When Robert Solomon’s working hours were cut during the pandemic – he did building management and tech support for a nonprofit organisation – he got an extra job at a food cooperative, helping to stock the store. It was, he says, the most ordinary job, but that’s what made it special.

That job ended with the pandemic, but in 2022 he left the nonprofit and hunted for grocery positions. Now, at 71, he is assistant buyer in produce (ie fruit and vegetables) at an independent market in New York. “I love the opportunity to do physical, creative work with my body, hands and mind,” he says. “I’m working harder than I have since my 30s, and I love it.”

Solomon’s favourite time of day is the morning. He often starts at 5.30am or 6am. “I put the rugs back on the floor and the carts out in the yard. And then I start stocking.” Certain products make him particularly happy.

“I like fussing up the dandelion greens,” he says. (Though dandelions are often considered weeds, both leaves and roots are edible.) “I have a little bucket of water and I swish them around head first so they’re fresher again. We have to restock broccoli many times a day, and I like that.” When it’s in order, “it makes a sea of broccoli”. We are speaking on a video call, and Solomon lifts his phone to the camera to show waves of blue-green broccoli heads.