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One thing I like very much here in South Africa is that every time
you buy something in any store, big or small, the cashier would ask
you, “Would you like a bag for that?” and adds, “That would be
20 cents, please.”
So you don’t see any plastic trash here. Also,
people learn to bring their own bags when they shop or their
handbag, hands and pockets will be full.
This is one laudable practice that we should
adopt in the Philippines. In the wet market, they bag your purchases
twice, with clear plastic, then a sando bag. In supermarkets, most
foods are previously packaged in plastic or boxes and then still put
in store plastic bags at the check-out counter. Anywhere else they
so liberally give away plastic bags even when you do not ask. I had
boxes and boxes of plastic bags at home, which I gave away recently.
At any Mini Stop Mini-mart, they give you a big styrofoam box for
every siomai and rice that you buy and two small plastic bags for
sauces. Maybe, if they don’t do that, they could lower the price.
Where do all these used plastic bags and
Styrofoam boxes end up? I dread the next big rain and the floods
that might ensue because our waterways are clogged with this debris.
In our little community in Sta. Mesa, we don’t need the rains, our
streets are always soaked in water and I suspect this is caused by
all those plastic bags and wrappers carelessly thrown away by
vendors, neighbors and passersby.
I praise SM for their green bag campaign. They
encourage you to use your own green bag every time you shop and give
you extra points as incentives added to your SM Advantage Card. SM
should compel stores in their malls to emulate their admirable
example and may other stores follow suit.
One thing I miss, though, are our 24-hour
convenience stores. There is none here and all stores open at 8 a.m.
and close at 6 p.m., 7 p.m. tops. Offices are closed during lunch
breaks. Cinemas and big eateries close at midnight. After six, there
is nothing much to do but watch TV and sleep. People are deathly
afraid to go out when darkness sets in due to rising crimes with the
unchecked entry of illegal Africans from Namibia, Zimbabwe and other
conflicted African nations. Houses of the rich are fortified with
electric fences, other protective gadgets and paid security
surveillance services. The poor use store-bought locks and bolts. I
am in a protected compound, yet the house girls here tell me every
night to bolt and lock every door and window,
Back in Manila, you could attend to your
business affairs during the day then do shopping, go to the beauty
parlor, dine, see a movie, go disco or ballroom dancing, even go to
the wet market during the night. The little wet market (Talipapa) at
V. Mapa Street is open until supply lasts.
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Personal: My family requests our dear
readers to pray for the eternal repose of the soul of my beloved
brother, Dr./Prof. Jess Ramos, UP Diliman College of Liberal Arts.
He passed away last April 5. His body lies in state at our residence
in 4715 Ang Buhay Street , Sta. Mesa, Manila and will be interred at
the Cainta Catholic Cemetery on April 13.
ASTD. Please join The Innovation Camp delegation
at the ASTD International Conference and Exposition (2008 ICE)
organized by the American Society for Training & Development to
be held at the San Diego Convention Center in beautiful San Diego,
California, from June 1 to 4. Please visit \t “_blank”
www.astd.org for details or contact Mrs. Ellen Marbella at
0918-9362346 or 536-0414 for travel packages.
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