IT'S LIKE MEDICATION; LUNCH IN CHINATOWN

They're still around, and now that things are normalizing, they're open for business again. And it looks like things will straighten out over the next few months. They look a little worn by the past year, but it was exceptionally good to see them again. It's not quite "social life", but it's community. I'm not a social life type of guy. But I like the people at my favourite places.
And it's good to see that they've survived.

The windows are boarded up -- because of loonies and vandals -- but the interior is brightly lit and clean, and there is a range of fresh baked goods in the cases. I ended up sitting at one of the tables and having tomato porkchop over rice (蕃茄豬扒飯 'faan ke chü paa faan'), plus a hot cup of HK milk tea (港式奶茶 'gong sik naai chaai').

Baked goods. Hot chops and rice. Milk tea.
It's like the old days.

Afterwards I made sure to leave a decent tip. That's all I could do. I hope the place continues to survive, and thrives again. It will take a while for all the regulars to return, we haven't had an easy sixteen months financially. The neighborhood is on thinner ground.


Headed down Becket afterwards with a pipe in my mouth. Two nuts. Crossed Jackson Street. One more nut. At the eyeglasses place on the corner of Washington and Wentworth, another one. Stayed on the edge of Portsmouth Square while smoking. Old people playing cards. One gentleman playing a bamboo flute near the playground. Several men playing Chinese chess. Nearly half a dozen raggedy fellows, obviously homeless. And, over half an hour, over a dozen mentally unstable individuals, mostly Caucasian. Two of whom had noisy and spectacular fits. With large amounts of flying garbage. Strolling through the square afterwards I passed the psycho team trying to talk an unshaven very white businessman back into his clothes.
A black mental case walked by totally unaware of the outreach workers.
Elderly men continued with their chess games.

I feel sorry for the old guy whose pack of cigarettes was stolen by one of the crazy people, who after scattering the contents to the four winds picked one off the pavement and lit it.
Some of these white people need the crap smacked out of them.
Either that, or serious medical attention.
A course of pills.

TOBACCO INDEX


==========================================================================
NOTE: Readers may contact me directly:
LETTER BOX.
All correspondence will be kept in confidence.
==========================================================================