My morning run was supposed to be calm, easy, and relaxing. But when I set out, I forgot it was a Wednesday: Trash Day.
Trash in the city is somehow more revealing than in the suburbs. In the South End it was illegal to have trash cans on the sidewalk so streets were lined with black and white trash bags on trash day. Here in South Boston you'll find trash cans, but more often than not you'll see not only trash bags, but piles of trash outside people's front door.
We don't have as many people going through our trash here, but it still happens. I always recognized the elderly Chinese lady who went through our bags before. She was very organized and punctual. I haven't met the people who go through our trash here yet. I have the feeling there are far fewer people "dumpster" diving here.
So I'm even more annoyed when I see the waste as I run by. A retro chair, three area rugs, two pairs of shoes, a vacuum cleaner, a queen size mattress, box springs, and frame, a TV, a computer monitor. Bags upon bags of recyclables that won't get recycled because they're not in a recycle box (unless, of course, someone picks through the trash before the trash man comes).
Seriously, how hard is it to drop stuff off at the Salvation Army? It's a 10 minute walk from where I was running. And they'll come get the big stuff. I will admit that the city ran out of recycling boxes, but they're $10 at home depot, which is either a 5 minute drive away, a mile walk, or a 10 minute bus ride away. (If people want your recyclables let them pull it out of an open box, otherwise they tear open the bags and the rest of the trash gets all over the side walk).
Maybe people do this everywhere. We just can't see into their trash cans. But here, in the city, where there are so many people condensed in one small spot, all of our sins are clearly visible. The waste of American consumerism can't be missed.
2 comments:
I grit my teeth every time my inlaws tell me they don't recycle "because we don't drink enough soda". Like 3/4 of the rest of their stuff can't be recycled along with the soda cans. Sheesh.
I have been known to put large items out on the curb instead of goodwill/salvation army/etc, because I know that someone will come retrieve them (and the donation places around here are picky...I've seen them sort through donations and crush stuff on the spot at the drop-off places). We had an old coffee table with a broken leg that someone helpfully took out of our trash pile. And the sandbox in our back yard came from down the street on trash day. I've also gotten rid of a few things by using Freecycle--kind of like Craig's List, but you're giving the stuff away.
I know people pick through the trash, and I'm glad they do (I've been known to pick up stuff along the side of the road). It's just that in the city it's SO obvious that there's so much waste going on here. When I walked to the bus today I added a few more items to my mental list, a dresser, another mattress, and a shoe rack for the closet. I hope someone takes them, but chances are that at least half of the stuff will go to the dump.
I guess I shouldn't be too critical of people putting stuff out. It's not like I'd ask people to live with a dirty area rug for the rest of their lives. It's just that this isn't a special trash day. This is EVERY trash day. I never really considered myself particularly thrifty before, but I'm just so shocked about what I see on the streets.
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