Bring Your Own Bag Day in Singapore!

To my biggest surprise, when I approached the check-out counter in a supermarket and the cashier asked me, "would you need a bag?" It is definitely not a norm for that to happen in Singapore! Even when some major supermarkets do sell reusable cloth bags, they have never once asked me if I prefer to purchase one of them! And to actually ask me if I need a bag? In your dreams!

Oh but that is finally happening now, so it's God's gift! Of course my answer is "no, I don't need a bag, thank you" - with a big smile, which they don't usually get when they tried to shove me plastic bags.

Then when the next customer said he would like a bag, there was a 10-cent extra charge to his purchase (he then quickly changed his mind ahahaha).

Then I noticed a sticker on the cashier counter top, advertising about some "Bring Your Own Bag Day" campaign.

So I see... Singapore is FINALLY "doing something" like a few other countries. Of course, for a start, they will have to take baby steps, because its residents have been highly pampered with the convenience of taking ten plastic bags for one little thing just because they may get punctured. If they were to immediately start bringing their own bags for the rest of their lives, they will die! [Oh my God, how am I going to buy a bar of chocolate if it's not going to be put in a bag?]

I looked up the campaign report, these people's reactions made me laugh.

Whatever it is, I should be glad that they are at least taking one baby step. Today alone should have saved the lives of many unnecessary plastic bags, and hundreds of square-meters of landfill.

According to Yahoo News, the next ring Your Own Bag Day is on 2nd May. Let's hope this baby step will reach its adulthood one day eh?

Comments

Scary walkway on Kerinchi, Bangsar South

The whole purpose of having a walkway is so that pedestrians have a path to walk on instead of venturing on to the side of the roads where motor vehicles zoom by. This sheltered walkway leads to some expensive highrise condominiums up Kerinchi Hill in Bangsar South (anything named or part-named Bangsar in Kuala Lumpur represents "prestigious living"). By all accounts, it should be a breezy walk on this walkway but it's really not the case. Not only it gets flooded on a stormy day, the locals have been abusing it to an unbelievable state. Rubbish everywhere If you are not one of those privilege enough to have a car, but have to walk up the hill every day, you'll know what I mean. You'll find rubbish, broken stools, mud left from the flood, etc, along the walkway as well as inside the wrecked open drain holes. It is disgusting yet hazardous, because you can easily trip and fall into the deep holes especially in the dark (no I have never seen the lights working). I ...

Smokers can quit being so generous

Here is the most miraculous moment I have ever encountered this morning. I was looking out from a local coffee place, and saw smoke coming out from the top of the hedges. Oh no, it’s on fire! However, pedestrians kept walking pass it but no one noticed it or paid any attention to it. I walked to the hedge and took a look. It was a cigarette lying on the top of the hedge, burning and releasing smoke. And it is not quite done yet. I had to take a snapshot – priceless! But I did not put it off because some very fierce gangsters may have left it there for later, or may be, some very generous smokers have decided to share his joy! And funnily enough, as I turned away from the cigarette, these 3 Chinese men sitting next to the hedge were staring and glaring at me as if I was some kind of an alien. And they were right. Note the pictures below: The first being the mysteriously unattended, burning cigarette; the second shows that the cigarette was on the top of a hedge (red arrow) right next to...

Longest receipt in the world

Receipts. One of the most annoying and pointless yet unavoidable things in life. It is necessary as evidence that you did not steal something from a shop, for making claims when you return the goods, as proof that you've been overcharged, etc. But most of the time you'll find that you have more receipts in your wallet than money. As if it is not bad enough, we've just got ourselves what's probably the longest receipt in the world, from a book shop in Kuala Lumpur. We only bought 2 books but the total length of the receipt is 37.4cm. What made it this long is the 2 paragraphs of very meaningless text (some "receipt stories" thingie) printed on the end of the receipt, taking up more than half the length of the paper. Did it serve any purpose? We have no idea. But we're sure that halfway trying to read the 2 paragraphs, we nearly fell asleep. While some of us are trying to reduce wastage and stuff going to landfill, there are those who try every possible way ...

Whinges of an Alien

Search This Blog