Proudly decaying

In the hour it took to get some passport style photos printed (which came out dreadfully - it's rather disconcerting to see how awful I look in photos when I'm not in charge of the outcome), I walked around taking some for myself (well, for this journal if I'm being honest). It was interesting to see a bunch of twenty or so teenagers with brooms and rubbish bags attempting to clean Road 206. They've got their work cut-out, but it's encouraging to see, and many of the cars that drove down the street slowed down to offer their thanks through their windows. There are (and always have been) cleaners on every street who work all day trying to keep on top of the rubbish and so whilst it's nice to see young Egyptians taking a bit of pride in their neighbourhood, I don't think that's the real issue. Trying to get people to stop throwing shit out their windows and dumping stuff at the side of the road is the core of the trash problem in Cairo.

There is a noticeable increase in the number of beggars in the area at the moment, most of whom are children selling tissues for a couple of pounds (with the adults directing them from the shadows), but many of whom are severely disabled and make money by walking around the main mall relying on the guilty sympathetic charity of those in their vicinity. One man - who didn't have any legs - was pulling himself around the mall on a piece of wood (fitted with wheels), weaving in and out of traffic and shouting for spare change. An old woman was doing the same on crutches, barely managing to move at all. It makes me wonder if there is such a thing as a care system for people like this. I shall try and find out.

With a foreboding sense of feeling out of sorts and totally alienated of late, I'm determined not to start blaming depression after making such a good job of ridding myself of it recently. Perhaps I'm just knackered from my recent lack of sleep (this bloody cough will not budge). Or perhaps it's because I've not seen one single kitten since Mubarak resigned. That does strike me as a little odd. I hope nothing bad is happening to them.

In other news, I got a text from the Armed Forces, telling me to get back to work.

Come and make me, I felt like replying.