a logistical problem- where to put it?

[dreamer]

Yikes, LOL.
So Monday is our garbage and recycle pickup at the curb. We use bins for recycles, and special color coded plastic bags from city for our garbage.
OK fine, I got it all gathered and just took it to the curb. Where I stopped in this frigid ugly weather and scratched my head.

All winter I HAD been digging out a spot beside the road to put the recycle bin and garbage. EXCEPT now that it has all drifted into 5,6, 10 ft tall drifts, and now frozen rock solid........
I do not know where to put my bin and garbage! I dare not wait till morning becuz sometimes one or the other comes as early as 5 am....sometimes one or the other does not come until as late as 6 pm. (we are a "leftover" garbage AND mail route, and whoever finishes their regular route then gets sent to do us)

The wind will for sure blow the recycle bin (and illegally scatter our cans, bottles etc all over the block) if I am not careful where I put it.....the garbage bags will definetly slide off the mountains down into the street- which is NOT allowed, of course. and I HAVE to have it out cuz I need the bin for refilling, LOL, if it is full to begin the week, I will have nowhere to put the upcoming weeks recycles.

I looked up and down my block to see what my neighbors did....but, they have not yet done theirs.

Well, the only idea I came up with was to put it in my driveway.....hope they see it and stop, hope they get it EARLY before we have to head out. Hope no more snow falls, and for a change, if snow DOES fall tonite, I am hoping for a change that the snowplow does not come thru before garbage people and bury my bin and garbage so they do not take it.
(I doubt that will be a problem, they did not come at all since the last big snow the other day becuz they are out of salt, so decided not to plow, either?)

Yeesh, this weather is just creating ALL kinds of strange dilemmas. LOL

and- easy child is STILL sick, now going on 2 weeks, and finally relented to going to dr. YAY! (Only the snow days prevented her from haveing no choice but to go sooner, becuz the snow days fell just right that while she has missed 2 weeks of school, she was buffered to have the snow days fall such that school did not have any 3 consecutive days in a row, to require a dr note) I think it is just a cold that is hanging on tight, not sure what the doctor can do about it.but school will require it, now.

And now that we have had such lovely confint all of us packed into our small house with so little school etc...we are FINALLY at each others throats. <sigh> I guess thats to be expected when you smush 5 people, one PTSD/schizo/etc with a bipolar/panic attack/etc etc etc 2 teen girls one pre teen boy, one teen boy (PCs boyfriend) all in 900 sq foot for so long.

I AM READY FOR SPRING!!!! (I will settle for slightly warmer weather and slightly better road conditions)

 

[Big Bad Kitty]

That is a dilemma. Well actually it is a PITA.

Well we are due for snow tomorrow night but not tonight. Also the wind is supposed to die down tonight. I hope that helps in your decision.

Yikes.

 

[Hound dog]

dreamer

I wouldn't worry about it. Sounds like you came up with a good solution to as BBK said a major PITA problem.

Odds are the garbage men are having to look for customer's garbage a bit more with all the snow and such.

I know ours have always seemed to have found it when we were under alot of snow or ice.

Hugs

 

[dreamer]

I think I feel sorry for the garbage men....haveing to try to gather the garbage in this mess. LOL.
I only had to try to figure it out this one day (altho I imagine next week it will still be the same, I see no warmth in the week ahead) but they have to figure out what all of us have done.

 

[Marcie Mac]

How funny the different garbage collecting rules. If we dared put a "bag" of garbage out, no one would pick it up, and more than likely we would get a terse little note from the collectors outlining why. If you have more garbage than bin, ya gotta hold the garbage for the next week, or pay 60.00 for an extra bin, cause you just can't have any bin, you have to have one of theirs.

We have three 30 gallon bins - black (regular trash), dark grey (paper, boxes, cans) and dark green (lawn stuff). They actually have someone who comes around and looks in the bin to make sure you have the right stuff in the right color. If you have lawn clippins in the grey bin, they will leave you a note and will NOT pick up your garbage till you have placed it in the right one. And you can get fined if you are caught picking cans out of someone elses bins. And they will also not pick up your garbage unless your bins are two feet apart from each other, on the street, and not the curb, facing out, and they have to be out there by 5:00 A.M.

I always have to take a flashlight out to the side of the house when I go to empty my garbage -for some reason we only take the garbage out at night because one of the boys seem to always put the bins in the wrong order, and they all seem the same color in the dark.

So now the boys have cleaned out their rooms this weekend, and I have three bags of garbage sitting in the garage that I now have to load in the truck so I can take it to work and empty it in the commercial bin cause my bins are full. No wonder we always seem to have mice in the garage..

