Behind rows of magazine filled racks, sits the cafe where I order the "Ultimate Veggie" Sandwich Special. The walls are painted the palest of yellow and are decorated with hand stenciled ivy. There is an enormous aerial view of the Shuswap tacked above the selection of juice and pop selling for $1.00 each.
The table is set with a vignette of items: a red printed napkin dispenser, a cup full of pencils, keno cards and a variety of jams. Signs are posted above each table indicating they are reserved for lunch customers only between 11:30 and 1:30pm. At the back of the cafe is an "out of order" public phone taped up with packing tape. .........D
Red KENO numbers flash on the screen as a customer describes his heart surgery. Two men discuss the tasteless details of Sturgis North. A couple of women sit at the counter and request "old" blackened coffee. Racks of multi-hued greeting cards are displayed in a corner beyond the kitchen.
My order of mulagatawny soup, laced with brilliant yellow currry, arrives first. The prep area is open to viewing and I watch as the young waitress prepares my grilled cheese sandwich (on white, of course)with carrot sticks, celery sticks and a blob of Hellman's creamy mayo. Basic fare at affordable prices.
Old squares of green linoleum lead past an "out of order" pay phone to the back door. It flies opens and a bleached blonde enters in a gust of stale smoke. ...L.
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