This film takes an unvarnished look at life in a working-class district of Toronto. Based on the filmmaker's memories of his mother's boarding house in Cabbagetown, Toronto, this docudrama revolves around Rose and how she runs her establishment. With a household as full and varied as hers, where the marginal mix with the straight, situations arise that require immediate action. For bootlegging, violence, and stealing, Rose hands out her own brand of justice. Even authority isn't exempt: she becomes involved in a noisy dispute with a social worker over her son's theft of a bicycle.