Weekends

“The only reason why we ask other people how their weekend was is so we can tell them about our own weekend.”

– Chuck Palahniuk

I wake up at a reasonable hour without a hangover.

If I had to choose between a hangover and wine, I would choose wine.

Gym and breakfast. It is raining, but I feel like it is clearing.

I am juggling three books, and Shell has just received the latest edition of New Scientist. I am starting to get reading anxiety.

Steinbeck and A.A. Gill will have to wait. New Scientist and Bill Nesto are getting some attention.

The weekend before a holiday feels very different from the weekend before heading back to work. In the past, these weekends were painted in shades of dread. I can’t honestly say I am looking forward to getting back to work, but there is a sense of calm, resfulness to this pre-work weekend.

It is also the first time in a few years that I have been content to spend some time at home. A few days in Seoul were enough to refresh the spirit. We spent almost a week in the apartment. I feel relaxed and content.

Shell has waved her tasteful, stylish wand over our living room and we finally have a space we don’t want to leave. It has been years since I have felt like this.

Coffee at the local. Shell has some work reading to do. I get some Steinbeck in.

To the bakery and home for lunch.

SPAM is something they love in Korea. Honestly, before I arrived, I had heard of it in some distant memory. Sitting alongside devon and other dull grey lunch meats, SPAM has that slimy ‘may contain traces of meat’ vibe.

It is now a staple on our lunch menu, and I crave it on weekends.

I go for a haircut while Shell makes some calls.

Swing past the wine store and grab a bottle of wine in case the urge strikes this evening. It is the weekend after all.

We open the wine, and I start making dinner.

Shell takes a look at the colour, she has a swirl, and puts her nose in the glass. She declares it a Barolo. I normally give her clues, it is called options. No need. She has a gift, even if she does not admit it.

Shell has certain expectations of ragù. The soffritto must be cut so small that you cannot tell it from the carne tritata. It takes some time, but it is worth it. It doesn’t taste better, but it makes Shell happy, and that makes a meal perfect.

“Real generosity toward the future lies in giving all to the present.”

– Albert Camus

Dinner is done and the wine is finished. Shell reminds me we have a training course on Zoom for work and I am entirely unimpressed.

Tonight’s wine –

2020 Poderi Gianni Gagliardo Comune di Monforte Barolo (Piedmont, Italy)

Two superb vineyard sites from Monforte in the d’Alba. One faces Southeast and brings power, while the other, facing East, adds its elegance. Technically, a single vineyard Barolo, but rarely do vineyards in Barolo produce such polarised wines from a single vineyard.

It is all flowers and fresh herbs on the nose. A pretty wine, comfortable with its lack of forward fruit. The palate is balanced, elegant, and long. A wonderful Barolo that probably does not need much more time in the bottle.