When do you stop fighting?

I recently took one of those fun quizzes. You know the sort what kind of animal, fairytale, book etc. would you be? This one was Which Classical novel are you? I got the adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Roughly the characteristics are the young at heart adventurer and have a great sense of injustice and can't keep mouth shut when you see some.

Normally these quizzes I take with a pinch of salt but this one was surprisingly accurate. It made me stop and think. I have been fighting injustice in some form or other most of my life to the point I am being to feel like it is a Flaw not a blessing in my character.  I don't mean marching to Downing Street or picketing or chaining myself to iron railings. I mean on the smaller everyday scale.

Many a time there has been a knock on my door from somebody asking for help. Generally it involves writing letters or making phone calls to some bureaucratic body or other. On other occasions it has been a more active stance.

These have included a walk out with co-workers when a boss was being particularly obnoxious and taking the Michael by making sure we were short staffed and then go off drinking. Adding insult to injury he then decided to come back and sit drinking at a nearby table and laugh whilst we struggled. I could write an essay on him so best leave it at that and only say he tried to force me out by cutting my hours from nearly full time down to three hours.

Another large fight was getting our estate cleaned up. This was a two part fight over a long period of time. One element was getting the green areas sorted. Now some people might not think that particularly an important thing. However this was becoming a real problem. On the one hand the over grown trees made it difficult to get a clear view of neighbours properties. Now this wasn't nosiness but a crime prevention issue. We had a crime problem at the time and we had a few break ins.

Fortunately I had not been burgled though somebody had been messing with my lock which I had to have replaced. The main problems were with people generally the elderly and infirm. They tended to be housed downstairs with easy access through the windows. Also it was getting to the time of year when people went away on holiday. An empty home is an easy target hence the need for a clear view.

The other major problem was the overgrowth of bushes onto paths. These bushes were the ones that had thorns and used to catch people as they passed. If you were walking slowly it wasn't too bad as you could turn sideways to avoid them. However if you were in a wheelchair,electric buggy or were pushing a pram you were really in danger of getting quite badly scratched.

After endless empty promises of we will look into it or it will be done soon after a couple of years waiting I got restless. Those that know me personally will know that as a rule I am the sort of person that plays by the rules. I wrote letters made phone calls and attended meetings both on my own and at community groups. I have even been to town meetings on some occasions.

Therefore I felt that after doing all that by the book and following all the civilised procedures and getting nowhere direct action was needed. Now some of you still might  think that I am over-exaggerating the problem. Well believe me you are wrong and I can prove it. The final straw came when I discover a weed that was taller than I am. I'm serious. Well that was it. I dug up the giant weed and with an assortment of other weeds and overgrown foliage I took it to the town hall. Making sure this wasn't going to be overlooked I popped into the local papers on the way. Believe it or not the picture below is the one of the smaller weed.

Another issue that I had to deal with regarding the estate is rubbish around and about. At that time we had recycling bins at the top of the street which they never seemed to bother emptying. We also have a walk way which includes sitting and bins. These bins however did not have bottoms in due to weather, age and hot items like cigarettes. Consequently if somebody did bother to put their rubbish in the bin provided rather than throw it into the bushes behind them it eventually came out the bottom.

Needless to say that whenever the wind blew and since we the estate is designed like a wind corridor was nearly every day rubbish blew everywhere. Again we had tried all the usual channels but to no avail.  A neighbour a lady in her early 80's and I spent the weekend going around picking up all the litter. On the Monday I opened the curtains and the place was covered again as if it hadn't been touched. I saw RED. I grabbed a bin liner and ran around picking up all sorts of rubbish from kebab meat to plastic bottles and cigarette butts to dog faeces. I dumped everything again at the town hall after chatting to the local papers of course and awaited the result.

Again the power of the press worked its magic. Unbelievably we had 8 people around the following morning cleaning up. The area looked quite pristine. Indeed within a short space of time we acquired new bins. These came with the added luxury of actually having bottoms without holes in. I felt quite spoilt. We do still have a problem with rubbish but with new bins and the removal of the recycling bins to a more suitable place it is tolerable.

Those are some of the problems I have fought for the good of the community as a whole. Now my mind is focussed more on a more immediate area. Now this might be a bit absurd but I am having a problem with my dustbin. The problem is it is conspicuous by its absence.  Now I know this is going to sound like teaching a granny to suck eggs but I would have thought that after taking a bin away you should bring it back. I know I know it is a bit unreasonable but there you have it.

The first time it happened I thought it was some sort of mistake. I assumed they had left it next door or something. When I couldn't find it I reported it gone. I was told it might have fallen into the machine; apparently this sometimes happens. They duly replace it the following week. Then believe it or not it went again.

Here is the list

Bin reported missing 27/3/14

Bin replaced 4/4/2014

Bin reported missing 24/4/14

Bin replaced 28/4/2014

Bin reported missing 15/5/14

I got a letter on the 15^th of May saying it would be looked into and a new bin ordered. I waited and waited but no bin. I rang up very cross to be informed that a bin had been delivered on the 22/5/14. Well mates it didn't come here.

The supervisor 'John Brickles' Erewash Borough Council hasn't bothered to contact me despite apparent promises to do so.  I have never actually managed to speak to him direct as the department never seems to have anybody in it that is able to answer a phone. I naturally left messages but he  doesn't answer messages on his machine either. So all my complaints are being fielded by the ladies manning the switchboard. Apparently the latest thing is that he was to come around and meet me and is going to ring for an appointment. Surprise Surprise no phone call.

I spotted a bin man today and asked if his boss was around but apparently he is busy on another area. The bin man who was very nice and I noticed actually picked up litter when he dropped it said that he had been transferred back to this area after 6 months on another round. It appears that the ones collecting around here are all newbies. Thanks Mr Bin-man that's more information from you in five minutes than I have had in 3 months from 'John Brickles' Erewash Council.

So yet again I am without a bin well when I say I am without a bin I mean we since my next door neighbour shares mine. Once again you have 3 households sharing one small bin which as you know is now only collected once a fortnight. Apart from the general inconvenience  of it all as we are now approaching summer it is becoming a hygiene risk.  Do I seriously have to put rubbish in a bag and go to the town hall (after chatting to the papers of course) again?

All this stress of the stupidest of things makes it very draining on what little energy I had. Maybe it is time to stop fighting.  Unless it is directly connected to myself I cannot cope. Indeed often I can't cope then. I am sorry folks if you want me to do stuff then it is a maybe not a definite. I set out this year with the objective that I am not going to do stuff because I feel obliged to but because I want to. It is six months now since I made that resolution and I am sticking to it. I am not going to chase around after people. I am tired of fighting.

Photographs from the Long Eaton Trader and Advertiser. Due to the age of the pictures not sure from which.