WHERE DOES GUM GO?

Leave a Little Better: The Great Gum Debate

Okay, this week's Leave a Little Better is a little…quirky.

But stick with me. 😂

In my 25 years of living in Ardmore, I have had more than one person confidently tell me what I’m supposed to do with my chewing gum when I’m finished with it. Throw it in the grass. Throw it on the sidewalk. Stick it underneath a desk.

And honestly? For years, I wasn't completely sure what the consensus was.

So I asked ChatGPT.

And apparently, there actually is a correct procedure for disposing of your gum. You wrap it in a little piece of paper and put it in the trash. That's it.

Not the grass. Not the sidewalk. Not underneath the table at a restaurant.

And yes, throwing gum on public property can fall under Oklahoma's littering law. Oklahoma law prohibits deliberately discarding trash, waste, rubbish, refuse, debris or other deleterious substances on public property, and it's a misdemeanor. Gum may be small, but that doesn't make it exempt.

Now, I know what some of you are thinking:

“But Erica, it's just a little piece of gum.”

I know. That's exactly why I think it's a good example.

Leaving things a little better doesn't always mean doing something big. Sometimes it means making one tiny decision that keeps our sidewalks cleaner, keeps our public spaces nicer and keeps someone else from stepping in your gum five minutes later.

And please don't pick up somebody else's gum and eat it. That's not what I'm suggesting.

Although, apparently, Buddy the Elf did exactly that. 😂

So here's this week's reminder: If you're chewing gum, wrap it up and throw it away.

Because leaving things a little better isn't always complicated. Sometimes it's just putting your gum in the trash.

Have a great weekend and let's all leave our little corner of the world just a little better than we found it.