I recently went on a trip that had me sitting through the finest in Tacoma traffic. I hear rumors that Tacoma is enjoying a bit of a rebirth of late. Good for them!
I don't see it.
But that is not the point.
The point is, while idling through Seattle's smelly step-sister to the south, I observed five seperate instances of drivers tossing cigarette butts out their car window. I suppose it wouldn't have bothered me so much if it was nothing more than a string of random occurances. But, as it turns out, it is something as common as overcast skies during a Seattle summer.
Somewhere between the invention of the filtered cigarette and 5 minutes ago, an unwritten rule was established that gave smokers carte blanche when it comes to butt disposal.
Smoking at the bus stop? Flick it into the bushes. Smoking in your car? Flick it into the next lane. Smoking outside the bar? Flick it to the curb. Smoking at your buddy's house? Please place butt gently into tattered old Folgers can by the back door and wipe your feet before re-entering.
And just to prove this isn't something I am just making up, here is a little experiment. Go anywhere in downtown Seattle - hell, go downtown in any city. And once you reach Anywhere, USA, look around you. I bet my little brother's milk money that it will take you a mere seconds to find that first used cigarette butt - that seemingly little, innocuous yellow or white cylindar tucked in a crack, corner or crevice. In fact, I bet that image is so common that you never stop to think about how disgusting it is to have entire cities infested with the nicotine keepsakes of so many smokers.
Do all smokers do this? Of course not.
Well, at least I hope not.
Do enough of them do this to make me write a blog about it. You betcha.
Bottomline? It is awful habit. And by that I do not mean smoking. There are other blogs out there, I am sure, that will preach about that little doozie. I am talking about smokers disrespecting everyone around them by throwing their trash around as though it is their right.
It is not.
And it ticks me off.
4 comments:
You know what pisses me off? Seattle cyclists in their little spandex hot pants with the flames run up the sides and their little helmets. They ride around like they own the roads, like it's my problem that I have to slow down to 5 mph until the other lane is clear enough to pass them. I hate cyclists.
Sweatpants? Don't even get me started on those things. Okay, too late, I'm starting:
1) I don't own a pair of sweatpants, never will (sure it happened in the past, but not since I was 12).
2) By wearing sweatpants in public, you're telling the world that you've given up. Flat out. On life, your appearance, whatever. You've had enough, and you're wearing sweats.
(side note: I can't even wear basketball shorts in public. There's something about being incredibly informal/casual, in public, that is very, very wrong to to me)
As for what's pissing me off today... The fact that I dropped my car insurance proof somewhere between my apartment and my car.
And cigs? Well, I've recently stopped smoking (for now)... but how funny is this smoking monkey?
fucking dirty lung.
yeah, sweat pants make people look like they're carrying a load in their pants!
damn, i'm going out to smoke...
This doesn't really piss me off but I've noticed a lot of women here don't shave their legs. Nice suit, hairy legs. Hmmm.
Post a Comment