A low-key weekend of enjoyment

After the excitement of the last few weeks, it was quite nice to have a weekend that was thoroughly enjoyable in a normal sort of way. Don't get me wrong - I am still incredibly grateful and thankful for the bigger excitements of the last little while. Overwhelmed by them in fact. However, we all know that the 'big' things can't happen all of the time and sometimes the small-scale pleasures are all the more pleasurable because they are small.

The weekend started off with on a high note when I ran, miraculously and almost inexplicably, without pain. I mentioned my difficulties with plantar fasciitis earlier this year, but haven't been going into details on the ongoing, incredibly irritating hip pain I have been experiencing since late last year, with the working diagnosis of iliotibial band syndrome. On Saturday, I ran for 30 minutes with no pain and it was an experience beyond amazing. I hope it lasts! Perhaps being engaged has blocked my pain receptors?!

Saturday also involved a cafe visit with school friends, an increasingly challenging scenario as the six in our original friendship group scatter geographically. This year saw the first baby born to this particular group, and having a 10-week-old baby girl join the afternoon was remarkably fun.

The enjoyment continued on Sunday. Many, many posts ago I talked about Fremantle, with its arty vibe, organic foods, fresh bread, and raw and vegan meal and snack options, most notably at The Raw Kitchen Cafe. With Mr Bite happily settled at the football, I wandered Fremantle for a few hours and had a thoroughly fun time.

I found raw carob pieces:

I like them very much indeed. These are quite literally just the edible parts of the carob bean, meaning they are slightly but not too sweet, and don't have the palm oil that goes along with so many carob products.

I also found raw kale chips, seasoned with a barbecue spice blend that includes raw cashews and carrots.

If we're being honest, I liked these less than I was expecting, and will probably stick to fresh kale in future. However, they win points for novelty value and make for an easy vegetable-based snack.

With advance planning, I also settled myself at The Raw Kitchen Cafe with a book. It is a delightful place to take a book to, with comfortable chairs and non-matching furniture.

I took pictures of the menu on my phone, which means the quality is quite appalling, but I thought the menu's first page was worthwhile including anyway. As the following shows, this is a good cafe to visit if you want to find real, natural foods.

I had a green smoothie and a raw, nearly vegan (it contained honey) macaroon with acai and vanilla flavours.

 

My current book, Cutting for Stone, is set in Ethiopia and it is a book that is beautifully written. The language pulls you in and it turned out to be a perfect match for settling back with the smoothie and macaroon. The smoothie was cold and creamy and just slightly sweet from the banana. The macaroon was slightly too coconut-y for my tastes, but it isn't fair to hold coconut flavour against a macaroon. I did enjoy the texture, which was crumbly but dense, and the fact that it was sweet without being artificial in its flavours.

The lovely thing about these sorts of small pleasures, too, is knowing that they are possible again. My bank account may not welcome purchases of carob kibbles, kale chips, and raw cafe treats on a weekly basis, but they are accessible pleasures nonetheless. Friends and running and books - those too.

What about you - have you had any small pleasures lately? Do you have a favourite set? Books and food always seem to make it on to my list!

Tweet

Pin It