Suzanne Vega - "Tom's Diner"

I am sitting
In the morning
At the diner
On the corner

I am waiting
At the counter
For the man
To pour the coffee

And he fills it
Only halfway
And before
I even argue

He is looking
Out the window
At somebody
Coming in...

- Suzanne Vega - "Tom's Diner"

Drumheller – REST DAY
Distance to date: 1196 kms / 738 miles

It was sooo nice to not feel the urgency to get up at 6am and I had a glorious sleep until about 7:30am. It was a gorgeous blue-skied morning and I was really looking forward to a day of doing absolutely nothing. Brendan and I hummed and hawed about heading down to Calgary but then in the end decided to keep it local and I was so glad that we did as the previous evening had been incredibly enjoyable and relaxing with loads of laughs.

A breakfast was in order so Brendan and I hopped on our bikes and biked about 10kms back to a local diner that had been recommended to us the previous evening by our taxi driver – WHIFS – Waffles, Hamburgers, Ice cream, Flapjacks, Salads (Yes, these Albertians are a clever bunch..). It was fantastic recommendation – huge, HUGE portions of food, great service and great food. I was so hungry..!! I had a clubhouse with fries and 2 cups of coffee for breakfast (this following my 3 bowls of rice crispies earlier that morning..!)...

Eating on the TdC – ‘Oink’

I feel the need to discuss my eating here – it is absolutely unreal.

I have never in my life eaten like I am eating on this trip. There is no end to the food I am consuming – chocolate bars, donuts, pasta, pudding, sandwiches, fries, chicken wings, oatmeal, beer, peanut butter, cereal… etc. etc. etc. Every time I feel ‘full’ I wait about 45 minutes and I can eat the monster portion again. It’s been like this for the past two weeks and I have not gained a pound...

For example, a typical day will start with 4 pancakes and a giant dollop of oatmeal followed by a peanut butter sandwich (or two) about an hour later, followed by two donuts & a coffee at Tim Hortons about 20 minutes after that, then a handful of trail mix and then lunch at noon. Lunch usually involves a huge bowl of chili, two more donuts, a litre of chocolate milk, a Pepsi. About an hour and a half later I eat two more peanut butter sandwiches, drink a bottle of Gatorade, and possibly eat a chocolate bar. Rolling into camp around 4ish I usually set up my tent whilst drinking a beer and then top of my diet with a colossal dinner prepared by the Galley Crew. This is also a monster-sized portion high in carbs – more chili or pasta with a light salad. Dessert is also always served and I never skimp on that either…! Then, depending on the campground, I usually seem to get in a cheeky ice-cream just before bed. I can’t believe that I get to do 72 days of this kind of eating..!!

I spent the rest of the afternoon ‘chilling out’ by organizing my clothes and my tent, reading, chatting with everyone, writing postcards and debating what we were going to do about dinner. It was a great day – the weather was spectacular and I was so in need of a break. I love the biking but every once in a while it feels good to have ‘me time’ when I can put on normal clothes and not feel like a 'biker'. I was teased today as well as I put on my watch and some jewellry and even put on some makeup. I steered well clear of anything with lycra and gel padding..!!

We ended the evening by ordering pizza delivered to the camp and then eating around picnic tables in the campground. It was a great evening and I happily crawled into my tent very content around 9:30pm – ready to brave our last day in Alberta the following day.