As a kid I used to tool around the neighborhood on my Big Wheel. For some reason I took it upon myself to clean out the gutters in the street and put the trash in the mini "trunk" attached to the back of the Big Wheel. My mom didn't like the fact that I was messing with gutter gunk but I didn't stop.
As I got older, my propensity to pick up trash didn't go away. As a result I was constantly finding money on the ground. I remember once as I was leaving nursery school I found a $20 bill. I bought a 6-Million Dollar Man doll, his rocket ship, and a Walton's Family figurine for my (then) girlfriend. But I digress.
This habit of mine continued as a teenager and whenever I'd visit my grandparents in Kelseyville I'd find arrowheads. My college major was Anthropology and I, like most young men, thought that being an Archaeologist would be similar to the life of Indiana Jones. Not so much. I loved finding things, but the reality and tedium of true archaeology didn't float my boat.
I still find things pretty regularly. ID's, credit cards and collectible coins are common treasures on my walks and I'm always shocked that others didn't find them first.
Now I'm training again for a pretty long run, thus my training miles are long too. I do most of my running on trails and have been getting pretty upset by the amount of trash I find as I run on the higher-up trails. Last week I decided to collect trash during my back to back long runs.
I've never understood how folks can blatantly toss their trash on the ground, or, assuming that much trash gets there accidentally, how they can step over it as they pass by.
Ironically, as I picked up some trash from Sand Point in Nisene Marks, I came across a trashed sticker that bluntly expresses my opinion on littering in the first place.
Let's keep our trails clean. And if you happen to see someone else's junk making the trail unsightly, pick it up. Odds are nobody else is going to do it.
Keep on keepin' on.
tom
As I got older, my propensity to pick up trash didn't go away. As a result I was constantly finding money on the ground. I remember once as I was leaving nursery school I found a $20 bill. I bought a 6-Million Dollar Man doll, his rocket ship, and a Walton's Family figurine for my (then) girlfriend. But I digress.
This habit of mine continued as a teenager and whenever I'd visit my grandparents in Kelseyville I'd find arrowheads. My college major was Anthropology and I, like most young men, thought that being an Archaeologist would be similar to the life of Indiana Jones. Not so much. I loved finding things, but the reality and tedium of true archaeology didn't float my boat.
I still find things pretty regularly. ID's, credit cards and collectible coins are common treasures on my walks and I'm always shocked that others didn't find them first.
Now I'm training again for a pretty long run, thus my training miles are long too. I do most of my running on trails and have been getting pretty upset by the amount of trash I find as I run on the higher-up trails. Last week I decided to collect trash during my back to back long runs.
I've never understood how folks can blatantly toss their trash on the ground, or, assuming that much trash gets there accidentally, how they can step over it as they pass by.
Ironically, as I picked up some trash from Sand Point in Nisene Marks, I came across a trashed sticker that bluntly expresses my opinion on littering in the first place.
Let's keep our trails clean. And if you happen to see someone else's junk making the trail unsightly, pick it up. Odds are nobody else is going to do it.
Keep on keepin' on.
tom
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