Finally, the complete Sanctuary weekly schedule has been added to the calendar.
So there's this place. It's called "Sanctuary." And they do this lunch on wednesdays at noon.
Here's where it be:
25 Charles St. between Yonge & Church.
It's a drop-in. They serve brunch, basically: coffee etc, and you can eat as much as you bloody well want.
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Ghetto "breakfasts"
It's hard to find a good free breakfast in Toronto.
PARC will serve up some pretty sad cereal, the Corner Drop-In at least gives you the makings of peanut butter and jelly sandwitches (and soup or eggs if you show up around 8am), and the Christie Ossington Neighborhood Center is all over the map but always on the light side.
Apparently, the Lawyers Feed the Hungry program serves breakfast from 6:45 - 7:45 on thursdays.
The Good Shepherd will at least give you some kind of eggs during their daily 9am - 11am breakfasts. And they'll have all sorts of bagels and peanut butter. But even their breakfasts are pretty lackluster.
And then there's the Out of the Cold program, and when that starts, a lot of these places start to get better breakfasts. It's hard to co-ordinate these programs though, even staff seem confused about them.
PARC will serve up some pretty sad cereal, the Corner Drop-In at least gives you the makings of peanut butter and jelly sandwitches (and soup or eggs if you show up around 8am), and the Christie Ossington Neighborhood Center is all over the map but always on the light side.
Apparently, the Lawyers Feed the Hungry program serves breakfast from 6:45 - 7:45 on thursdays.
The Good Shepherd will at least give you some kind of eggs during their daily 9am - 11am breakfasts. And they'll have all sorts of bagels and peanut butter. But even their breakfasts are pretty lackluster.
And then there's the Out of the Cold program, and when that starts, a lot of these places start to get better breakfasts. It's hard to co-ordinate these programs though, even staff seem confused about them.
Friday, August 19, 2011
Hoping it's accurate
So I have added a few things that I was surprised to have omitted before: meals at Upper Room, Evangel Hall and the Caribbean Catholic Church.
But there's still some stuff out there that has escaped the map and the calendar:
- Yours Truly, the Ultramarginalized
But there's still some stuff out there that has escaped the map and the calendar:
- This church next to the value village at Bloor and... is it Lansdowne? I think they've got Sunday dinners. I went to one of these and it was very preachy and musical but comfy.
Sanctuary on Charles St.Sanctuary is now on the calendar!- There's another place downtown that I think is on friday evenings, stays going very very late with a movie and then you can sleep over there on the floor. Kind of a strange place. The staff kept rearranging the tables to accommodate the varying traffic levels.
- Yours Truly, the Ultramarginalized
Thursday, August 18, 2011
The Meeting Place: Free laundry, showers, storage, internet, phone etc
The Meeting Place In Context
It doesn't show up in the calendar or the map because meals is what this place isn't for. In its palacial location on the west side of Bathurst just north of Queen, the Meeting Place is the perfect companion to places in the area like St. Felix, the Corner Drop-in, Scot Mission and Evangel Hall. And the Queen West Health Center is the other perfect compliment to the Meeting Place, on the west side of Bathurst just south of Queen.Laundry Time: 11:30
Sorry, this time has changed, and the new timing is unknown.
They open the door at half past eleven in the morning, Monday to Friday, with the occasional poorly-announced exception. Guests are asked to put their names in the general sign-in sheet, and then they can sign up for laundry, showers, computers etc. The phones are on a wait-and-wonder basis.Showers and Storage: now that's harm reduction!
The Meeting Place will actually store your valuables for free. Having somewhere to put a backpack is a big deal for homeless and precariously-housed people, so I really feel like someone deserves to be knighted for putting that in place. Same thing with the showers.The Breakfast/shower/laundry strategy power combo moves
For extra hobo points, try this (you will need a bike):11:00 Show up at St. Felix, grab breakfast. Sorry, this time has changed... they open at noon now.
11:25 Start waiting around the Meeting Place door.
11:35 Put your laundry in on 25 minute Quick Cycle.
11:40 Take a shower (or try to get to the second Scot Mission lunch before 11:45) and back before your wash ends. Extra points.
12:00 Put your laundry in the dryer and do some internetting.
It's tempting to work the corner drop-in lunch in there somewhere, it must definitely be possible to hit up all three places and get a really solid meal in.
11:35 Put your laundry in on 25 minute Quick Cycle.
11:40 Take a shower (or try to get to the second Scot Mission lunch before 11:45) and back before your wash ends. Extra points.
12:00 Put your laundry in the dryer and do some internetting.
It's tempting to work the corner drop-in lunch in there somewhere, it must definitely be possible to hit up all three places and get a really solid meal in.
The sketchiness factor
The meeting place is so, so sketchy. Guests have to overhear shouting matches, conversations about violence and criminality, and out-of-control people with each visit, but the staff is pretty amazing at keeping it just barely safe for everyone. The key is not to get into anyone else's business and not let people provoke you, because they will try to, every once in awhile. My recommendation? Take it easy on the coffee and don't count on getting there on time, having your place in line or masculinity/femininity respected, or getting what you want to eat. You want to be able to get away with this day after day for the rest of your life if necessary. So remember: don't set yourself up to have to avoid one of these places, because it could really cramp your style.
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