I am at the moment writing this (I wrote this first in my ntbk and am now transferring it to my blog) in
Glorietta, while sitting on a bench that goes around the fake palm trees in the center of the mall. I've been sitting here for a while, and was writing about something else earlier. Anyway, as Glorietta's always packed with
people, of course there were people sitting beside me. And I wish this entry could just be about a
shallow matter like having a cute guy sit next to me, but it's not. Because earlier, a girl was sitting next to me. And she was eating a
drumstick (for those of you who don't know that a fancy name for an
ice cream cone in the Phils.). Anyway, since I was writing, I wasn't thinking anything about her. But then she stood up and left. And it was hard not to
notice that she left the
wrapper of the drumstick on the part of the
bench where she had sat. I looked around.
The garbage can was a mere 10 steps away.
It was
hardly any hassle and yet she insisted on
not throwing away her own garbage. Seriously, what is up with
that?!
Granted, it's an indoor mall wiht tons of
janitors, and it's almost
customary for people in the Phils. who eat in fast foods to not bus their own tables unlike they do in other countries, but still. The trash can was 10 steps away!
I always complain about how people in the Philippines don't throw their trash
properly. Once, I saw a girl walking on the street who, right after finishing her drink, just threw the plastic cup on the
sidewalk, without a care in the world. Always, I've blamed that kind of behavior on the
lack of garbage cans on the street and other places. I'll admit, I've dropped some candy wrappers on the sidewalk too, but
never, when I know a trash can is near, and never, before I've looked around to check if there really isn't any place to throw it away in. And because they're just candy wrappers anyway, I often end up just putting 'em in my pocket until I get
home and throw 'em in the trash only then.
Now, I don't know about you, but isn't it just so
obnoxious when you don't throw your trash in the proper place? I mean, how long would it have taken that girl to take 10 steps to the trash can? Even if she was in a hurry, it's not that
difficult. So why, in heavens, did she not at least have the
conscience to think that she's doing a bad thing? Was she not told in kindergarten that trash should be thrown in trash bins because that helps to keep the world
clean? Was I really the only one who watched Captain Planet when I was a kid and
sincerely believed in their cause? How come it's as if no one thinks that sooner or later, our own garbage will be the
demise of the environment?
It's just great, isn't it? South Korea's got a friggin'
holiday for planting trees, and our own citizens can't even walk 10 steps to throw away an ice cream wrapper. No wonder the Philippines is going down--
sooner than most other countries. (I'm sure it's not just the Philippines that's like this and there are a gazillion other cities that are way
polluted too, but the Phils. has already got so many problems, that the small matter of
attitude towards garbage disposal, I'm pretty sure, will affect the country greatly. And sure, that's just
one example, and I'm pretty sure there are other people in the world who aren't like that girl, but I've actually noticed a
number of people who've done something like that, and I'm mostly complaining about how people
treat the
environment in general, not just in the Philippines.)
P.S. It's because of the Korean holiday why I got off work early in the first place and had time to hang out in Glorietta.
