wednesday november 5

today i was second in line at an lcbo cashier, behind what looked and smelled like a homeless man. he appeared to be buying two beers that came to a total of $4.80. as i stood there waiting my turn, he kept pulling small pieces of change -- nickels, dimes, and occasionally quarters -- out of his pockets, as the cashier kept informing him how short he was of the total ("a dollar," "80 cents," "65 cents," etc.) finally, after getting within 40 cents, the man stopped rifling through his pockets and the cashier glanced back at me and the growing line before mumbling "that's fine" and sending the man on his way with a discount.