Whinges of an Alien

Serving food and drink in porcelain or glassware was a natural thing to do. They are durable (if you don't break them), do not release poison under high heat, and are washable - so that you can keep reusing them until you break, or chip them. But since when have we discarded that practice and opted for non-reusable tableware? I guess I can accept someone arguing that they ‘need’ a non-reusable plastic cup for their takeaway drinks, but to serve drinks in that to a dine-in customer? Beats me. Can someone tell me the point of that, please? Here in Singapore, I am sitting at a table in a restaurant, stationary. Yet, when my drink came, it was in a disposable plastic cup, complete with sealed cover, and a straw strike through it. They must have heard me wrongly, and thought that I wanted it to go. So I asked them. They said: No, it’s not a mistake. That’s how we serve drinks here. But I am sitting down, not walking around or jumping around with the drink in my hand. Why do I need it se...

Character #1: Shop cashier Character #2: Customer Act 1 Scene 1: Present time in a bakery, somewhere in Singapore. A customer picks up some pastries and proceeds to the checkout counter. Shop cashier: [No greetings whatsoever, but like a robot, one hand automatically grabs each piece of pastry and shoves it into a small plastic bag grabbed simultaneously by the other hand.] Customer: [Shocked and anxiously] No! Please, can you put everything into just one bag? Shop cashier: [Looks as if she suddenly realised that the customer is another human being, and doubtfully] How would that fit? (Note: her hands have not completely stopped grabbing and shoving yet) Customer: [Annoyed too but tried to be calm] Yes, it will, if you were to place them all in a bigger bag. Shop cashier: [Even more annoyed, and thinks that the customer is nuts. Picks up another bigger bag and place the rest of the pastries into it, extremely unwillingly] Customer: [Puzzled by the cashier’s irritation] And I don’t need...