Dinner with Moira and Friends Downtown

An eventful evening began with the prime parking spot downtown in PPG Plaza right next to the Ice Skating Rink. Too good to be true? We were quickly swarmed by PPG security guards concerned that we were street vendors. Through discussion and deliberation the head security guard came to the conclusion that he simply did not like what we were doing, upright asking Dawn "Why do you have to do this?" Dawn's response, We're not devil worshipers, sir, we're just eating dinner!

The police were called, and we moved a block away to Market Square, where Pittsburgh's Food Not Bombs regularly distributes free food. We found a lovely spot, where one of the guards approved our being. However, the head security guard returned with two police officers, and we were told to move directly across the street into a metered parking space. Surrounding PPG Plaza, cars and other vehicles are regularly parked in spaces conspicuously marked with No Parking signs, but Pittsburgh police do not ticket cars on Sundays. However, they were ready to ticket us due to this man's complaints. Before embarking on more productive work, the police bore witness to the guard's egregious insult to his employee, whom he declared an idiot for speaking to us.
We did have a wonderful evening, though. And however many chastisements we receive, it is reassuring to find that we have 10-fold the compliments from passerby and participants.
Thank you to all for supporting us.

Dawn is truly a professional

A vegan, gluten/wheat free, nut free meal!
Kidney bean and spaghetti squash salad.
In between courses, we served marinated scarlet runner beans (several generations of beans saved by Claire each year, passed down from her mother) and a fresh aloe drink- slimy and full of antibiotic benefits.

Everybody pilled out of the trailer with their dishes in tow. They were incredibly sports.

Moving the trailer by hand across the street (approximately 25 feet)


Laura serves the soup, a combinations of tomato, potato, pumpkin, carrot.
Tomatoes were from the garden (preserved in the all natural Pittsburgh freezer) and from jars Claire had preserved this summer. Thank you to the pressure canner and cold weather, we are still able to eat our fresh homegrown foods!

Everyone managed to stay warm in the small space.