Post Free Hat Day

So the only problem with Free Hat Day, as Saturday came to be known, is that at some point it had to end, and that a new day full of possibly painful reminders would have to begin. I woke up relatively early, especially considering that someone had closed the ultra-thick-blocks-absolutely-every-shred-of-light blinds in my room. Fortunately, my head felt fine. However, my right foot pulsated with dull pain, and I considered the possibility that as a punishment for the ridiculous treatment I had given my body the days before that I had developed arthritis over-night.

There wasn't long to reflect. My friend from class to become an English teacher (TEFL), Beatriz, had decided that she felt like preparing lunch for me and my friend Danny. I had slept until the absolute last possible second, after which I would become inappropriately late, which in Spain I think is about 45 minutes or more (30 is more or less on time). Bea lives in the north-eastern Madrid, and going to her apartment is a good reminder of exactly how big Madrid really is. It's big.

I arrived at the Mar de Cristal metro stop promptly 30 minutes late.

Bea had prepared all sorts of things to eat, much of which she doesn't actually like to eat. In fact, Bea may be one of the most particular eaters I've ever met in my entire life. If it's green or crunchy you can count it out. Tomatoes are okay just so long as they have been pureed to the point that there is absolutely no chunky residue. Lettuce? Please. So what do you eat when you're with someone who hates vegetables? Not vegetables. There were some olives on the table, but these I knew were meant for me, as they are green and therefore automatically unacceptable.

It was more or less a lunch of tapas, except we also learned how to make a Spanish Omelet, which was simple enough even with my brain's then limited capacity for complex thought. Here's the recipe more or less:

Potatoes cut into small cubes
Eggs
About a half gallon of olive oil

Heat up a pan full of olive oil. The more oil, the more Spanish your omelet will be. Cook the potatoes, then put them in a pan with mixed-up eggs and cook it for a bit. When it's looking about 3 quarters of the way done, you have to do a little 'flip'. This is the only hard part, as it is absolutely essential to retain the shape of the pan in your flip. Bea used a plate-- first, she put the plate over the pan, then she flipped the pan over, then she slipped the omelet back into the pan. Incredible.



And exactly what I needed. Not only was Free Hat Day the last weekend Manuel has to really enjoy Madrid, it was also the birthday of one of my roommates, Teresa (pronounced a little bit like Delehsa). She came to live with us about a month ago, and like Bea she loves to make food. To celebrate her birthday we had a party in the apartment with a few friends and all of the roommates. We had just enough seats.

I chickened out at about 5am.