Exam season and grocery shopping don't usually go well
together.
And so on a gloomy Monday morning, two days before an exam worth a whopping 50% of my final grade, I found myself with no milk in the fridge, and no cereal in the pantry.
So I did what any self-respecting student would do - I made my way to the nearest Tim Hortons.
Before I describe what happened on this fateful Easter Monday, I should say that I'm not the kind who casts excessive doubt over the halalability of anything and everything that is supposed to be halal before I eat it. I am cautious, but I'm not paranoid.
If something doesn't seem right, I'll avoid it.
---
So, back to Timmys we go.
A donut wouldn't do it for the size of the hole in my stomach, and a muffin wouldn't cut it either. I needed a bagel. Not just any bagel, but a bagel of the 12 Grain variety with - wait for it - butter!
Just the thought brought forth a Pavlovian drop of saliva to my mouth.
So I placed my order, barely able to hear myself over the rumbling of my stomach, and made my way to where I would receive my food.
Like most Tim Hortons, this one gave the public a full view of the 'kitchen.' So we could see our orders being made - see the Tim Hortians spread butter over our bagels, or else whip up an Ice Cap faster than you can say 'heaven.'
Now I don't usually oggle when people make my food, but today I was famished, and needed to feed my eyes as well as my stomach.
The order before mine was what I now know to be a Turkey Bacon Club sandwich. Unfortunately, very far from being halal.
So I watched as the employee reached into the bacon bowl, put a fair smattering off swine onto the bread, did the same with some turkey, and then put the sandwich into a toaster.
Aha, I thought, my beloved bagel is up next - let the show begin.
But things were about to go wrong. Very wrong.
The employee reached into the baked goods rack with the same gloves (that still had bits of bacon on them) and pulled out a 12 Grain bagel. My 12 Grain bagel.
I no longer felt hungry.
I remember hearing myself telling the guy - a wiry teen with braces, glasses, and several pimples -, "Can you please change your gloves and get me another one?"
----
End of part 1. Since it is exam time, I better get back to the books. Part 2 of this dramatic tale from Timmys will God willingly be published some time next week.
What do you think? Are you careful when you order something as harmless as a bagel?
In the next part, I will also look at this issue jurisprudentially.
And so on a gloomy Monday morning, two days before an exam worth a whopping 50% of my final grade, I found myself with no milk in the fridge, and no cereal in the pantry.
So I did what any self-respecting student would do - I made my way to the nearest Tim Hortons.
Before I describe what happened on this fateful Easter Monday, I should say that I'm not the kind who casts excessive doubt over the halalability of anything and everything that is supposed to be halal before I eat it. I am cautious, but I'm not paranoid.
If something doesn't seem right, I'll avoid it.
---
So, back to Timmys we go.
A donut wouldn't do it for the size of the hole in my stomach, and a muffin wouldn't cut it either. I needed a bagel. Not just any bagel, but a bagel of the 12 Grain variety with - wait for it - butter!
Just the thought brought forth a Pavlovian drop of saliva to my mouth.
So I placed my order, barely able to hear myself over the rumbling of my stomach, and made my way to where I would receive my food.
Like most Tim Hortons, this one gave the public a full view of the 'kitchen.' So we could see our orders being made - see the Tim Hortians spread butter over our bagels, or else whip up an Ice Cap faster than you can say 'heaven.'
Now I don't usually oggle when people make my food, but today I was famished, and needed to feed my eyes as well as my stomach.
The order before mine was what I now know to be a Turkey Bacon Club sandwich. Unfortunately, very far from being halal.
So I watched as the employee reached into the bacon bowl, put a fair smattering off swine onto the bread, did the same with some turkey, and then put the sandwich into a toaster.
Aha, I thought, my beloved bagel is up next - let the show begin.
But things were about to go wrong. Very wrong.
The employee reached into the baked goods rack with the same gloves (that still had bits of bacon on them) and pulled out a 12 Grain bagel. My 12 Grain bagel.
I no longer felt hungry.
I remember hearing myself telling the guy - a wiry teen with braces, glasses, and several pimples -, "Can you please change your gloves and get me another one?"
----
End of part 1. Since it is exam time, I better get back to the books. Part 2 of this dramatic tale from Timmys will God willingly be published some time next week.
What do you think? Are you careful when you order something as harmless as a bagel?
In the next part, I will also look at this issue jurisprudentially.
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