I love Canada. Toronto is a vibrant diverse city where, darn it,
everyone is friendly and everything is nice. That is not to say that
there are not misunderstandings.
For example, I was talking to the Groom’s brother this morning in front
of the Holiday Inn Express. Well, trying to, anyway. I could not hear
the bull horns on the 16th floot, but the noise was palpable down on
Lombard street, across from Gilda Ratner’s Cancer Support Club in the
old fire house.
I am a little confused this morning- not unexpected, considering all
the activity of the Friday in Toronto, and there were elements of the
wedding party scattered across the St. Lawrence neighborhood. I had
grand plans for getting to the Farmer’s market early, but considering
what happened at the Starfish Oyster Bar, and before that at the Boiler
House restaurant in the historic Distillery District (where all that
Rye whiskey came from during Prohibition to flow throught Detroit and
into the thirsty palates of the great American Heartland) and even
before that at the Cathedral for the rehearsal for the wedding and
before that after the plane dumped me at Lester Pearson International
Airport.
Which is all backward, but that is precisely how I am feeling this
morning, and that is exactly how Local 75 is feeling as well.
Interestingly enough, or not, the demonstration commenced with the
inflation of a great gray rat with fierce red eyes and sharp incisors.
At one point he seemed to be devouring the man who was trying to
inflate it- you will have to check the Facebook page for the image,
since apparently the iPad cannot handle embedded pictures and the
capabilities of a real computer.
Anyway, Local 75 of the International Hotel and Restaurant Workers
Union told me they had been without a contract for almost a year, give
or take, and this was not a strike, just a labor action with a giant
inflatable rat, whistles and bullhorns.
“What do we want?”
“Contract!”
“When do we want it?”
“Now!”
It is gray but not raining. There is plenty of coffee in the lobby and
lots to look at outside. I’ll tell you more about it as it happens.
Copyright 2011 Vic Socotra
www.vicsoccotra.com