Beginning Over, 19. Fire and Memories.

Today is St. John's Day, and is a regional holiday. Last night, many bonfires lit the cloudy skies, and the sea was emptied of sardines to be roasted over the coals. Our daughter went to friends' in Santiago, but my husband and I roasted our own sardines and built our own little bonfire, over which we jumped three times to ward off the witches. This morning, we washed our faces in the traditional water steeped with fragrant herbs that sat out overnight, to catch the magic of midsummer night. Actually, midsummer was on the twenty-first, but the Church positioned the feast of St. John just three days away, so pagan celebrations were moved slightly. They're still pagan, just with a Christian patron. 

The bonfire was a punctuation to a rather hectic day for me. It was the first day of my week's vacation, and I had errands to run. Since our daughter is working this summer, I haven't got a car. Yesterday, since I was free, I drove her to work, and then went to Santiago and ran my errands before picking her up again in the afternoon. 

I had left lunch made for my husband before setting out, and decided to buy something for myself in Santiago, in the industrial park where I was going in and out of stores. I had thought about picking up something in the bakery section of a supermarket, and had even picked up a small bottle of water, when I decided to visit the McDonald's in the area. I used to eat often there when I was a teenager in Boston, and I decided to revisit past memories.

So, I drove to the McDonald's. It had a drive-thru, but I had no idea how to work it (call me antiquated), so I parked in the lot and walked inside. Every table was taken, and, as I walked to the counter in the back, I came upon people standing in front of tall screens, touching them. I realized that now this was how orders were placed. I approached one when it was free, and started tapping. All I wanted was a BigMac and a small fries, but it seemed the only option available was an entire meal, with beverage (I had my water in the car that had only cost me nineteen cents - call me cheap.). I fiddled around a bit more, and discovered how to get just what I wanted. I paid by card on the machine under the screen, took a ream of paper, and waited for my order to appear at the counter. It seemed an expensive lunch to me, though I haven't really eaten out since the beginning of the year, so prices have gone up, in general. The bag quickly came out, and I took it back to my car, drove to a quiet spot, and ate in peace. 

I took out my hamburger. It seemed smaller than I had remembered it, but I hadn't eaten one for well over ten years. The last time I had gone to a McDonald's, was the last summer I had taken my daughter for a summer movie in Santiago, and we sat at McDonald's afterward for the afternoon merenda, or snack. She would buy the Happy Meal with the chicken nuggets, and I would either have a BigMac, or a salad. But it's been a very long time since we used to do that, and the McDonald's at that mall has since closed, as has the movie theater, ever since a new, bigger, more modern mall was built nearby. It was our yearly outing to that restaurant, since I had long before started to avoid such fast food, and we only let our daughter have it once in a while. 

The BigMac had been sloppily put together, with less sauce than I had remembered. Also, it seemed less salty, and the fries didn't have salt liberally sprinkled over them. I assume the sodium was still there, just not as obvious. The sauce seemed more vinegary, and the meat tasted different. In the end, the sandwich was not exactly what I remembered, but neither better nor worse. I think I'll wait another ten years to try it again, just for nostalgia's sake. 

The afternoon ended with my picking up our daughter at the vineyard where she's working this summer, in a beautiful, woodsy area, surrounded by a couple of streams that are placid at this time of year, but must be foaming and tumbling in the winter rains. Once home, she picked the herbs and placed them in water, this being a job she has taken on herself every year, ever since I showed her the stinking strawflower, the anise, and the wild chamomile in the woods. Then, in the evening, when the clouds parted a bit to let us see the sun going down, the sardines went onto the grill, and we had a good meal, with white bread and corn bread to clean the plates. 

Today, the rain is wandering around, and will wet us, but I have some nice good pork ribs and chicken wings marinating for lunch. The BigMac has had its moment, and now it's time to enjoy real food.

Life continues.