I thought there would be some outings for the last 2 days of my sublet but with work deadlines I ended up staying inside. Though my own part was done, I needed to be "on standby" for others. I spent Monday afternoon cleaning up the loft; I keep my living spaces clean so this was just the usual chore. In the evening, there were two possibilities. First, I could go to a record store show at Sonic Boom for Lia Pappas-Kemps for her new album Winged. It has been more than a decade since I went there, or rather their old location on Bloor, for an in-store performance. The bonus was that Sonic Boom was only a few streetcar stops from Fresca so I could get a final Toronto-style slice of pizza. Second, I could have dinner with an ex-coworker that I haven't seen in a decade, but only talked to on the phone. I wasn't keen on the second option since they had several weeks to plan something instead of this late ask. I ended up doing neither because I was tasked at 5 pm to fix someone else's last-minute screw-up.
There was more cleaning on Tuesday though I was determined to get back my after-hours labour. I lounged around until I went out for lunch. The OG proprietor of 241 Pizza was there so I finally pulled the trigger on my final panzerotti. The cashier mistakenly charged me $13.99 for an $11.99 special but let us treat that as a tip (though my anal side dislike screw-ups). Also, the combination of chewy crust and gooey cheese was sufficient compensation for an error. Continuous rain meant no final show in the evening.
Wednesday morning, I decided to forgo a dry breakfast of toast as I have emptied out the fridge. But Progress Bakery was opened at 5:30 a.m. When I went inside, unlike this wonderful boulangerie that also opened early, most the shelves here have not yet been stocked. I suspected the ham and cheese croissant ($5.25) was from the previous day. The first few bites did not pass muster but things got better after 30 seconds in the microwave. I said goodbye to the plants; it was too bad I won't see the bloom. My friend will likely chopped off its stalk when they drop by.
The other half of the croissant made an acceptable meal on the bus. This was the first time I did not buy lunch at my Kingston break. Mr. Sub has palled lately and Fat Bastard Burrito was still on my time-out list. I was back in Ottawa a bit early but the transit ride home took an hour for a 6-7 minute car trip. Ah, the unreliable OC Transpo, how I do not miss thee.
Thursday I walked to the local strip mall to restock some fridge items and cleaning supplies. Speaking of which, with the snow melting away, winter detritus and litter was revealed in their glory. I still can't get over how dirty Ottawa is compared to Toronto. Combined that with the high volume of afternoon traffic and my trip was grimmer than grocery runs in The Big Smoke. For the holiday Friday and also Saturday morning, I did yet more cleaning. I wasn't sure how these jobs require more elbow grease because it has only been 2.5 weeks since my last trip back. With no plans to go out, the rest of the long week-end was catching up on shows from streaming services.