Rita Norander discovered this globe from a small railroad lantern, miraculously unbroken after 50 years or more, while picking up trash along Andover’s roadsides.
Today’s article will be a little different than my usual articles about Andover’s roads. Actually, it will be a lot different. I was inspired to write this article after completing a springtime ritual of mine, which is picking up roadside rubbish.
Each spring for the past several years, I have undertaken the unpleasant task of picking up litter beside the road and along the rail trail in my neighborhood. I do this throughout the year, but usually only in front of my own house and yard which abut Route 11.
But come spring, I go a little crazy and extend the boundaries of my self-imposed duty to include the area from the town line to the S-curve bridge beyond my house. (I am grateful for the help I receive from my neighbors, the Hackmanns, on this upper end). It seemed very fitting this year that I completed my ritual on Earth Day – April 22, 2016!
Why do I do this each spring and throughout the year; and why am I writing about it? It’s not to brag about my good deed, or because I’m looking for a pat on the back. But rather, I’m trying to draw attention to the problem of roadside rubbish, while at the same time expressing my frustration at its continuance.
My reward is seeing the roadside and countryside as it was meant to be seen and enjoyed – trees and bushes, flowers and ferns, houses, lawns and yards – all in their natural state, and not littered with bottles and cans, paper and plastic, bags and cigarette butts.
It mystifies me as to why people litter. Why can’t they toss their unwanted items onto the floor of their car, or ideally into a bag in their car, and properly dispose of it when they reach their destination?
And why, if they are determined to toss their unwanted items out the car window, can’t they at least pick a spot other than my driveway or on the lawn right in front of my house?
Roadside rubbish comes in many forms, and has changed and evolved over the years, especially with the advent of the fast food industry. Years ago, litter primarily consisted of beer and soda cans or bottles, paper items, and cigarette butts. (These I only pick up if they are in my own yard!)
Today, there is a much wider range of objects flying out car windows. While bottles, cans, and butts remain the top offenders, they have been joined by plastic water bottles, ice coffee cups with covers and straws, styrofoam coffee cups, plastic shopping bags, losing lottery tickets, and an array of items left over from a quick stop at Dunkin’ Donuts, McDonald’s, or a similar fast food or takeout establishment.
Believe it or not, some items are more disgusting to pick up than others; for example, the occasional “used” disposable diaper. Grabbing onto a food container which is loaded with ants always gets my attention. Then there is the smelly, half-filled bottle or can which has become the new home for a family of slugs!
There are some litterbugs who annoy me more than others; for example, the person or persons who routinely toss their bright blue beer cans or their bright yellow twisted lemon iced tea cans. I often wonder why bottling companies don’t switch to earth-colored containers which would blend in more instead of cans that stick out like sore thumbs. I suspect it’s because they want the brightly colored cans to stand out on the store shelves in order to catch the eye of the buyers.
My all-time least favorite litterbug is the one who throws glass bottles out their car window! The resulting broken glass is a real hazard to other drivers, bicyclists, and walkers, to say nothing about the people picking up the pieces after them.
Occasionally, unusual items appear beside the road which have not been tossed from car windows, but are actual car parts, left behind following an automobile accident. Last year, much time was spent picking up after two accidents which had occurred on opposite ends of the S-shaped bridge beyond our house.
This year, there were multiple little car pieces near Last Street where a car had hit a deer. A very unusual item found beside the road this year was a nice-looking white coffee maker. The glass coffee container was even there and was unbroken!
Several years ago, I came across my one and only “good” find while in the act of picking up litter. As I was making my way up the road one day, I noticed a white plastic bag which was caught on a branch. It was higher up on the banking than I usually attempt to climb, but seeing it flapping in the breeze made it hard to ignore. I reluctantly climbed the steep banking between the road and the rail trail and plucked the bag from the branch.
While climbing back down, I noticed what I thought was a half-buried glass bottle. After a little digging, I was astonished to pull out an intact glass globe from a railroad lantern! How amazing for this globe to have survived – unbroken – for 50 years or more after the last train had passed through Andover; probably it had been lost or misplaced years before that!
Hopefully, this article will encourage everyone to do their part by not littering and by helping to keep their own neighborhoods litter-free. Parents, let’s set a good example for our children and young adults and continue to stress the importance of keeping Andover and America clean and beautiful!