I went across to the macolet yesterday for some salad makings for the w/e but someone had just taken the last punnet of cherry tomatoes - and the few regular ones were not what I wanted. Came home thinking oh well, no tomatoes for my salad but it is not the end of the world. But Hai sent someone over just before he closed up for Shabbat this afternoon with a large punnet of very fresh cherry tomatoes, which he had put on my a/c - plus two small punnets of cherries expensive but my one luxury, ditto... and the "in your bag/refrigerator/wherever or in the pakh [pronounced as in loch]" which is the word for a rubbish bin. Hai does not like throwing food away [neither do I - soup makers really come in handy] and once he closes up on a Friday afternoon he will not open again until Sunday morning when everything will be fresh. Plus he needs the space for the fresh stuff so... I am going to make banana ice-cream, or summat like that. The two punnets of mushrooms I will do a quick stir-fry with summat or other. Probably one of the lettuces and whatever. Not quite sure yet what to do with all the avocados though. Smaller than the big green ones but perfect. Fourteen of them? I do not have a lot but I am not short of money to buy food B"H although I do keep a fairly strict budget and do not buy many treats for myself [Tikva is a different matter!] and there is a saying on this Moshav that "[name of the Moshav] looks after its own" - and those who do need help are provided with a large carton of everything they need for the week, delivered on a Thursday evening. This includes not only food but things like toothpaste, shampoo, cleaning product, etc. Most people buy something extra for that. I love Hai - he is such a lovely nice young man and he has worked so hard to turn the little macolet into a really good little mini-market. He will also get things, is possible, that are requested even though they are not the regular products he stocks. Bad as things can be here, there are always people who brighten up out lives.
I don’t like tomatoes, so, selling out wouldn’t spoil my weekend Your banana ice cream sounds great. You mention cherries and how expensive they are, well, we are super lucky that we have a lot of cherry trees around us and kind neighbors knock on our door with boxes full of them, shall I send them your address ! xx
Chris - although I do not pay Hai for whatever he gives/sends me, I put extra money in my Tzedaka box - charity box - although that word is incorrect because Tzedaka is a a duty, not charity, as I always put all small change I have in it before I light my Shabbat candles. By accepting what Hai gives me does not mean anyone else loses out. This would have gone in the pakh.