A woman's long-running romantic quest, which involved sending messages in plastic bottles out to sea, has been sunk after she received an angry response from a litter picker, along with an unexpected £7 fee.
A Romantic Dream Washed Ashore
For years, Lorraine Forbes, 58, from Eastbourne, has been throwing plastic bottles containing letters into the water from Eastbourne pier. Her hope was to make an old-fashioned, romantic connection. While a few of her bottles made it as far as Holland and France, she admits most simply washed up on nearby beaches like Pevensey Bay or Normans Bay.
Although some finders had written back to report the discovery, none of the exchanges blossomed into the romance Lorraine was seeking. Her unconventional search for love, however, recently met a definitive and costly end.
The Costly Wake-Up Call
Lorraine received a parcel in the post that contained one of her own bottles—the message written on the back of a John Lydon gig flyer—along with a box of rocks and a stern note. The anonymous sender, identifying as a rubbish picker, wrote: ‘Please stop throwing rubbish in the sea. It goes to Pevensey Bay or Normans Bay, one day later. Many thanks, a rubbish picker.’
The package was sent with a fee to be paid upon delivery, which cost Lorraine £7. She described this method as particularly ‘nasty’ and called the sender a ‘cowardly litter picker’ for not including their name. ‘If they had I would demand that they give me my £7 back,’ she stated.
An Environmental Reality Check
While critical of the response, Lorraine acknowledged it served as a wake-up call. She has been told off in the past by Eastbourne Harbour officials for her actions and warned about the potential impact on wildlife.
She now fears that environmental health officials could find bottles containing her name and address and take legal action. ‘I probably won’t keep doing it,’ she conceded, signalling that her romantic hobby may finally be over.
This incident stands in stark contrast to the lucky find of a British boy, whose message in a bottle thrown from South Shields, Tyne and Wear in September travelled an astonishing 4,200 miles to St Lucia in the Caribbean.
