The area where I am litter picking at the moment is a well used track between an Industrial Estate and a housing estate where a lot of the workers live. They are lucky enough to have found work within walking distance, and in some cases, biking and electric scooters distances.
It gets quite busy when it is shift change over time. Most who walk this route are factory workers. What I have noticed is that most of them are plugged into some kind of listening device. Smart phones and such like. They hold their little gadget in their hand and listen through their headphones or ear buds.
It's very rarely that they look up. So it's head down and march on, lost in their own little world.
The scooters and bikers whiz by me so I have to be constantly looking out for them. One or two do slow down which allows me to move to one side and let them pass. Sometimes they take me by surprise and pass by a little too close.
I wonder what kind of jobs they do. Those on wheels are in a hurry to get home, so I assume it is some kind of work on a production line. Maybe they are pleased to be released and can claim their freedom back.
There are some strollers who are concentrating wholly on what is coming through their headphones. I wonder what they are listening to. Some of them are apparently talking to themselves, but are communicating with their friends and family.
Maybe they are doing a further education course online. I like to think they are being productive and using their travelling time to better their work prospects. Who knows.
In the main, most of them are oblivious of their surroundings. It is so normal now to be walking past piles of litter and fly tipping, as they accept it as the norm. Some of the workers may be blotting out the ugliness surrounding them, so they take themselves off to a land of make believe where everything is perfectly inline with nature. They just want to get from A to B as quick as they can.
I hope that my presence of an older person picking up rubbish that some selfish person has discarded, might, just might, prick a conscience or two. Just think, if nobody ever picked up rubbish now and again, how long would it be before someone notices that we are living on a poisoned planet.
Looking like an at home day today. It's raining. Thanks for popping in.
Toodle pip. ilona
Ilona I must tell you your doing a fabulous job picking up the litter in your area.Its horrible that it's there in the first place.many seem to be plugged into music on phones and ear pieces they in there own world for sure.i spend time daily picking up litter that the many children who live in my block of flats throw down every day it such a shame as bins are every where..you make the world a better place by doing this but it's a shame that a lot have a can't be bothered attitude and throw stuff down when they have finished eating etc I can't get my head around it I think I just don't like mess.well done to you for careingx
ReplyDeleteJo, keep on doing what you can. It does make a difference.
DeleteI use my phone in the car to listen to History podcasts, but I do have my eyes open and know where I'm going/am aware!! Keep up the good work with the litter picking. When we have the Royal Welsh Show happening here in July, our population swells from 2,500 to 250,000 and they descend on the pubs in the town. As you can imagine, a night squad of litter pickers is needed to keep the town tidy.
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