I just conquered my first Ute of the summer. Ute is one of the hardest trails in Aspen and I pushed myself to the top. I was struggling and breathing really hard, but I made it. Sometimes I am amazed by what my body can do. This weekend I worked a 13 hour day, went dancing until 4am afterwards and then woke up early the next day for a 45 min jog before work. Where is this energy coming from? I guess am not wasting it on a boyfriend, so the release just has to happen somehow. I read an article saying that your metabolism slows down every year by 1% after you hit 30, so mine is officially 2% slower now. No wonder I still haven’t dropped my vacation pounds, I have to work even harder to make up for that 2% loss.
The article about slowing metabolism and aging didn’t say anything about stopping or slowing down on the alcohol consumption, so I still believe it is a perfect tool to keep your metabolism working like a well oiled machine. I can’t even digest food without glass of wine, plus, wine helps to satisfy my sweet tooth so I don’t crave desserts. My glass of wine is my chocolate.
It is summer and this is the only time of the year that you can’t hide your imperfections under clothes, so I put on my tiny shorts and went out. My girlfriend and I sat at the bar of my new favorite place in town, Ellina, and ordered my type of chocolate – Gratien & Meyer sparking rosé from the Saumur region in the Loire Valley, made from 100% Cabernet Franc. There are a lot different bubbles out there. Nothing can compare to champagne, but each bubble has its own time and place. Gratien & Meyer was refreshing, juicy, sharp and witty. It was so easy to drink that the next thing we knew, 1 bottle was gone. The Loire Valley is actually the leader in the sparkling wine world. Who knew? Bubbles from Saumur are lighter than champagne, but can really be memorable and lovely. After the whole bottle and few appetizers (the beet ravioli with veal cheeks was orgasmic) there was no room left for dessert and one more glass took care of our chocolate cravings.
Maybe it’s not my metabolism that is slowing down. Maybe it’s me who is slowing down. The owner of my local movie rental place knows me by name. Am I so different and unique or have I just been going there way too often? He even knows what kind of movies I like: drama, comedy and anything that has “love” in the title. I discovered that movie nights after a difficult hike, like the Ute trail, are pretty rewarding, especially with lots of different chocolates.
Cheers, Vilma