Unfiltered Story #103638

Suggested title: “Can” you believe this?

Tags: middle school, crazy requests

(In seventh grade, I was on the student council at my middle school. One of the student council’s duties was to empty the recycling bins around campus. These bins were labeled “water bottles only” in an effort to discourage people from putting non-recyclables inside. One day, i was walking back from a student council meeting with my friend while the student council president emptied bins. “President” was only a title; she had no special privileges or the ability to boss people around. However, she was very rude and bossy despite this. I had finished drinking a juice drink in a metal can and decided to recycle the can as she walked by:)
Me: *throws can into recycling*
President: Hey! What are you doing?
Me: recycling this can?
President: this sign says water bottles only! Is that a water bottle?
Me: no, it’s a recyclable metal can. It says “please recycle” on the side.
President: Well, this sign says you can’t recycle it!
Me: the big cans over there accept metal cans! *points to big cans where recycling bins are emptied into, that accept metal and plastic*
President: THEN TAKE IT OVER THERE!
Me: NOT WHEN YOU’RE ALREADY GOING THERE! IT IS ALL GOING TO LITERALLY THE SAME PLACE!
(This shouting match lasted a few minutes, and mainly consisted of me saying “it’s just a can!” and [President] saying something like, “NO I CAN’T TAKE IT!” Eventually my friend, who had been watching this the whole time:)
Friend: Come on, [my name], it doesn’t matter. Let’s go.
(I left, still angry about the can. I don’t quite remember, but I think it got recycled.)