As usual, Monday is laundry day and cleaning the apartment. I have gotten it down to a routine now so it is fairly easy. I have figured out the best cycle for cleaning my clothes that does not take forever. Also, I use the extra spin cycle to get the clothes a little dryer before I put them on the drying rack. When I get back to Alexandria, I need to get a better drying rack so that I can air dry more clothes. I will still use the dryer for sheets.

After getting done with the life maintenance, I had a relaxing day. I realized I had gotten in the routine of being sure I did something every day and not taking a rest day. I learned my lesson on my backpacking trip that you need one unplanned day every week. It does not mean that you cannot do something but just do plan every day of your week.

Today was a good day for it as the weather was very variable. It started out cloudy and somewhat brisque. Then, the sun came out but there were still clouds. There were intermittent showers in the afternoon. I would hear rain and look out the window and see a downpour. It would clear up for a an hour or so and then pour again. Based on the weather, I decided reading and just enjoying the day was a good idea. Tomorrow it will be back to the routines I have developed in Toulouse.

For dinner, I cooked the Nigella Lawson rosemary, lemon chicken. I used guinea fowl instead of chicken but it turned out great. I really like the lemon flavor with chicken. It is definitely an easy recipe so I need to remember to cook it more.

I had purple artichokes with it and some roasted potatoes cooked in the same pan which again made dinner easier. The artichokes turned out slightly better than the ones last night. I think I did not cook them long enough last night – they were good and edible but slight tough where tonight they were the perfect texture.

In the evening, the sun had come out and the sunset was its usual spectacular view. I do not think I will ever get tired of sunset in Toulouse.

The last thing I did was finalize my quick trip back to Alexandria for my goddaughter’s wedding in May. I am making a quick dash back to Alexandria (4 days) for the wedding. I sometimes think it is wild to be able to make a quick transcontinental trip but I would not miss the wedding for anything and did not want to miss spring in Toulouse. I think it will be the first time I have ever traveled without luggage. Since I have an apartment in Alexandria with all my clothes and other things, I do not need bring anything when I return. I am looking forward to the wedding but not sure I am looking forward to the jet lag. I figure the best thing to do is try as hard as I can to not switch my clock. Just stay up later and get up at as close to normal as I can.