It's when our recycle bin gets emptied - that's the one with the yellow lid, for those who still haven't yet worked out the colour code.

In normal times this is a relatively sedate affair.

Our many friends at JR Richards make their way up Struggle Street - or maybe it's down - we don't really know for we're never awake at that time, emptying the bins. True, the trucks make a bit of noise, but the whole exercise is over pretty quickly.

However, as has been noted all over the world many thousands of times in recent weeks, these are not normal times, what with the COVID-19 restrictions and all.

Pre-COVID-19 our recycle bin was rarely be even half full. Sometimes we didn't even bother wheeling it out.

However, that was before the hotels closed. Who will ever forget that dreadful day?

Y'see contrary to popular belief, this correspondent isn't a big home imbiber. Take Christmas Day and possibly Good Friday out of the equation and we'd be lucky to drink a six pack a year at Struggle Street. We preferred to do our drinking at hotels.

So drinking at home was a religious experience because the pubs are shut on Christmas Day and Good Friday. Whatever we had in the way of stubbies after Yuletide generally lasted until Easter.

But that was then. Now we have to face the reality of hotel closures and drinking at home.

In the past few weeks we've become a regular at various bottle shops around the area. We even shop around to find the best prices - something we'd never consider doing pre-COVID-19. It's the new normal, as people are wont to say.

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Of course this also means that in a reasonably short time we build up a pretty impressive stock of empty bottles, which of course, are consigned to the recycle bin. And that's where the Struggle Street Symphony comes into play.

For the din the stubbies make are they smash into the truck every second Tuesday morning is impressive, bordering on the operatic.

We understand a few culture vultures are starting to gather in Struggle Street just to listen appreciatively to the early morning cachopany. We may even suggest to the Manning Entertainment Centre management that we put on a performance at some time in the future. We're sure that Helen Knight from the MEC would give it a five star rating in her column that features in the Times each Wednesday.

However it looks as though the Struggle Street Symphony's will be over soon. This is a terrible blow for lovers of fine music.

However, this correspondent will overjoyed when we can go back to the pub on June 1.

We're looking forward to hearing the Last Symphony.