Am thankful it doesn't snow here cause I can only imagine what big production we would have to go thru with the garbage.

marcie

 

[dreamer]

we have to buy our bags from the city. They cannot weigh more than 50 pounds, hold approx 2 standard kitchen sized garbage bags in them, they must be tied closed, and they cost $2 each (and some odd cents, they just went up) They are bright blue.
Our recycles go into a blue bin we get from the city for $8. Many years ago we used to have to use brown paper grocery bags to seperate each type of recycle, but now we just put it all in the bin.
Our yard waste must go in either a big special brown bag or a 30 gal can with a bright orange sticker we purchase from city hall for $3. This is for leaves, grass clippings, sticks, but sticks cannot be more than 4 ft long, nor more than half an inch diameter, and yard waste cannot weigh more than 50 pounds no matter if it is in a can or brownn bag. If you are found to have yard waste in your houssehold garbage, it is a $500 fine. ANd yes, they do periodic checks. For anythiing that does not fit into the bags, or for anything that weighs more than 50 pounds, you have to call a collector and make your own special arrangements.
People got caught useing the dumpsters at apartment buildings and behind business so now they have instituted heavy fines if you are caught taking your garbage elsewhere unless you own the building with the dumpster. Those fines start at $500
In October they have curbside leaf collection, we rake our leaves to the curb- they must NOT be on the street, and twice thru October a giant truck comes and s u c k s leaves from the curbs. The schedule for when each street should have the service is printed in the newspaper. There is a $10 charge on our water bill whether we use the service or not. No burning of any kind is allowed in the city or the county. None. Not due to fire risk, but to asthmatics etc. Fines for fires begin at $500, too.

 

[DammitJanet]

Ahhh the joys of living in the country!

Just recently some company decided to put our road on its trash collection map but they only pick up on the main road and you get ONE of those big trash cans. I think they come by twice a week. Needless to say we didnt sign up. Number one, to take the bin to the road would be walking about an eighth of a mile down a dirt driveway. Number two, I have more trash than that!

Now we could haul our trash to the dumpsters that are about 5 or so miles away but in reality we have a hole that we burn in. If I could get pick up at the house I would do it but its not possible so this is the easiest thing for us to do. I cant be hauling 7 or 8 huge garbage bags around every week.

 

[Marcie Mac]

I guess I have nothing to complain about - 2.00 a BAG? How many bags does one go thru a month? If you have a big family, that could run into some money..jeeze

We were supplied with little containers for recycling a few years ago before they changed into bins. The garbage company had a fit because they realized people were taking their neighbors cans to recycle. It was mostly elderly people taking them to supplement their income and the garbage company had a fit that they were stealing THEIR money they got from recycling. We pay a recycling fee when we buy any soft drinks in a bottle of 5 cents each bottle, and if it is a large bottle, or glass, its 10 cents. You can get all of it back if you go to a large recycling center, or half of it if you go to the recycling kiosk at the grocery store (other half goes to charity). So all that the garbage company gets from our house is paper and boxes.

Am not certain if there is a fine or not for dumping my garbage into the containers at work - probably is - but then again, I do pay a portion for the garbage pickup three times a week. Better that than letting my garbage pile up in the garage trying to play catch up with the bin cause its a toss up whether the dogs will get to it or the mouse/mice.

We also can call twice a year if we have any big junk, or furniture, and they will come and pick it up for free. We also have an ewaste center where they will come by, and I think once a year, we have a hazardous waste, oil, paint and the like and we just load the truck and do a drive thru whereever they decide it will be that day.

Its interesting to see how garbage is handled elsewhere. We really don't have the problems with the leaves - so few trees here shed them, the the ones that do end up being taken out by the homeowners (like myself LOL) to be replaced with non leaf dropping varieties.

Marcie

 

[Hound dog]

dreamer

Just saw our forcast. We may be having our own problems with trash tonight. Snow, then freezing rain if it warms up enough. Supposed to be a nasty storm coming.

Maybe I'll get it down there before it starts.

 

[flutterbee]

We have one large city-issue garbage can and then recycling bins. They were free and they even delivered the recycling bins to the house. All of the garbage has to fit in the can or you have to buy these tags from the city at about $3.00 each to tie on the bags or they won't pick them up. We only get bulk pickup if you move into a new residence and you have to schedule it within a month of your move in date. They will pickup anything you put out on your first pickup after Christmas. We use brown bags for yard waste, but I don't know the particulars. My last house was in a new subdivision that had been a field so no mature tress which meant no yard waste.

We can have it down anywhere near the street/curb. Our neighbors actually put theirs in the street and I put mine on the sidewalk. I'm thinking they don't like that because they always put the empty can right smack in the middle of the driveway. LOL Too bad. It's a narrow street and I have a narrow drive. If I put it in the street, I'd knock it over backing out.

