Soon I am heading back into southeast Asia and while I was in New Zealand, my last pair of sandals broke. The people of Lavena made a valiant effort, but in the end I am just too hard of things. They bit the dust. They were a Philippine brand, and I really liked them. But I didn't think I would be able to find any Sandugos here in Australia. So I have been looking around for a new pair, but I had reached the conclusion that I probably wouldn't finding anything suitable for a reasonable price here. Nevertheless, with my fog-grounded idleness, I had some time to kill. So I headed to a factory outlet mall to have a look. I did find some sandals that looked quite nice there, but the store-keeper couldn't tell me how they were made. She didn't even seem to understand the question I was asking about the sandals. (I wanted to know if the straps that go around the foot and keep it in place on the sandal were joined together under the foot pads. Previous sandals that I have had were put together so that straps around the foot would go under the foot pad, between the sole and just be glued there. Over time and use, the glue loosens and then the strap pulls loose and no longer holds the foot in place. This happens particularly when wandering around in watery areas. Water does the glue in fairly easily.)
I find this frustrating. I remember a time when salespeople knew about the products they were selling. And a question would elicit an answer. Or if the salesperson didn't know the answer, he or she would go and find out. This woman just said she didn't know. So I said I would think about it and I left. The sandals, despite being a supposedly good name, were still fairly expensive. If I am going to spend some money on a pair of sandals, I want to know that it won't fall apart the first chance it gets. So I left the store. And this still didn't galvanize her into any sort of action to get the answer I was wanting so that she might make a sale. Apparently she was just an employee and not on commission. When I bought my the pair of Sandugos in the Philippines, the people at the stand knew exactly what I was going to want to know about them and they answered the question before I even had a chance to think about it and ask. Western society is going to a slow death, I think.
After I left the factory outlet mall, I headed down the waterfront of the Yarra River. There is a whole bunch of construction of homes along the waterfront, with some already finished. The people who live there must be loaded. Here is the view, complete with having to look around the sailboat at the private dock.
Here are the homes. Sometimes, I wish I had the kind of money these people must have. But would I be changed by it? I think I ought to have the chance to find out. :)
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