Litter
Friday night was pleasant for the most part. I left work and headed for Downer’s Grove, a town not far from where I used to live. I don’t drive straight home on Fridays, mainly because with the traffic, it’s been known to take three or more hours.
So, I was to meet Zai and her sister at the train station there, and we were going to eat at this interesting little restaurant called Cebu. I parked in downtown Downer’s Gove, which has a nice olde towne feel and walked around while I was waiting, stumbling on a nice little bookstore where I picked up a hardcover collection of Edgar Allen Poe stories for only $12.
After that, I sat at the trainstation, took the book out of the bag, and began reading. I didn’t get very far before a train came, and the plastic bag was caught in the wind created. I guess a lot of people would have just let it go, just another piece of trash blowing in the wind.
I guess there’s also some freak in an knit hat and a camera that would think it’s the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen.
Anyhow, I stood up and followed the bag, catching it up to it in the parking lot. I picked the bag up and put the book back in it, resolving to read it some other time. When I returned to the platform, I noticed other random discarded bags and papers whirling in the wind. I had nothing better to do other than wait, so I stooped down and picked them up. There was a large trashcan right there, it’s not like it would have killed the other people to dispose of their garbage properly.
Eventually Zai’s train arrived, and we went to dinner. Cebu is the most interesting place I’ve ever eaten. It is a Philipino-Spanish restaurant, a ‘Euro-Asian Adventure’ its sign states. The food seems to consist of cuts of meat in rich sauces, and rice. It also touts a very diverse menu of homemade desserts, from coconut pudding to tiramisu.
I must say that I’ve eaten tiramisu from dozens of places all over the place, from expensive restaurants to various homemade versions, and this little Euro-Asian joint blew them all out of the water. I told the waitress it was the best I’ve ever had, and she replied that she’d relay that sentiment to her mother, who made it.
I love family-owned places. so if you’re ever in Bolingbrook, Illinois, maybe you should consider stopping by.
Finally, it was time to take Zai’s sister home. About a block away from her house is a large church. It’s at least a hundred years old, built in stone, brick, and bronze, truly a beautiful building. Next to it is a nice little garden. I see a man walking by the church, drinking something from a bottle. He takes one last swig, and without even looking, hurls it nonchalantly into the church garden.
Most of the time, I’m very slow to anger. But I was fuming when I saw that. Sometimes, the dis-respectfulness of people really gets to me. In a church garden no less… I guess nothing is sacred anymore.
Zel-kun out.