Litter Picking
Instead of sleeping till half twelve, I had to pull myself up in the early hours of the morning (10:30) and trudge to Princes Park, the most run-down park in all of Liverpool (and where all the junkies go at night) to pick litter.
Have a committed some heinous anti-social crime that has landed me community service? No! Far from it.
I was with some friends (we were a group of three), helping out a local charitable organisation which looked after the shoddy park.
Now before you start thinkig I'm some kind of Good Samaritan that goes and does random deeds beneficial to the local community this is not the case. I did this for two selfish reasons:
- It's my Citizenship Coursework Project
- Something to add to the CV
The litter picking itself was unspectacular. We got a health and safety talk and were given our equipment (one litter picker and big black plastic bag each) and negotiated turf with the other litter picking teams present.
As we navigated our terrain, we came across two needles and a variety of condom wrappers (but alas no condoms). The place was pouring with rain and I was glad I was wearing an old pair of trainers; unfortunately, I regret choosing my best pair of jeans which irritated me somewhat, considering we had to walk through swamps of mud to get to the patches of the most sought-after litter.
Despite the rain, and despite the mud, and despite having to deal with disease-ridden needles, it was vaguely enjoyable.
I look forward to the next litter-picking session (for the CV of course).
27 comments:
I did not know that Luton had such a drugs problem - in the South West The Masonic Police enjoy nights out where they go and round up junkies and "truss" them up in trees to go cold turkey - screaming and bleeding for the entertainment of all! That GCSE may not be worth it by the way according to the "Daily Telegraph" of today
Haha. Love how you make a simple thing of litter picking so interesting.
I read that as well Mutley - it was also in that Trevor McDonald programme after Coronation St. - your far better off leaving school as soon as possible getting a job and working your way up the ladder (unless you are Polish).
People? Knitting? Parks?
What no dogging?
Alas no condoms? Alas??? Were you hoping to set up your own personal sperm bank?
my goodness, i remember those days of 'paper pick up days' at primary school. I dreaded them so much i'd try and hide from the playground supervisors, so i didn't need to pick litter. I am truly impressed at your efforts, even if there's selfish reasons behind it all. good work!
Even altruism is driven by the selfish need to make oneself happy, so it doesn't matter if you pick litter only for your own personal benefits. You gain extra CV brownie points, and others get to enjoy living in a clean environment. It's a win-win situation. ;)
Luton? I'm sure I made it clear it was Liverpool, Mutley. If what you say is correct about the GCSE, I may need to re-evaluate my options.
It's a shame I don't read the Telegraph.
Oh and I'm sure that's not the case Frobisher. I think I'll stick to my higher education :)
Dogging? In Princes Park? Are you insane?
Faith, thanks for the compliment! It's the ironies of life that carry me on.
Hi fwengebola, yes alas. Condoms would have made it so much more interesting, and would have added an element of danger ;)
sciurine: I had something like that in my primary school as well. Except there rarely was any litter.
Miao: I love win-win situations! Everything can become a win-win situation if you look at it in a certain way.
Give yourself a pat on the back for me lad,i love all that,and if you ever get handy Luton,can you clean their parks up as well,lol.
Sneaky - why didn't I think of it!
Princess Park (in Liverpool) actually is quite decent, pretty and fairly clean.
Now I know why ;-)
Hey Gaz, clean parks in Luton? There are enough parks in Liverpool to keep my busy!
Hey Crashdummie, you gotta think outside the box... it might have seemed like picking litter to some, but it was a character building life experience for me ;)
anon: Apart from the dirty needles, Princes Park is alright. It makes me feel good to know I have made the park slightly less of a dump.
I definitely agree with Miao. We call it the 'generous-selfish' syndrome. What's the point of doing anything if you don't get something out of it?. In fact, that's my personal policy: if by being a selfish girl I do something good, I'll go on with it.
What is wrong with the youth of today.....so futur and career motivated.
Whats wrong with the good old days of smoking everything you could get your hands on , drinking cheap cider, loafing about looking untidy and moaning about being bored...ooops sorry Frobisher is still doing that...he he
I find it quite funny that people take enough care to dispose of their condoms properly, but toss their wrappers carelessly aside. Hm, makes you wonder if it was snapped up before you got there.
the usual stuff: what about giving to charity? I can see nothing selfish about that... other than making you feel good.
beast: I'm just very consciencious for the future. You'll find most smoke and don't give a damn, I bet you were like that once :)
Gneake: a condom wrapper is any old rubbish but the condom itself... well then it starts to get personal right?
A condom wrapper is any old rubbish but the condom itself... well then it starts to get personal right?
I agree. Just like how girls wouldn't litter the streets with their used sanitary pads.
regardless for your motivation for doing your community work...you are doing it and that is what counts.
Thanks for dropping by my blog!!!
Jingo , I still am :-)
Just like to add a Volvo hub cap to the list of crap found at Princes Park. You think people who owned a Volvo would take care of them, eh?
why? Volvos are crap. Not like the mighty Ford Focus though...
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