Notebook

I should have been more specific
I told the staff at the tree nursery that we aren’t going to burn leaves there anymore because we can use them as compost or mulch. Plus, the burning of leaves contaminates the air and increases the chance of respiratory problems (which are very common around here).

So I came into the nursery the next day and saw that they were putting the leaves in a pile, but then I noticed another pile of plastic garbage that was not going to the garbage can.

I asked the employees why they hadn’t put the plastic in the garbage can. They told me that we had stopped burning leaves.

I have since clarified our policy, and we will no longer be burning garbage in the nursery.

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People here try to take advantage of arbitrage opportunity
The Ecuadorian government subsidizes the price of gasoline here. It is pinned at $1.48/gallon of Extra grade (I’m not sure if this is leaded or unleaded. I don’t really know what extra refers to) and $2.10ish/gallon of Super grade (I’m pretty sure this means unleaded).

Because I live in a border province and the neighboring countries don’t have similar subsidies on petroleum products, there is a black market for these items.

Army soldiers man every gas station and natural gas delivery trucks to patrol this trafficking.

I’m mostly saying this so you get a sense for life down here. When I first saw the soldiers at the gas stations, I thought it was for security reasons — or something like that.

This policy of stationing army soldiers at the gas stations has affected my life in one ways. The army solider who works with us in the tree nursery said he would take me to the ecological reserve, which is run by the military, to present me to the authorities there. But he has been on gas duty the last two weeks and unable to take me.

Eventually, he’ll get a free weekend, and I’ll get the chance to see the reserve

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When you’re baking like a toasted cheeser…
My city doesn’t have a public swimming pool.

But on weekends, the local army base’s pool is open to the public.

And depending on the guard on duty, you will pay between nothing and $1.50 to use the pool. Also, the pool complex includes a billiards table and weight room.

So for all those oven-like weekends down here, I know where I’ll go to cool off. Unfortunately, Wendy Peffercorn is not on duty.

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Paper plates?
I went to the super market in Machala last week, in search of paper plates.

You see, all the local high schools here serve their lunches on Styrofoam plates, which then get thrown into the landfill — where they will stay forever.

So in search of alternatives to this, I went looking for paper plates that will biodegrade in this millennium. What I found at the very modern supermarket in Machala was an entire aisle of Styrofoam and plastic kitchen utensils and just one section of one shelf with cardboard plates.