When I was imagining my life here on Orkney – you know, when I was sitting on the flight over here, or during those long, long months of lockdowns 1 through 11 (or whatever), I had certain images in my head.
I pictured Scout & me, walking along windswept beaches, hiking up heather-covered hills, or visiting ancient historic sites (see The Stones of Stenness below). I saw myself in my little kitchen, overlooking the countryside, and making up batches of lovely stews, or warming soups. I imagined what it would be like to curl up in my compartment on the Caledonian Sleeper, wending my way from Inverness to London. What I had not foreseen was the amount of time I spend thinking about, dealing with, writing about, focusing on trash.
Yesterday morning I put out the re-cycling at 8:45 am. I could see the garbage truck up the hill; clearly I had just made it out in time. I saw the same truck at the other end of the street an hour later. When I went out to pull in the bin in the afternoon, it was still full. FFS. What had I done wrong this time? How hard can it be to dispose of one’s waste in Scotland? Had I put the wrong category out on the wrong day? Had I not washed the bottles according to the Council’s standards? Was this a passive aggressive swing at unwanted incomers?
Well I left the bin out overnight, thinking they were running late (hope springs eternal). But to no avail – it was still full the next morning. I dragged it back to the back yard (here’s hoping another gale doesn’t blow up anytime soon; my bins dance around the garden during a windstorm like members of a very heavy dance troupe). I really was feeling like the local council had it in for me. So, while the street was empty, I glanced around, tiptoed across the gravel, scooted up really close to my neighbour’s side wall so they couldn’t see me out their windows, sidled over to their bins, lifted the lid, and peered inside. Ha! Theirs were still full too! It wasn’t a vendetta against the interloper; the bin men had just missed our block.
I can’t believe how much better I felt to see their full bin; clearly I need more and bigger issues to focus on these days.
