to do things: no kids. So we set off on the lovely, gazillion times less crowded/competitive BCMC, and it was awesome. I love going hard on a trail — legs burning, fresh air screaming through my lungs, sweat pouring down my back, greenery all around and dirt under my feet. It is exhilarating. It felt so good to be literally and figuratively at the top of the mountain.
But then we decided to hike back down instead of taking the $10 gondola ride down. I mean, we were out there to exercise and breathe the fresh air, not cop out and ride in a metal box filled with equally sweaty, stinky people.
Also, we are cheap.
Word to the wise: the B.O. scented $10 metal box ride is totally worth it. We destroyed our legs heading back down; my knee caps are now paper-thin. Our legs were shaky, we were slipping and sliding on the loose dirt; I almost tore myself a new one on a sharp rock. When we finally got to the bottom, we were walking less like bipeds, more like newborn fawns. We were in such pain Darren didn’t even want to ride his beloved motorcycle the next day. *cue over-dramatic gasp*
As Darren said, pain is weakness leaving the body. So instead of taking a break like we should’ve, we started on our happy-couples-build-things-together workshop. It was gruelling, satisfying work. I dunno, maybe we are just suckers for punishment.
But I realized that sometimes, pain really is weakness leaving the body. As shattered as we were, the sheer joy of hanging out and tearing something apart and building it back up again fuelled us and kept us going. That and carbs and alcohol — we cooked a pretty good dinner consisting mainly of pasta, bacon, and wine. #couplecooking FTW.
Although maybe the alcohol wasn’t such a great idea because I nicked myself a couple of times and almost punched a hole in my hand with a nail. Or maybe I’m just a klutz. Anyhoo, we restored our nasty, and frankly, disturbingly-stained dining chairs to their more or less original, vintage-y condition. So pretty. I love. Seriously, I’ve been dreaming about this day for 7 years.
Hey Mr. and Mrs. Procrastinator, I’ll see you later.
Sunday morning we had a fight about burnt bacon and there were some tears but I don’t want to talk about it. Basically (or should I say alliteratively), burnt bacon blows.
In the end, it doesn’t even matter. (<–name that song) because even though we climbed and our legs died (pre-bacon), and we fought and I cried (about bacon), and I bled and he over-fried (the bacon), I wouldn’t do it with anyone else.
P/S: Beach volleyball was epic. (Like I said, gluttons for punishment) and Suika was epicer. Please go there and for your sake and mine, order the grilled sablefish. And for the pain-pleasure seeking, get the hellz chicken. Do or die.
happilee,
mlee
Pasta Carbonara with Crispy Bacon
serves 4
Ingredients
- 8 ounces capellini
- 2 large eggs
- 3/4 cup grated Parmesan
- 4 slices bacon, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon capers, minced
- 2 tablespoons sun-dried tomatoes in oil, minced
- freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 3 cups baby arugula
Instructions
- in a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to package instructions; reserve 1/2 cup water and drain well.
- in a small bowl, whisk together eggs and parmesan, season with fresh ground black pepper; set aside.
- heat a large skillet over medium high heat. add bacon and cook until brown and crispy, about 6-8 minutes; save a tablespoon of fat and chuck the rest.
- in another pan, fry garlic, capers and sun-dried tomatoes in a bit of extra-virgin olive oil until fragrant, about 1 minute. set aside.
- working quickly, stir pasta in bacon fat on low heat, add egg mixture, and gently toss to combine; season with salt and pepper, to taste. add reserved pasta water, one tablespoon at a time, until desired consistency is reached. stir in fried garlic, capers, and sun-dried tomatoes.
- serve immediately, on a bed of baby arugula greens. twirl and enjoy!
Notes
Heavily adapted from damn delicious
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