richmond market

really, i was going to have some deep thoughts about civil liberties and social structures because i was thinking about friends in Socially Liberal European Country and Socially Conservative European Country and some similarities and differences between US and canadian culture and also language as is  used to separate and humiliate people and the rising costs of special education but the truth of it is that while i'm having a lot of thoughts and many of them are cogent, i am well into day ten of the cold from hell and i find that i alternate between "i feel very sick" and "i feel ok, but i need a nap".

and while i might bang out a few thoughts to talk with you about, i haven't the energy to give you any links or cite any examples or sources or even related opinions, and if i'm going to go on about the erosion of civil liberties or european court cases that change corporate policies for consumers in the US, i should probably give you links.

so instead i'm going to tell you about what's more my speed: the richmond market. yeah.

richmond is a two street town. i live some miles out of it, but it's where i get my hair cut, and on the odd occasion that's where i go to order a pizza.

because maybe it's a two street town, but you can get good pizza there, and in more than one place. you can also get a good cheeseburger, a good haircut, and find a good bakery.

sunday afternoon i went into richmond to buy prepared food.

you know, because what i have left in the house either requires too much preparation or just makes me feel green to think about. sometimes when you're sick you just don't want to think about the eggplant soup.

the richmond market used to stand on the corner of main and bridge streets in a dumpy looking old building that appears to have been new sometime in the jackson administration. the first time i went in i simply didn't know any better. i was expecting to be able to get a box of cereal and a can of beans or something, and probably off-brands.

but no.

they had fresh produce. and hand cut meats. and four different brands of jasmine rice.

and now they're down in the new shiny building and you can get local produce and two different flavors of marinated tofu and five flavors of vegan dumplings and in-store made pot pies and wild mushrooms in season and all manner of really awesome things at reasonable prices.

plus regular groceries and toilet paper and stuff.

i am thinking of doing all my shopping there from now on. i am trying to think if i am really saving anything by going to the big chain, or if there's anything i really need at the big chain they don't have at the richmond market.