With the recent high winds, I now have a much better understanding of this recycling lark.

I have recycled my tins and plastic bottles with the lady next door and my papers with the chap five doors down. The little titbits available on page three made his breakfast grapefruit much more appetising.

I think my wheelie bin was recycled with the couple opposite. It decapitated their garden gnome - or was it the elderly gentleman from 93?

It has also done wonders for my outside Christmas decorations. The gyrating Santa Claus and the singing reindeer look extremely festive with their colourful plastic shopping bags from Asda and Tesco.

I am still waiting for the owner of the inflatable plastic sheep to retrieve it. I assume it came from a nativity scene somewhere.

It will be sadly missed because the cat has taken quite a shine to it.

We seem to have come a long way since the Sixties and the Keep Britain Tidy campaign, with all those overflowing green bins cluttering up the place.

-Chris Swain, Brighton