So, it's Turtledove Day—a.k.a., The Second Day of Christmas, or First, depending on how you count it in your part of the world—and for no other reason than that it gets me active on Vox before Jax, I tell the story of a discovery and I pose a question:
Today, as Jackie is finishing reading
my gift from her parents, she calls to me for drink and 'something salty'. I oblige with the ... er ...
obligatory G&T to slake her thirst and dash next door to the corner store to address the more brackish need. I discover a local gem: kettle chips (
crisps to our UK friends) made sort-of-locally, in Maple Ridge, BC, called
'Hardbite Chips'. They turn out to be a perfect delight.
They also remind me of another discovery a colleague and I made on the way up-Island to what turned out to be a disappointing Robin Mark concert in Duncan. We stopped on the way at a family-run gas station/convenience store/laundrymat to use the 'facilities', and I felt obliged (being Canadian) to buy something in exchange for, well, leaving something. On the shelves I discover a truly locally-made candied popcorn—made, apparently, from a 150-year-old recipe. It was the best kettle corn I've ever tasted, and I ploughed through half the bag before we got to the disappointing concert. (I think it's called 'Maple Leaf Kettle Corn', made in Shawnigan Lake. The only online reference I can find for these people is a report from the Vancouver Island Health Authority from their last routine inspection. Gratifyingly, they passed the inspection.)
All of which confirms a recent tendency of Jax's and mine: we prefer to pay a slight premium for locally-made, non-mass-produced foods and goods over their cheaper alternatives. I'm surprised at how many superior products we find locally, and by buying them, we support smaller local business operators and reward them for out-doing The Man.
Now for the challenge: what local product or service do you prefer over the Big Name Brand alternative?
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