Playground (of) Filth

Brought the kids to a playground in the next block of flats, and was (un)surprised at the filthy surrounds. The side effects of public housing is the fact that some inhabitants treat the public space as a dump - the tubular structure in the photo had burnt plastic (from people extinguishing their cigarettes inside the tubes) and bunched up used tissue paper in the trunks. They also boasted graffiti from a wayward spray painter. Welcome to the heartland playground.

While I've consistently brushed off these side effects, the point hit home when my kid asked me what 'F**k' meant - thanks to the spray artist's ability to write legibly. I had to evade the issue. Now I'm reconsidering bringing them there again, and even contemplating writing to the local council to complain about the filth - both physical and verbal.