Two Months to Go

In 2 days, September 17, I will have been pickin' 10 months.  Another milestone.  Since working at the Post Office will prevent me from posting on the 17th, here are my thoughts 2 days early.

Today is a beautiful day to pick--45 degrees, clouds playing hide and seek with the ridges and just a light sprinkle.  Leaving home with a smile on my face, I chose the Community Drive route which takes me right past the schools.  Since school started a few weeks ago, I have not been disappointed at the number of energy drink cans, McDonalds paraphernalia, candy bar wrappers and ciggies distributed along my path just waiting entrance into my big, black bag.  Today I found a bright yellow #2/HB Dixon pencil.  Imagine.  Kids today are still using pencils in school.  Somehow I thought 21st century students might have eclipsed that one-time necessity.  As I dropped the pencil into my BBG, my thoughts wandered  into the future.  Maybe some day I will find discarded ipads along the road for a few blocks surrounding the schools.  Now that would be progress!

More and more folks are stopping at random times and places to say "Thanks."  That makes it really fun for me.  One older man in particular walked past, then did a double take and returned to tell me how he and his wife appreciated the town keeping all the junk picked up in spite of the tourists.  (The bright safety vest never fails to misidentify me.)  I never tell guys like that that I don't work for the town.  Why spoil the great image he has developed?  One very warm day 2 weeks ago, I followed a trail of wrappers and soggy tissues up a drive and found myself pickin' just east of Chipper's Lanes.  Sean Murray was behind his shop working on a car.  Not wanting to disturb him, I picked around the area where he was working and avoided his space.  He disappeared for a moment, but quickly returned and headed right for me.  "I just wanted to thank you for picking up all the trash around here," he started, and then held out a folded bill.  "Oh, I can't accept money for doing this," I began.  (Wait...how much is that?)  "No, take it.  I want you to take it and have a nice lunch," he continued.  "Well, okay, thank you very much," I said taking the cash.  Sean went on to tell me how he was about to close up shop and head to Utah for the Labor Day weekend.  After he left, I checked to see just where I would be going to lunch, and WOW!  There were 2 fives neatly folded in fourths.  Sean might not know it, but he just inadvertently purchased trash protection for Murray & Sons Automotive for some time to come.  People are so nice, don't you think?

Speaking of nice people, one guy actually came to my house while I was sitting in my car in the drive waiting for Lee.  (You should know it is usually the other way 'round.)  He explained how he had seen me pickin' by Moraine Avenue and Elm Road (known to locals as the Dump Road.)  "I think it is so wonderful how you are out there day after day picking up other people's junk.  I see you all the time.  Would you mind if I wrote a letter to the paper about what you're doing?"  I thanked him, but made it very clear that I don't want or need any publicity.  "Well, okay.  I wondered if you would.  Just let me say thanks again," and away he walked.  It was Jeb, my next door neighbor.  As part of the conversation, he also mentioned how he hadn't gotten any chocolate chip cookies in a while.

When my year is over, it's going to be really fun to tally all the miles and hours I've spent.  Just in the past week, I picked 5 hours and 55 minutes and walked approximately 8 miles.  When all is said and done on November 17, 2011, it won't be done.  I'll probably still get out my picker from time to time, find my gloves and locate a big, black bag.  I can't just quit cold turkey.

Always,
Winter