Item one on today’s list of 8 critical things was to make one of the sauces from this New York Times article. I chose this roasted tomato dressing and then immediately realized that I was lacking sufficient tomatoes.

I’ve lately been grappling with the moral indefensibility of car travel, electric or otherwise, for trips that can be reasonably executed by bicycle, and this led me to hop on my bicycle and ride up to Riverview Country Market for said tomatoes (pro tip: a straight shot down Kent Street to the Confederation Trail, and then out the Riverside Drive trail, is my new favourite route there).

Cycling back home I decided that I’d use the dressing as a salad dressing, being well-equipped with greens from yesterday’s market pickup. What better to go with a summer salad, I thought, then some good bread. So on the cycle home I detoured to Red Island Cider, a Pendergast bread outlet, and braved the cidery crowds to pick up a loaf. Lacking sufficient cargo space on my bike, I took advantage of the bread’s substantial heft to simply strap it to the rack.

The dressing is chilling now, and item one on my list is duly crossed off.