NEED TO KNOW
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A U.K. woman says she received a “nasty” response to her message in a bottle
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The 58-year-old, who says she’s just looking for “a bit of romance,” called the anonymous reply “cowardly”
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The woman, who has been sending the messages for years, says she now has second thoughts about continuing the ritual
A U.K. woman who regularly sends out messages in bottles says she received a “nasty” response to one of her letters.
Lorraine Forbes, 58, of East Sussex says she has been tossing messages in bottles into local waters for years in the hopes of finding a romantic connection, according to KPVI 6, per SWNS. And while she has received replies here and there, she said a recent response took her by surprise.
Forbes told the outlet that she received a box of rocks along with an angry note that read: “Please stop throwing rubbish in the sea. It goes to Pevensey Bay or Normans Bay one day later. Many thanks, a rubbish picker.”
Tony Kershaw / SWNS
Lorraine Forbes
Forbes went on to say that the parcel cost about $9.20 to receive, which added insult to injury.
“I have been sending the letters for years. Whoever writes back to me rarely want to meet me, they just tell me where they found them,’ she explained, noting that she has received responses from as far away as France and Holland.
“I just wanted a bit of romance. It has always been a hobby of mine. It is an old-fashioned thing,” she added.
Isobel Williams / SWNS
Lorraine Forbes
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Forbes — who uses plastic bottles instead of glass in order to prevent them from breaking — said she thought the reply was “cowardly” as the person did not provide their name or return address.
If they had, she says she would have demanded her $9.20 back.
Forbes said this isn’t the first time she has been reprimanded for her bottled messages — which she sometimes drops into the water in bulk.
“Eastbourne Harbor have told me off before for throwing the bottles into the water, they keep trying to stop me,” she said.
Forbes added, “I probably won’t keep doing it. This has made me realize that [the] Environmental Health [Service] could find my letters with my name and address and I might get in legal trouble.”
It is technically illegal to throw waste or trash into bodies of water in England and Wales, per the Sussex Police. Authorities in West Sussex recently implemented littering fines of approximately $99 per incident, according to the BBC.
Read the original article on People
