The first mob we saw was made up of seagulls. I’m not sure what had got them so excited, but they were loud about it. I like the sound, these days it reminds me of home.
The second little group weren’t nearly as friendly. We were walking along the prom towards a group maybe in their late teens/early 20 when one of them dropped a plastic bottle which rolled straight towards us. I called to them, saying “excuse me, I think someone’s dropped something?”
Usually at this point someone will pick it up, but this time they were being mouthy. No one knew whose it was, and the mouthiest one, who obviously fancied himself a bit said “I’m drinking beer, darling”.
I’m not a darling. I don’t like being addressed that way, but with three small children with me I didn’t want to escalate the situation. Especially as another one was heckling about how I was planning on knocking the first one out. (I wasn’t. I’m woefully out of practice, it’s been a decade and a half since I last did martial arts. ) So I simply suggested he might want to put it in the bin anyway.
His response was to suggest I got a job with the council litter pickers. I told him I didn’t need one, I look after my environment myself and walked away, ignoring him telling me to pick up the baccy packet too.
Given that the lid from the bottle was on the floor in the middle of the group, it definitely came from one of them. So unpleasant having people just littering like that. Do they really not realise that it has a cost to them, they end up paying for the litter pickers they look down on?
Didn’t spoil our evening, though we might walk past on the other side of the road if they’re still there after swim club.
Would you have addressed it with them? Or just let it roll past?
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