By E.J. Smith

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Here is a tidbit of the life of St. Patrick: He was actually born in Roman Britain. He was kidnapped at age 16 and taken to Ireland as a slave. He escaped, but went back in 432 to convert the Irish to Christianity. There you go, no ridding Ireland of snakes, y’all, but something much greater.

We are so grateful to have our convenience centers open again. Most of us appreciate them and try to help keep it clean around them. However! This is for you folks that are so careless with this service.

There is a sign on the dumpster that tells what kind of plastic is acceptable for recycling; plastic bags is not one of them. In fact, there was a sign that said, No Plastic Bags. I did not see it last time I took stuff to the center, but I am sure that the bags are still not acceptable. It only takes a second or two to open the bag and empty the bottles, etc. into the dumpster. Surely we aren’t in such a rush that we don’t have a few seconds to do something right. Don’t throw it on the ground! Take it home and shred it and put it in your household trash. Shred it because we have all seen in the media what plastic bags can do to wildlife.

The next thing is cardboard. All boxes are supposed to be broken down so that they are flat; this takes much less space in the container, therefore more can be fitted into it. If everyone did this small gesture before placing boxes in, the container would not be stuffed and running over by the time it is time for the city to empty them. Please take the few seconds it takes to do and do this when you take your cardboard to the recycling center. It will keep the center cleaner and less offensive to be near.

The convenience centers are for recyclable items only, yet I see trash all around them. I don’t know how it gets there, all I know is that it is unsightly. Your trash is picked up at your house, keep it there until the truck comes!

Then, some folks are just plain lazy! I observed a man putting a large bag of trash in a can at a grocery store gas station one day. I said something to him, but he just blew me off and went on his way!

Now, that’s lazy!

Why do folks commit all of these atrocities? Well, some feel that they do not have to follow any rules and some do not even pay attention to them. They’re there for a reason and it is to keep our town clean and beautiful, not to inconvenience anyone or waste their time.

We should all be adult enough to know that some rules are made for positive reasons and not just to annoy us or cause us problems. The reason no one works at the centers is because the city trusts you to do it right and keep the place clean.

When will I stop harping on keeping Carter County clean? When I see clean convenience centers, roadsides, and yards tidy and beautiful, when I see people moving here because of the cleanliness and beauty of our area, when those who care picking up trash daily no longer have to pick everyone else’s garbage. That’s when I will shut up! So, shut me up, litter bugs!

You are in my prayers,

E.J.