May the sustainability gods have mercy on me
Oh-so "dang-it!" it is.
Just when I renew my contract (and oh-how-happy I am about it -for real), I get the news that the Visit Japan Campaign Headquarters is looking for 15 gaijin (that's Japanese for "foreign bastish"), who can speak Japanese, to partake in their little project where they rent a "love wagon" and drive around Japan for a month -for free.
I guess I have to work up a proposal for my client to show how I can combine the trip with promoting sustainability and the company -at no cost- via the VJC site, my blog, and my photos...
I've always wanted to be on a reality show, because my life is so... unreal.
In other news, I have committed a terrible sin against the sustainability gods. While last weekend I was very proud of myself for not only saving money, but also saving the earth by buying a used lens and light-meter, just today I finally reached my limit in terms of trying to find a used bike to replace my stolen (a few months ago) bike. Money-wise it costs more for sure, but I decided the opportunity costs of not having a bike make up for any more diddle-daddle in trying to find a used one that might be a bit cheaper. Sustainability-wise, there is no excuse.
What did I learn? Either there is no good used-bike selling network in Tokyo or, if there is, they are terrible at promoting it. I wasn't able to find anything helpful on the web or asking around at bike shops.
There must be a market! Somebody, please jump on this!
Now that I have confessed my sins, I feel better, and I can express how psyched I am not only about the really nice bike I have, but also that I don't have to waste time thinking about not having a bike or looking for a used on anymore!
... Although, the "sustainability-gods" don't really let you off the hook with a simple confession like some other gods I know.
Comments
tokyo.kijiji.com ?
Posted by: gen | February 10, 2006 12:51 AM
Surely by now you must have realized that Japan is not really committed to protecting the environment? Not really. If they were they would make an honest effort to curb this mania for new things, pretty packaging, overbuilding meaningless roads in sensitive places, overfishing everywhere, and strewing garbage around the planet as if there was no tomorrow (a group of Fiji Island elementary school children once sent a group letter to the Japanese elementary school system asking the Japanese to please stop making garbage that littered their shores), dumping millions of non-native fish into the rivers and lakes every year, killing off the native species, building and building and building further and further into the countryside until absolutely nothing natural is left... and on and on. You've seen it. You live here.
No, there is no respectable bicycle recycling industry in Japan, simply because no one would buy the bicycles because they are not new. What people do is drive up into little known mountain towns and toss the expensive bicycles down the ravines. I've seen hundereds of bicycles throughout my hiking years this way. I once found a custom built Eddy Mercxx racing bike that must have been worth over ¥600,000.
There are a lot of things I like about Japan, but its serious ecological commitment and knowledge isn't one of them.
By the way, I've been meaning to ask. How did you find that farm work you've been describing doing?
Posted by: butuki | February 13, 2006 03:15 AM
Ha! Caught you off your guard, didn't we? Now we finally know what "bastish" means, and we feel strangely compelled to report the usage.
Used-Bike Selling Network in Tokyo sounds like a Web application waiting to happen.
You jump on it.
Posted by: Rudolf | February 15, 2006 10:35 PM