Litter picking in Woodlands - challenge 21

This was an easy one to tick off in most respects, given I just had to go out and start picking up litter from the local neighbourhood. However, it was part of a day when I did over 24000 steps following dog walks, a walk in the woods with the children and a run of 6 3/4 miles, so keeping motivated to get on with it was not as straightforward as it might have been.

However, I also wanted to listen to the History of England podcast and it was a good excuse to do so, wandering along the roadside, litter picker in one hand and refuse bag in the other. Even the collection bag was recycled having been full of fat balls delivered last week.

I headed uphill and made my way to the Verwood road junction before turning back and collecting from the other side of the road on the return. I had a full bag by then, although early on it was hard work simply because of the gusty wind which kept threatening to empty the bag as quickly as I tried to put any rubbish inside. The heavier it became, the easier it got.

Nothing of any great excitement in the collection. It was a collection of bits of plastic from goodness knows where to the things thrown from car windows. There are very few people who would be walking this road and so it is obvious most of the rubbish is discarded by drivers and passengers, lots of crisp wrappers, empty cans, a mixture of lager and cider, the odd red bull thrown in for good measure, small wine bottles, fast food cartons and packaging and cigarette packets. You might argue that the lifestyle which has been linked with Western illnesses e.g. diabetes, heart disease, cancer and so on through a diet of too much alcohol, junk food and sugar is not only harming those who consume it but also the wider environment.

We know that the burgers from the fast food chains are linked to the destruction of valuable habitats and environments, cattle ranching which is a major contributor to global warming and that anti-social behaviour is exacerbated by alcohol, excess sugar (behaviours seen in schools for example) and puts severe strain on the health service. There is then the final indignity of our lives being cheapened and diminshed in the prevalence of these items in our local environments, degrading the aesthetic pleasure of walking to enjoy the natural world, causing us to consider our fellows with disdain, damning them for being so much less considerate than ourselves when it is the case that for most people, throwing litter would be unthinkable.

You can probably tell I had plenty of time to consider this as I was picking litter. I guess it was even more to the fore of my mind following last week's stories and images from Bournemouth beach, Sandbanks and Durdle Door where tonnes of rubbish had been left following chaotic scenes on crowded beaches. Who on earth would behave in ways which illustrated this kind of contempt for the world in which we live?

I am also making good progress with reading 'Dubliners' by James Joyce. It is proving as 'easy' read, a collection of short stories which, so far, appear to be sad and rather downbeat, revealing characters trapped in their circumstances, unable to stride beyond the confines within which they find themselves, slightly haunted.

At the same time I am reading 'Eat and Run' by Scott Jurek, an ultrarunner. I'm not sure who gave me the book - it must be from my birthday or Christmas, but it is surprisingly readable and is enhanced by a number of interesting recipes. I'll have to try some of them.