Trash storm
If you haven’t been to Philly, you might not know that it is one of the dirtiest cities in the United States. I reside in South Philly where the trash collectors give a shit even less than the residents and there is no street cleaning service. There are third world cities that have less garbage on the streets. Now wading through piles of trash, I mean walking on the sidewalk can be pretty sick, but today was a new experience.
You see, March and April always brings mad crazy winds. You set out on foot and the winds shove so hard one had a difficult time standing upright. But there is that extra element that makes life truly grand. The South Philly street waste. Suddenly God turns into an evil jedi with a mean sense of humor. Not only does one have to fight the frigid winds, but also has to dodge the constant onslaught of McDonalds wrappers, dirty paper plates and empty cigarette packs. Once I was actually hit in the head by a flying plastic gallon milk container. It’s as if some distant land fill has risen up and rioted through the streets of Philadelphia.
Once I saw something I will never forget. I walked around a corner and straight into a garbage whirlwind. Remember that kid in American Beauty? He saw God in that spinning plastic grocery bag. Well I wonder if he would have felt the same if it was six bags,
and five dirty napkins,
and a cheese steak wrapper,
and two paper cups,
and an empty toilet paper roll
and a chocolate bar wrapper
and a used tampon dispenser
and
and
and
and…
-R.E. Brown
Swellco & Swellco 64312b
Tags: american beauty, garbage, r. e. brown, south philadephia, swellco & swellco, trash
