Friday, April 24, 2009

Recycling and the Litterbug


Earlier this week I needed to go to my town's recycling center to get rid of some computer monitors. I am a religious recycler. We have curbside recycling every other week and I am extremely careful to recycle everything I possibly can. I don't have a need to go to the actual recycling center very often, however. I was very impressed by how neat, organized and clean it was. There was an older gentleman there who was obviously in charge and he was busy sweeping up the stray leaves from the corners of the lot while I was there! Amazing, right? I was so impressed. I left the recycling center feeling so proud of my town and with a real sense of well-being that I had done something good for the environment that day. As I was pulling out of the recycling center parking lot (thinking about writing a letter to the editor of my small town newspaper extoling the virtues of our great recycling center and the gentleman who runs it) what did I see? A punk young man driving past the recycling center tossing two empty packages of cigarettes right out the window of his car!!!! I was livid. There went my feeling of euphoria and well-being. And I said - right out loud in my car - "What a pig!" As I pulled out behind this litterbug I felt my anger rise and my pulse begin to race. And then he threw a cellophane wrapper from a new package of cigarettes out his car window! GRRRRR! As our routes diverged I found myself remembering this iconic image from my childhood:


And I felt like crying in sympathy. How is it that someone can be a litterbug in this day and age? Isn't that one of the first things we teach our children? I can only shake my head in disbelief.

Images from Google images

6 comments:

Sandy said...

Pam, I share your pain of seeing someone just pitch trash out their car window. I have this number in my files from a while ago (your Dad actually gave it to me) and I'm not sure if it's still in service but it's a number to call if you see someone doing exactly what you witnessed. Might be worth a try next time: 888-356-2674

mommakin said...

I hate to see that, too. (but I loved seeing the crying Native American - THAT sure took me back!)

Yes, you'd think by now we would all know better - it is a lack of respect, pure and simple.

Alex the Girl said...

It is extremely frustrating. My mom watches Oprah, and she did an Earth Week deal. Did you know that there is a rolling heap of trash the size of Texas located in the Pacific Ocean. It made my blood run cold. There is a bayou located in the back of my mom's house, where we are currently staying. People fish, swim, trawl (a way of catching shrimp), just to name a few. Yet on a daily basis, the bayou is littered with beer bottles, various plastics, and even filled trash bags. Nothing infuriates me more. I so agree with you.

How about the people who decide to empty their ash trays at red lights and stop signs? Grrrr.

Unknown said...

Pam, I agree with you completely, and it irritates me to no end. My kids know better than to throw anything out of a car or on the ground, it's just nasty!

Anonymous said...

Oh Pam...I couldn't agree with you more. There have been many times over the years that I have witnessed this very thing and it is so irratating...how could someone be so oblivous to the world. When David encounters this he has been known to confront the culprit. He will usually say something like "Oh I think you dropped this"....of course if someone is driving that couldnt' be done but he just seeths about it for hours.

Have a great weekend..Colleen

Pam said...

Sandy - I so wish I had known about that phone number. I thought about calling the police, but felt that that might be overreacting a little.

Tammy, Alex, Anita and Colleen - Thanks for confirming my exasperation about this. I agree it's a lack of respect and it's selfishness - pure and simple. Hasn't everyone been taught not to do this? Apparently not! Or they haven't listened very well. Could be his age, too. Though my kids would never consider littering. At least I hope not.

Ms. Cupcake - thanks for dropping by and becoming a follower. I'm so flattered.

dyanna - Thanks for visiting. I hope you will come again soon.

 

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