Thou Shalt Not.... But Come On. Not Even These?

I have a guilty confession. I think. It may not be much of a confession at all. 

Every day, I walk The Last Dog I'll Ever Own. We cover two-and-a-half miles or more, while he carries a backpack that holds sand-filled bottles (it doubles his workout). Bingley also gets a walk before dinner. He must work for his food, Cesar-Millan-Dog-Whisperer style. Presumably, this makes him less of a jerk (Cesar would say "balanced"). I shudder to think how much MORE of a jerk he would be without so much exercise. But I digress.

On Thursdays, our local free papers are delivered -- The Beach Reporter and Easy Reader. They're tossed out of a moving car onto just about every driveway on our route, often loosely nestled in a plastic sleeve.

Now, here in Southern California, we're in the middle of a drought. It hardly ever rains. The biggest threats to these papers are getting backed over by cars or soaked by sprinklers.

These bags are the perfect size to pick up dog poop. I'm not one of those people who shells out unnecessary money for my pets. Like, say, for vet visits. Okay, I'm mostly kidding about that. But not really. I usually take Bingley to pet store vaccination clinics rather than fork over $65 just to walk into a vet's office. So, naturally, I don't have one of those cute little dispensers of deodorant dog waste-disposal bags with playful little paw-prints on them, which conveniently clips onto your designer leash. I generally use empty grocery or produce bags. Heck, even to this day, I use the cheap-o leash we got from the shelter when we adopted Bingley six or seven years ago. I'm frugal.

Oh, and did I mention that The Last Dog I'll Ever Own twerks when he poops? I NEVER see a human being twerking without imagining Bingley, humping away on the sidewalk, while poop literally flies out of his butt. But again, I digress...

In this era of re-usable grocery bags, we have far fewer plastic bags saved up. And on average, Bingley poops twice a day.  So, on Thursdays, I spend a portion of my walk collecting the plastic sleeves that hold these free papers.

So here’s the question.... am I stealing? I mean, does anyone else actually use them? I always make sure to place the newly-naked papers where they are in little danger from cars or the elements. And I don't take bags from driveways that are littered with several weeks' worth of sad, uncollected papers. Surely the residents won’t miss these bags...?

Or will they? Do they come out and wonder why, oh why, they never get a wrapped paper? 

When something I do begins to prick my conscience, I usually stop doing it. Years ago, I stopped sharing or accepting home-burned music CDs – except among my immediate family. I pretty much try to live my life as though God is watching -- because He is. As a follower of Christ, I mostly listen to that little voice in the back of my head when it pipes up, rather than ignoring it or rationalizing away my behavior.

But is this actually stealing? The bags certainly don't belong to me. I haven't asked permission to take them. And here's the biggest thing -- I never take one when I see someone watching me. So... I guess I have my answer...? Or do I? Still conflicted... but if I take a bag from your driveway one morning and you run out and yell at me, I'll be mortified. Until I run out of bags.