Sicilia Fresh

I'm writing DemiDec "letters of engagement" at a restaurant that looks suspiciously like Baja Fresh, right down to the white lacquer tables, except it serves Italian sandwiches, pizzas and salad. There's even a salsa bar, which features coleslaw (I wish it had gelato.)

There's wireless Internet, and to the side of the restaurant is an integrated coffee shop with its own tables, Starbucks-style. That's where I'm working. The chairs have cushions.

At the table next to me, eight women are holding a knitting party.

* * * a few minutes later * * *

One of the women, her hands moving quickly, is talking about how her two dogs, Spike and Ernie, died within a month of one another: the first of of lung cancer, the second of diabetes. I can ignore Starbucks music, but this I can't help but listen to.

Now, another is talking how her dog got cancer. "They amputated his leg to get rid of the tumor. But the chemo was so expensive that my husband would go to Tijuana every few weeks to buy the drugs. They were much cheaper there."

A third chimes in. "Mine died, too. Glaucoma and then kidney failure."

Someone else tries to change the subject by saying, "I like this sweater."

Doesn't work. "I had a cat who got cancer after having a deworming shot," interrupts a fourth. Everyone expresses outrage. "Yes," she confirms, "A deworming shot. It became a fast-growing cancer, and they couldn't close the wound. At the time, I took him to a pet oncologist and he'd never seen an animal come down with this after a deworming shot..."

This is apparently turning into a pet loss support group. I may need to leave before I ask if I can learn to knit with them.