The Ginger Beer and Peas (10 of 15) short story form Belfast
In this tenth installment of the Northern Irish short story series, Gary Crossey explores a formative moment from his Belfast youth: discovering a small refreshment bar where three halfpence could buy sustenance and sanctuary. Working minimum wage at Betty's shop, performing endless box checks under fluorescent lights, Gary navigates the constant arithmetic of poverty—calculating every purchase against every need.
Inspired by James Joyce's "Two Gallants," this story translates that Dublin moment of discovery into 1990s Belfast, capturing the textures of working-class life: the tyranny of retail work, the weight of Mormon expectations, and the careful negotiations required to move through each day. The ginger beer and peas become more than a cheap meal—they represent the discovery that survival can be affordable, that small comforts exist even when money is tight, that the city holds spaces where you can simply be.
Two-thirds through our fifteen-story journey, this episode asks: What does it take to keep going when you're seventeen, broke, and trying to figure out who you're becoming?
