Gandhi said some pretty amazing things during his lifetime. Sadly, it is often the catchiest phrases that are remembered rather than the most profound. Here is one that you may have seen Ron Paul supporters quoting a lot last year…
First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.
I don’t think the sentiment quite fit Ron Paul’s aspirations and I don’t think it quite fits my effort to reduce plastic waste either. I am hoping that I won’t end up in any actual fights and, unfortunately, I don’t think I will win the fight against plastic. I am, however, getting laughed at.
I don’t have my fancy little egg basket anymore. I left it on Gozo for my old landlord. Now I live next door to a small shop that sells only chicken and eggs. There’s a cool sounding French word for that kind of shop that I can’t spell. When I needed a bunch of eggs yesterday, I decided to just walk over with a bowl. Apparently no one has ever done that before. He jokingly asked me if I wanted him to break the eggs into the bowl. He thought it was very funny. I thought it was kinda funny and I thought that the degree to which he thought it was funny was absolutely hilarious. This may be one of those you had to be there moments. Much of the communication was through gesture and the rest was in what is a second language for both of us.
I suspect that I also elicit the occasional chuckle when one of the baguettes that I regularly carry under my arm breaks in two. One of the bakeries (boulangeries)that I frequent provides customers with oversize plastic bags for the long loaves.
