confessions of a cook: Tacos at Los Tizoncitos

Al Pastor Tacos are marinated in a combination of dried chiles, spices and pineapple and then roasted on a vertical rotisserie, shawarma-style (information from Wikipedia)

Some moments are better left untouched, whole, and spontaneous, and one of those moments was tonight on my stroll to Los Tizoncitos, a taco truck down the road. A few minutes prior to my decision to suddenly walk out of my apartment with just my keys, phone, and some coins to buy tacos, I had started to feel restless, like I needed something to fire me up. Today I just finished my first week of graduate school, and boy, what a week it was. I had just finished a wonderful vacation to Boston, Massachusetts with two dear childhood friends the day before, and I thought I had some time to relax because classes started Wednesday. Wrong! Classes actually started on Monday! I missed my first class, and realized from that point on, that man, I need to take this sh*t seriously (sorry for swearing). But that's really how I felt. I am currently studying in the Masters in Education program at Ohio State University, as part of the English Language Arts Program. Woohoo! I'm finally fulfilling my dream of teaching English! It's exciting, yet daunting, and this first week, with missing class and then realizing the large amount of reading, I got shocked into shape. This is it, one year of life dedicated to trying to become the best teacher I can possibly be. I realized I need to get on court and off of the sidelines of life, and really be present to what is happening for me in my life right now.

Anyways, back to the tacos...cause I know that's all you probably want to know about :P. Just kidding. Where was I? Moments left untouched, oh yes, so I immediately have the inspiration, TACOS TACOS TACOS, grab $3.50 worth of quarters from our coin "vacation fund"(because let's face it, with a huge loan for grad school, I don't feel very rich right now!) and sneakily head out the apartment door. I walk over to Los Tizoncitos from my apartment because it is super close by, embracing the humid and warm air that Ohio currently offers. I almost feel like the air is hugging me, embracing me like lovers do when its time for bed, clinging to me, but not enough to make me sweat and tell it to "back off!". I close my eyes to increase my sense of hearing, and absorb the sounds of crickets, birds, and a lawnmower in the far distance. It smells like summer: warm concrete, earth, and moist air, and a faint smell of freshly cut grass. I walk over to Los Tizoncitos and find the familiar faces of the hispanic husband and wife that own the taco truck. In my broken Spanish, I order "tacos al pastor", and prepare myself for four corn tacos, layered with deliciously marinated pork, a slice of grilled pineapple, chopped cilantro, onions, and salsa. I eat the tacos, relishing every spicy bite, and stroll back towards my apartment. Just as flames of spice engulf my mouth from time to time as I walk away, I see fireflies bursting into one-second explosions, and then flying away. I feel at home. I may be a California girl, but this is a part of Ohio I will always love.