"Rumors of my assimilation have been greatly exaggerated ..." (Captain Jean-Luc Picard, having been taken over by the Borg).

Have I mentioned I wanted to marry Captain Kirk when I was 7?

It wasn't really about the voyage for me, and I'm not a Trekkie per se, but I really did dig the whole "buff spaceman in a tight fitting uniform taking over the universe" concept.

Anyhow, not really related to this post, but kinda... there are many conspiracy theories linked to the original Captain Kirk (our very own Canadian William Shatner).

Which leads me to the original premise of my post....

Last Friday, on our return from Canada, I tried to buy some of this:

The best tomato sauce in the universe. I've tried to find some every day since. Checked all 45 shops I know (except Lulu's ... must try there tomorrow).

Thus far ...

Not a drop to be found in Doha.

I'll grant you that it's not a rare occurrence to find Doha shelves devoid of a favorite item:

Some brands in Doha are a lucky find, e.g. once I found Cheez Whiz, and Megarmart sometimes stocks Clamato juice (yeah my 2 faithful Canadian Readers, ya know what I'm talkin' 'bout!!!!!!! )
Some brands in Doha are a hit and miss, e.g. your favorite flavor HP sauce.
Some brands in Doha you will NEVER find, e.g. Kraft Peanut Butter.

BUT ...

Some brands I actually thought I could rely on eternally.

At first I wasn't too worried. But then, as I visited shop after shop after shop, I started to feel uneasy. How could ALL the Heinz Tomato Ketchup disappear from Doha supermarket shelves in the single month I'd been gone? Something felt really, really wrong...

In the words of Spock:

"Your logic was impeccable, Captain. We are in grave danger.

Heinz Tomato Ketchup. Thou art no more. Where the Hell did all the Heinz Tomato Ketchup go?

I got it when turkey "ham" was removed from the shelves (it wasn't pork, but it WAS ham), and the fresh chicken shortage last year was chalked down to low supplies.

There are cases where I've known well enough to prepare for the inevitable penury. Case in point, I have 32 jars of Jamie Oliver walnut pesto in my cupboard because I'm trying to falsify demand to ensure supply doesn't waver.

BUT I NEVER DOUBTED HEINZ TOMATO KETCHUP!!!!!!

And now the grocery supply chain gods have broken me.

How will I ever explain to those who depend on me that I was unable to provide for their preferred tomato sauce needs?

Who is responsible for this mess we're in?

How do I make this RIGHT????????

Everyone KNOWS that everyone IN THE WORLD prefers Heinz Tomato Ketchup. (NO, I'm not being paid for this ... there is a REASON only 8-10 people in the world know the actual recipe.)

A house is simply not a home without Heinz Tomato Ketchup. And we have less than half a bottle left.

I am not yet defeated ... but I fear the end is near my faithful readers. It is all but a few oily red drops away ....

And so, my ultimate expat challenge ...

"Tomato sauce: the final frontier. These are the voyages of a nutjob Canadian family.

Its ~~three,~~ NO ~~five,~~ NO ~~seven,~~ NINE year mission:

to explore un-Canadian flavors, to seek out Shawarmas and Falafel, to boldly reach for tomato sauce not mass-produced by Heinz.

You know what? If Captain Kirk and Doctor McCoy were able to heal the universe with salt shakers, surely I can do something with plain old non-Heinz tomato sauce...

Here's to trying new things! "Engage! Make It So! Resistance is FUTILE!"

N.B. I'll still swing by LuLu's tomorrow ... who knows, they might have a stash.