PICKING UP TRASH AFTER A BIG RAIN IS PRETTY AWESOME!

 

Picking up trash after a big rain is pretty awesome.  It's wet, so it doesn't blow around.  But then it's very heavy in my trash bag.

The rain washes the trash into a low spot, so it's easy for me to pick up.  And it just feels cleaner, if there's a way for trash to feel cleaner.

But there is a downside . . . it was so humid, I had sweat running off my face.  It was almost unbearable.

And there was SO MUCH!  Oh my goodness!  I haven't been in this area since last summer.  I saw a bunch of children that I haven't seen for a year, and they all grew a foot!

How can people live like this?   Even before I started picking up trash, I don't think I could stand to walk around in a mess like this.

Channel 5 is going to do another story on me this weekend.  I'd love to take her someplace like this so she can see what I see every day, but that might be too much for her.  It is pretty disgusting.

I think I'll take her to Wilbeth & Arlington.  That's one of my favorite places to clean, and the people walking by are always really nice.

It makes such a huge difference when the trash is picked up, not only the way it looks, but it's dangerous to try to walk through bottles and cans and string and slippery boxes.

I saw a woman leaving her home, and she was carrying a huge bag of trash to the dumpster.  I told her, "Go ahead and put it in my cart.  I'm headed that way."  She did, and then she smiled from ear to ear!

After that, I saw a guy with several pizza boxes, and he walked all the way to the dumpster and threw them in.  I told him, "Nice job throwing your trash away!"  He told me he always does.

I have to wonder.  People tend to try really hard when they see what I'm doing.

I cleaned a huge field around a playground, three parking lots, and all the sidewalks and roads, and counted 2,953 pieces in three hours.  And I didn't finish this area.  I'll be going back tomorrow.

I was headed to my car when I saw this mess.  Is this the worst mess ever?  Or am I just really tired?

Did you know there were bushes and flowers under all that garbage?  Is there an overabundance of trash because it's not picked up regularly?  Or does the wind happen to blow trash from all over the city into this one spot?  I don't know.

Today was a day of somewhat "rotten" little boys.  One asked me how old I was.  I told him, "I'm old.  How old are you?"  He said, "90."  I think he was telling me I was old.  I didn't take it that way, and after a while, he was pretty nice.  He said he'd help me if I came back tomorrow.

Another little boy, about the same age, said, "Hey, can I have half your paycheck?"  I looked at him, somewhat confused.  Why would anyone ask something like that?  

Then I laughed and said, "Absolutely.  sweetie. You can have ALL of my paycheck.  I don't get paid anything."

The look on his face was priceless.