The System Works a Little II
Well, a while back I wrote about being up early, watching the snowplows going busily about their business in the frigid darkness, and feeling like the system worked to some extent. I try not to spend a lot of time with people who complain endlessly that everything is screwed up, but I'm aware they're out there. You sit down in a plane, or a bar stool, or go to a business meeting, and people start up. I agree myself that the United States is not a utopia, perhaps, but it's not Somalia, either. The snow gets plowed, right? Somebody got up at three in the morning and filled a thermos with coffee and went out and it was getting taken care of. It felt good simply to appreciate that.
One day before all the snow fell, I had stopped by the borough hall and mentioned to the receptionist that my recycling bin was slowly coming to pieces. It was about half the height it was born at, and would soon lack the capacity to handle the number of liquor bottles I throw out in a week. She said someone would drop a new one off, and scrawled my address on her desk calendar. This seemed alarmingly casual to me—it's how I do things myself, actually, and I don't recommend it as a system to others and it doesn't work that well for me either, really. But I said to myself that I would trust her, and the system. Things mostly work around here, as I say.
But the weeks went by and no recycling bin. I worried that one morning the garbage guy would seize my overflowing bin and send a cascade of bottles to the pavement. The neighbor moved away and left three intact bins on his porch next to me, and I thought of taking one, but decided against it. Those are not my bins. Without rules there is chaos, right? I wasn't upset with the borough—with all the snow, I figured, my small, low-priority problem fell through the cracks. (Not "between" the cracks, folks, OK?) No big deal. I kept meaning to give them a call and remind them about my slowly worsening situation.
But today I looked out on the porch, and there was a brand-new bin. It was a cheerful bright blue, much more fun to look it than the others, which are darker. It was roomy and capacious. I can drink many, many bottles of liquor and not outrun it. And it's mine, officially mine. See? The system does work a little. Thanks, borough folks! I appreciate it. And if you do your job and don't whine and carry on about everything I appreciate you too.
One day before all the snow fell, I had stopped by the borough hall and mentioned to the receptionist that my recycling bin was slowly coming to pieces. It was about half the height it was born at, and would soon lack the capacity to handle the number of liquor bottles I throw out in a week. She said someone would drop a new one off, and scrawled my address on her desk calendar. This seemed alarmingly casual to me—it's how I do things myself, actually, and I don't recommend it as a system to others and it doesn't work that well for me either, really. But I said to myself that I would trust her, and the system. Things mostly work around here, as I say.
But the weeks went by and no recycling bin. I worried that one morning the garbage guy would seize my overflowing bin and send a cascade of bottles to the pavement. The neighbor moved away and left three intact bins on his porch next to me, and I thought of taking one, but decided against it. Those are not my bins. Without rules there is chaos, right? I wasn't upset with the borough—with all the snow, I figured, my small, low-priority problem fell through the cracks. (Not "between" the cracks, folks, OK?) No big deal. I kept meaning to give them a call and remind them about my slowly worsening situation.
But today I looked out on the porch, and there was a brand-new bin. It was a cheerful bright blue, much more fun to look it than the others, which are darker. It was roomy and capacious. I can drink many, many bottles of liquor and not outrun it. And it's mine, officially mine. See? The system does work a little. Thanks, borough folks! I appreciate it. And if you do your job and don't whine and carry on about everything I appreciate you too.
0 TrackBacks
Listed below are links to blogs that reference this entry: The System Works a Little II.
TrackBack URL for this entry: http://blog.mattfreemanwriter.com/cgi-bin/mt/mt-tb.cgi/523
Leave a comment