I really hate working as early as 8:30 because it
interrupts the things I like to do at home at that hour, but I had to work on
Monday morning and would have to work the same shift on Thursday and Friday as
well. I posed for David Scopick’s photography class, which is not hard work
other than the struggle to stay awake with the bright, hot lights in my eyes
while he lectures about and demonstrates how to light a model for portraiture.
He
told them that the main light should always light the far side of the face and
that the fill light, if used, should always be shining from near the position
of the camera.
At
one point he told me to get up and have a stretch while he prepared another
light. I grabbed a chocolate pretzel bar from my bag to wake me up. I shoved
the last of it in my mouth as he asked me to sit down again and he asked,
“Finished your treat?” He seems to be a nice guy with a slightly gruff manner,
so it was hard to tell if he was trying to be engaging or if he was expressing
disapproval about me having a quick snack. Maybe I just think too much about
people’s reactions to me.
We
didn’t take a coffee break and as usual David was finished with me about 45
minutes before the end of the class. He shook my hand and told me not to tell
anyone that he’d let me go early.
On
the way home I stopped at the bank to take out sixty dollars because I had to
mail a fairly large package to my daughter later on and I wasn’t sure how much
the post office was going to charge me.
A few
months before that, Astrid had commented to me in a Facebook message that she
missed roti while living in Montreal. Early in the New Year I got the crazy
idea that maybe I could send her some of the West Indian wrap by mail. At first
I thought I could just buy some from Ali’s, pack it in a box and mail it, in
which case I figured that I probably shouldn’t send any meat. A potato roti
though is something that I’d probably eat if I’d bought it and forgot to
refrigerate for 24 hours, so I thought that I might send a few of those.
So on Wednesday, February 1st
I went to Ali’s Roti shop to ask if they thought I could send some roti to
Montreal. I first talked to the guy at the counter and explained that my
daughter lives in Montreal but she misses roti. He nodded knowingly and
informed me that everybody from Toronto who moves to Montreal misses roti. I
asked if he thought it was crazy to send roti by mail. He informed me that they
send roti all across the country and gave me the example that they’ve just sent
a hundred roti out to Vancouver. I said that I wanted to use Canada Post
Express mail. He went and got the owner to talk to me about it. The owner of
Ali’s seems like a very kind man and he will often touch your hand or shoulder
gently when he’s trying to make a point. He explained to me that in order to
successfully send roti to Montreal I would have to first freeze the food, then
pack it up and send it so it will still be cold when it arrives. For that
reason he recommended to buy everything cold. All the items that one would buy
hot from a roti shop are already cooked and then reheated before they are
served, so if I buy it cold and freeze it should be just as good when thawed.
So I bought one dhal puree roti, one potato and spinach roti and one boneless
chicken roti, plus three doubles with chutney.
As I was waiting, the guy behind the counter mused that it might be a
good idea for him to open up a roti shop in Montreal. I asked for some small
containers of hot sauce and he threw them in for free. I put all of the food
from Ali’s into the freezer.
On Thursday February 2nd
I had planned on sending the package of frozen Rotis to Astrid, but I was
distracted by my trip to the dentist, then when I got home I forgot, then I
went to sleep and when I woke up it was past the 17:00 o’clock shipping
deadline. I went to the post office anyway to double check but it turned out
that I was screwed for sending the food until Monday. I went to the Dollarama
to buy foil and freezer bags in hopes that they would keep the roti cold longer
when I did send them. I realized though, after all the wrapping, the three roti
and the three doubles were too big for the box, so I went to buy a bigger one
from the post office when I got back to Parkdale after my dental appointment on
Saturday.
On Monday afternoon I rushed to get
everything packed. I put all the frozen rotis and doubles inside of a thermal
bag that I had found while riding north of the Danforth last summer. I placed a
frozen gel pack inside the bag, closed the box and taped it up, then I addressed
it and rushed over to the post office with fifteen minutes to spare before
shipping time, though I had to wait at least five minutes behind a woman who
was sending about twenty small parcels that each had to be weighed.
I managed to get it sent out with
the evening shipment and I really hoped everything would stay cold by the time
Astrid got it.
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