I woke up earlier than usual to move my car for street cleaning, the bane of my city-dwelling existence. I had about 10 minutes to spare so I decided to pack a lunch, which is something I’ve been trying to do more often to save money and eat more healthfully. I pulled out all the ingredients to make a Vietnamese sandwich, or “banh mi”: baguette, pickled vegetables, seasoned tofu, cilantro, and Maggi seasoning. I also grabbed some sriracha sauce and homemade chimichurri because they seemed like they would be nice, spicy additions.
I threw the baguette into the toaster to warm it and give it a little extra crunch while I prepped the other ingredients. I washed the cilantro and picked off the leaves. I sliced the tofu to resemble cold cuts. I drained the pickled daikon and carrot. Ready for assembly! Within a few minutes, I had a 4”-high tower of spicy, salty, vegetable-loaded deliciousness. I grabbed some plastic wrap to package it up. And then I heard my sandwich tumble to the floor.
“Shit.” I stood over the mess for a few seconds, in complete disbelief. My beautifully composed banh mi was splattered all over the floor like a drip painting. I considered putting it all back together and taking it for lunch anyway (I adhere to the 20-second rule), but it was pretty scattered. And the sriracha and chimichurri were smeared into the throw rug and across the linoleum. So I grabbed my compost bin and offered my delicious banh mi to the mulch gods. Happy Earth Day to me.
P.S. The banh mi debacle set me back a few minutes, so I literally ran out the door and to my car parked 8 blocks away. The parking police have ticketed me for not moving my car at 7 minutes into the 2-hour window—it’s perfectly legal but completely annoying—so I was desperate to avoid the $60 penalty. When I got to the block where my car was parked, I noticed that no other cars were moved; their windows were still dewy. I checked the signs: “Street Cleaning, 8–10 AM, 1st and 3rd Wednesdays of the month.” Yesterday was the 3rd Tuesday, and today is the FOURTH Wednesday of April. Am I having a bad day?
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