Why I Love The Hood

The thing I love about shopping at the No Frills in this neighbourhood is the camaraderie between the older Italian shoppers and me.

Yesterday afternoon, I was shopping for a few items. I grabbed a clear plastic bag and walked up to the green beans where an older Italian woman was staring hesitantly at the produce. The beans look sickly and withered to me.

I said, "Do they look good to you?"

She answered, "Not really."

An old man came out of no where, ran a a few beans through his fingers and chuckled, "They look like they were picked last year," shaking his head.

I said, "I'll have to buy broccoli instead then."

The woman said, "They look better. But I need beans for tonight."

So I went off to get my broccoli, she reluctantly picked through the green beans, and the old man went back to examining the green peppers.

The Man in Yemen had asked me to send him a chunk of parmesan. So I stood in front of the cheese case looking at the chunks of cheese. I picked up one that could have been parmesan. But there was just a label with the manufacturer name, expiry date and price on it. There was no clear indication it was parmesan. I said to the stock boy near me, "Is this parmesan?"

Suddenly, three old Italian men surrounded me, saying,

"No, no way. That's not parmesan. This is parmesan." They showed me the parmesan, which said parmesan on the wrapper. One of them said,

"You want a big piece or small piece?"

I said, "A big piece."

Big mistake. I won't detail the banter that ensued between these old men at my expense. It was short but fun. Made me feel at one with my neighbours.