As we enter the season of mud, all the things that have been buried under the snow for six months are starting to emerge. Unfortunately, this emergence generally means it looks like a garbage truck exploded and spewed its contents along the side of the road. The only thing more unpleasant than the trash from a McDonaldland Happy Meal is the six-month-old waterlogged version.
Is it just me or has anyone else noticed that much of the detritus you see along the side of the road is from fast food, beer, or sodas? Does this mean that only people who eat junk food are litterbugs? Or that health nuts just don’t have as much garbage to throw out the window, since health food often has less packaging? I’m sure some of the folks doing the Adopt a Highway program would have some ideas on the personality profile of the worst litterbugs.
Of course, here in North Idaho, you don’t just see trash along the side of the road at this time of year. Because the dirt roads are also falling apart, you see evidence of the damage the current conditions inflict upon the poor automobiles that are subjected to it. On our way home from the grocery store the other day, we saw part of an exhaust system, a license plate, and a hubcap. I seriously doubt they all fell off the same car.
Even the private roads are not immune to the now-revealed trash. On my walk back from the mailbox the other day, I saw a few pieces of trash floating in the ditches alongside the road. It was particularly depressing because in general, the only people who come back here also LIVE here. I suppose that the lazy slobs who throw their garbage along the highways figure it’s someone else’s property and thus someone else’s problem. But I really don’t get why some people ruin their own environment as well.
In any case, on my next walk to the mailbox, I’m going to bring a big plastic bag with me, so I can take the garbage I saw to its rightful home at the Colburn Dump. This area is just too beautiful to be marred by litter, and I plan to do my little part to keep it clean.