Having arrived in Southeast London 4 years
ago, I soon noticed one substantial difference between small
town Bavaria and London. Plastic Bags! Whether in Brockley,
Deptford or Camberwell, everything you buy, must go in a
bag! No matter you carry five already with a single item
in each - put it in bag! Once I bought 6 toilet rolls, prepacked
in a carrier bag. I went to the counter and he put the bag
- in a bag. They never ask. Buy any item in a shop, the staff's
grip on the pile of bags will be as certain as Pavlov's dogs
will drivel when you ring a bell. Just put it in a bag. Don't
think. Wrap it in and shut up.
No way I would believe Germany is an ecological paradise,
but having traveled some 25 countries I can say: Regarding
the waste of carrier bags England is the worst country. Come
on England: Why not bringing your used plastic bags back
to the shop and reuse them? Why (as staff) not asking people
(if they have loads of bags already), if you can put the
new item in one of those bags?
So what happens in the end to all them bags? In the average
Peckham household they are usually piled up and stuffed in
a dirty kitchen corner. Once that's full, all them bags face
a terrible fate. They all get thrown away, after, of course,
they have been put in a,..guess what..., yes, another bag.
"OOOOps , shit darling we've just
run out of dustbinliners. I bring some back from the shop "
(of course in a bag).
Well, England, and, er, er, yes carrier bags
are made of oil. No doubt, once we're finished with this planet,
we'll bring it out - in a bag.
