Top 20 Photos of 2013 - #4

#4

The Exterminator. On a sunny Saturday afternoon in 2013 we were evacuated from our apartment as health officials came to do their business in response to a case of dengue fever. The Exterminator was thrust into action. This powerful gun emits mosquito repellent in billowing clouds of destruction, smothering the outside surroundings, the underground drains and inside every apartment. Dengue fever is a serious concern in Malaysia, which is heightened as irresponsible individuals casually throw litter in drains, causing a build-up of stagnant water. Mosquitoes' favourite conditions to breed. We stood outside watching the scene unfold as the loud whir of The Exterminators filled the cloudy air. Young children were afraid; I snapped away with my camera. Yes, there are opportunities for photos in every situation; opportunities to create an image of time which tells a very important story; opportunities which can create awareness in otherwise unconcerned or ignorant minds.

A photograph a day from Kuantan: #3 Burning Rubbish

A man burns rubbish by the roadside at the foot of Bukit Bay Route. Disposal of rubbish is a tricky dilemma in Malaysia. Mass burnings from Indonesia each year brings thick haze to many parts of Malaysia.

Rubbish

"reverie" - a daydream; a fanciful idea or theory




Rubbish Problem in Kuantan

This is a photographic essay illustrating the rubbish problem in Kuantan. Just a 20-minute stroll from my apartment produced abundant examples of both the laziness of people to properly dispose of rubbish, and the awful absence of adequate rubbish bins.

It is such a shame that this uncivilised attitude has been allowed to foster, seemingly over generations, due to the complete lack of awareness that dropping litter and polluting the ground is wrong.

I have a constant reverie that Malaysia will one day be as clean and cultured as nearby Singapore, because of a truth, they are worlds apart.

The trail of trash starts right here with a drinks bottle

A paper cup lay on the grass

A collection of tomatoes idle on the road outside Tunas Manja Transit Point superstore

The upside-down wheels and base of a chair lie under this billboard

A stray medicinal bottle

A matchbox thrown carelessly on the floor

A parking coupon discarded on the ground

A dirty nappy unbelievably left on the grass beside a main road

The next day I went on a bike ride to the post office. Here's some of the 'sights' from my journey.

A toothpick on the road

An extremely common sight in Kuantan - cigarette boxes

A lost dummy/pacifier

Somebody threw their empty cup on the floor 100 yards from the Pahang State Mosque

Two empty cartons of chocolate milk have been wedged into the gap of a drain cover

Even bigger items like cardboard boxes are not spared life on the streets

An odd slipper with accompanying plastic bag lying by the roadside

Some sort of strap. Nowhere to put it, just drop it...

Mangled cans of Tiger Beer pollute the lovely little park opposite my apartment

A face mask...

An abandoned sports shoe adorns this aisle

Perhaps most alarming of all - a sofa chair left beside the road which has become a rubbish bin!

Does your home town or country suffer from similar rubbish problems?

Being Religiously Clean

I find it ironic that here in Kuantan there is a stunning symbol of cleanliness in the Pahang State Mosque...

...yet people can't even keep the streets clean...

Yesterday we decided to have a clear-out of our home. Unnecessary objects were mercilessly piled up on the rubbish heap outside for disposal. We discovered our previous printer which we'll never use again. Four old, stained and dusty pillows that haven't left the shelf for over two years. An empty aquarium and pet cage hanging around doing nothing but creating clutter. A deflated bouncy castle with dirty patches that we will never blow up again. A pile of Christmas cards which we'll never re-read and which will be replaced with new versions each December. Empty cardboard boxes which once contained shoes.

They all took a dive into the bin!

The list went on and we ended up filling two shopping trolleys worth of rubbish which I carted down to the end of the block where the large bin sits. A Malay man began sifting through the mound of trash, stuffing his selections into a large, white sack.

De-cluttering the house is an annual event in our home, but I wish it would be a daily one. Each day, items enter our homes, whether they are newspapers, brochures, food, drink, gifts, toys, equipment etc. It would be much easier to screen these items or those they are replacing, on the day they arrive, than a year later when they've been stuffed into a dark and forgotten corner of the kitchen cupboard.

There is great inspiration in the Pahang State Mosque, as in all other religious temples and buildings, which display cleanliness, tidiness and order, both inside and out. They can become a model to base our own homes upon. However, judging by the littered streets in Kuantan, the effect of religion seems to play but a secondary role in life here, contrary to the fact that Malaysia is a multi-religious society.

Religion, of whatever kind, teaches cleanliness. Cleanliness of body, soul and mind. The great mosques, churches, temples, halls and synagogues are spotless, to invite a feeling of awe and reverence for God.

How then, can one justifiably claim to be a follower of God, and simultaneously live a life of littering?