diet

So after a fitful night of sleep---you know the kind where you wake up every hour in a panic, thinking you have missed the alarm and overslept, only to look at the clock and see it is 2:37 am---I made it to the bus in time. I got to tell you, I am going to be using this bus more often. Get this, a one-way ride to the coast costs 1.31 euros; don't know what's up with the penny bit, but regardless that is crazymoney. And this isn't some rickety Franco-era bus; this is a full-sized coach, with AC and cushy seats. My kind of public transport. Anyway, I arrived early, so I stopped at a cafe near the ophthalmologists' office for a coffee and tostada. One of the things I do love about the coast is that one can actually purchase a coffee and tostada at 8 am. In the village, the earliest anyone is prepared to make you a simple breakfast is 9:15. People-watched for awhile and then made my way to the doctors. After all these visits, my name continues to confuse the receptionist, who always greets me by inverting my surname and my first name. She puts in my drops and then I sit and wait. And wait. Today's music selection: the Evita soundtrack in muzak. So here's the good news: my vision in my right eye has improved, to 20%. But even more exciting, the macula's functioning has improved fourfold. The doctors expect this can continue to get better with time. The floater I noticed in the left eye is a bit of vitreous that has detached, but did so without pulling on the retina; therefore, nothing major to worry about. However, Dr. Rubio is concerned about the overall health of my vitreous; so he says to me that he is putting me on a diet. To which I must have responded to him, a man with a major overlapper clearly indicating a fondness for churros, with a nonverbal, "huh?" He quickly qualified, "Oh no, not a diet to lose weight. A diet to promote eye health." He prescribed me heavy-duty vitamins, plus I am to eat as many fruits and vegetables as I can tolerate. Now I know there are some people in PA Dutchland who find this amusing because it is I who is always telling certain members of my family that they should eat more fruit and vegetables. At a minimum, I have to have one fruit smoothie and one giant vegetable salad a day...tomatoes, carrots, spinach, melon, berries, pineapple, the more colorful the better. I told him I do eat plenty of these; he said, "Mas, mas, mas." Will probably turn into oversized pumpkin (also high on my "must eat" list). Truthfully, I look forward to playing around with the juicer, which has been tucked away, still in its original box. I have tried to eat healthily for many years now; this is just pushing it up a notch. Now, off to look for smoothie recipes on the Internet.... hasta pronto, mylifeinspain p.s. I didn't get to have my swim. Plenty of time, but because of the eyedrops, I had zero tolerance for the bright sunshine. Had to curl up in the back of a dimly-lit bar for an hour, but did have a freshly squeezed orange juice while I waited for the bus. :-)