Trash Talk

 

I may have mentioned a few months ago that we changed garbage companies. 

We did - mostly because the old company’s trucks broke down a lot and we could never be sure they would actually come by on their appointed days.  When they announced a rate increase, we decided enough was enough.

We’ve been pleased with the new service, but there are a few drawbacks.  Their charges can be cheaper because, instead of using a crew riding on the truck’s bumper, their truck picks up the trash with a hydraulic arm – the driver handles the entire process from his seat in the cab. 

They provide garbage cans designed to work with their system, so, if it doesn’t fit in the can, it won’t get picked up.  As bad as that might sound, it hasn’t been a problem.

We have scavengers who patrol our neighborhood looking for scrap metal, or anything else of value.  I have found that I can put anything out by the street, and it will be gone in a heartbeat – old lawn chairs, a rusty gas grill, used appliances - nothing has lasted over 24 hours.

Just before Thanksgiving, the remains of a huge old television appeared in our ditch. (The picture above is from the web.  The actual TV was much bigger and in much worse shape.) 

I don’t know how it got there, and I didn’t know what to do with it.  We used to have one like it – an old RCA with a cathode ray tube the size of a bus – so I knew it was too heavy for me to want to pick up by myself.  I also knew it was too big to fit in the garbage can if I did, and I was sure that it was too broken up to be of any value.

Before I could decide what to do, the problem resolved itself.  When we went out yesterday, the TV was gone.