Coming Soon

So I know everyone has been waiting/asking/demanding for another blog post. Well they are coming soon, it's been quite a busy week - so busy that I haven't even gone shopping and therefore my fridge is empty (hence weekly fridge died... briefly). But, here are some stories you can look forward to:

Trip to Puttur
Sleeping in a tribal settlement outside of Mysore
Indian (American) Thanksgiving!
Attending my first Indian wedding
and my negotiations in buying a guitar in Bangalore

So as you can see, I've been busy. A lot of running around, getting on and off buses, arguing with shop owners, and the like. Yet, through the frustrating moments, India will always retain it's beauty, and I am quite happy to be experiencing this country. And the more involved I get with Indian-ways-of-life, the more I feel like last time was a watered down experience. So for those of you that have yet to visit India, and for those of you who took part in the Ramapo-Fireflies Study Abroad semester... I suggest you come to India. It's a different, yet equally enthralling, experience.

Here's a moral dilemma that perhaps the more experienced people can help with. And I mean experienced in the sense of life-experience, not anything specific. So here it is:

Every week I am cooking, consuming, buying and throwing out. Now, when I moved in here, I was told someone is supposed to come twice a week to sweep and throw out the trash. That doesn't happen. So eventually my trash builds up.

Since a lot of it is fresh produce, or organic stuffs, gnats, ants and flies are naturally attracted to the refuse. So when it's getting full I move it from my kitchen onto my balcony. In a couple weeks of me traveling around the city, going to visit friends, etc., the trash began to build up. And my balcony was no longer a welcoming place.

"Norm, why didn't you just throw away the garbage?" A logical voice might say. But if you've read past blog posts, I would quickly answer - "Where?"

Here's the dilemma: This cleaning lady, or the landlord will come take the garbage from me. Well, I don't want to presume anything, but based on what I've seen, I tend to doubt that they are having any qualms about throwing garbage into the empty lots. So let's say he does that - he takes the bags of garbage, and into the lots they go.

Now I don't want to take them there because I don't want to litter, or further encourage this littering. But am I doing any good by letting someone else throw it away? No, all I am doing is putting the responsibility on someone else. I'm not saying it's right or wrong, but turning a blind eye definitely doesn't make anything go away.

Just like the small spiel on seeing past the ugly to the beauty. Ignoring it doesn't make it go away. Putting responsibility on someone else doesn't mean it goes away from you - it just means you've failed to uphold the responsibility yourself.

I could be wrong, but I don't know yet. This is just the thought I've been on lately.

Thoughts?