Momentary Blindness

I walked into the restaurant Old Bear and I immediately knew I picked the perfect spot for this assignment. The place was extremely packed and different aromas filled the air making my mouth water. I chose a table by the window and sat down. I initially closed my eyes to see if my sense of smell was heightened. I did not disappoint. I was pin pointing dishes made of beef, potatoes, and those covered in cheese. It may have also helped that I was starving. I did not want to appear weird so I did not close my eyes the entire time, I opened them until I received my wine and food. I ordered white wine with the Spaghetti all'Amatriciana. This meal contained spaghetti with tomato sauce, bacon, and pecorino cheese. As I closed my eyes I inhaled the fresh sent of tomatoes. As my nose was working I could also hear the sizzling of the pasta through the loud chatter of the restaurant. All my focus was on my plate. I was able to focus all of my senses to my immediate surroundings and my food. Again, this was probably because I was starving. It’s crazy how focused you can be when your hungry. My mouth was already watering before I took the first bite. The first bite was magical. Having my eyes closed allowed me to savor the food and not worry about what it looked like, but more what it tasted like. I noticed the little things that I would normally ignore, like the texture of the pasta, the way my taste buds danced as I chewed my food, and the aroma that hits my nose every time I go to take a bite. I put my food down for a bit and decide to savor the wine. I have strong taste buds so once the wine touched my tongue I felt a quick delightful pain. I think that was another sign of approval from my taste buds. It was letting me know that the wine had a strong flavorful after punch. As I continued to sip my wine, to my dread, I started choking on cigarette smoke. I’ve inhaled second hand smoke before, especially in Italy, but having my eyes closed made it feel like I was physically having my lungs squeezed because it was so unexpected. I quickly opened my eyes and noticed a man smoking next to me. To make matters better another man lit up a cigarette across from him. Momentary blindness was then over and the choking on cigarette smoke as I chewed my food began.