 

[Wiped Out]

Dreamer,
I can understand how you feel. We have a huge garbage container and a recyclable one too. They are the same size but different colors. They are supposed to be put 4 feet from each other-with all of this snow it's impossible.

 

[dreamer]

OK so we do NOT get a garbage BILL- becuz we buy the bags, and THAT is our "garbage bill" So thats good. Kind of. and we can put as many bags out as we want to. we no longer get take out food, LOL- at least if we do we do NOT bring it home, LOL. too expensive to get rid of!
It is a problem if we have something like a broken box fan? does not fit in garbage bags, is not recycleable-----and costs extra, we have NO "free" or "special" garbage times here at all, ever.
I should clarify, when we first moved here, recycling was free, and it was mandatory. the bin was $8.....but gradually so many bins blew away or broke, and as they began to accept more things for recycling, they were not big enough for some families, and now you can still buy a bin to use, but you can also put your recycles in......a laundry basket......a storage bin.....brown grocery bag......
Occasionally people do come take cans out of other peoples recycle bins.....and it has been ruled here it is NOT a crime.....not at all.....the nearest can recycle facility is not close by......we do not pay extra here for glass.....and paper is hard to find someone who will take it....they also pick up plastic here, many types, and cardboard, like from cereal boxes and or corrogated, now etc.....and magazines etc, too.....all at our curb, - if you put it in the recycle bin, it is fair game for anyone who might decide they want to take it in themself. So we do not pay for them to take our recycles, and unless we drive it somewhere ourself we do not get paid for it-----BUT incentive to recycle is strong, becuz that is one way you can reduce how many garbage bags you have to buy. we try hard to be careful what we purchase, and how it is packaged etc to help reduce our need for those garbage bags....BUT - it is not always easy.....and sad to say, it is a problem, when you have something bulky....that maybe does not weigh a lot, but will not fit in a bag........and horrible, but, we tend to resent the cost so much, we end up saving a bunch of stupid things in our poor garage.......
scratching our heads trying to figure out what to do with it. and charity? I dunno------maybe it is similar everywhere? Here most places have begun to only accept new unused items for donation, I CAN understand why- some people tended to give them things that were really in horrid shape and then the charities were stuck with huge dispoasal bills.........
and garage sales? well, thats a whole nother story. We are allowed 2 per 12 months...and must buy a permit, and cannot post signs, only an ad in newspaper (that we of course must pay for) AND last time I had a garage sale.....turns out if you have a neighbor that complains about the extra traffic or noise on your street becuz of the garage sale? They CAN demand you close!!!!!!!!! (and if you did not go get your permit, it is a huge fine)

Can you guess what is occuring in my county? People are tossing things out of car windows all over to the farmers fields etc. <sigh>
PLUS you also have to be careful what IS in your yard......you may NOT have anything that COULD be considered garbage or trash visible. anything set to the curb MUST be GONE within 24 hours of you putting it to curb......eveen like your old broken hot water heater- so if you call and arrange for special pickup and they fail to show up when they say they will? You have to sometimes drag it back in.

Oh and if a raccoon or something gets at your city garbage bag, or if it is not tied shut------or if it rips? (we got a bad batch once that was flimsey) they will NOT take it.

Our garbage men are not bad, they put my bin back right where I left it.....altho they sometimes do not look when they empty it and sometimes not everything comes out of it and they leave it here with things still inside.
And, I do not know about other places, but, our garbage men now work one man per truck, alone, he drives, parks, gets out, throws our garbgae into his truck, gets back in and drives to next house. It used to be 2 men, one drove and one grabbed the garbage, but not anymore.

I have been worrying that if he is in a hurry or something, he might not get the gear shift into "park" and his truck might roll, cuz our houses are very close together and there he is hopping in and out like that and then walking around his truck to our curb? (cuz the steering wheel etc is not on curb side of truck, ya know?)


OK so, this is not a typcal conversation everyone has over coffee with friends, BUT, LOL, it IS interesting to hear how different it can be town to town, state to state - country to country, LOL!

Some weeks we have barely enough to fill one city bag.......and on very rare occasions, if it is VERY cold and I do not have enough to fill one bag, I sometimes hold it till the next week.......
other times, like if I am doing a major project? we have had as many as 15-20 bags out for one week. And over the last 20 years in this house, there have been 2-3 times when the garbage man did not SEE our bag, not sure why......and skipped over us. Usually we have 1 bag or 2. And I have pushed my kids hard to recycle......and to squish all garbage tiny........and this has been how they have done our garbage our whole 20 years here- my kids whole life, so- thankfully my kids did not have to LEARN it.it is how they grew up.

I do not compost much.....in town, small yard, close to neighbors.....and I leave grass clipping on the lawn.......I put eggshells and coffee grounds and such in garbage disposal mostly.......feed peels to our bunny........LOL.

I do hafta comment, getting our 3 kittens last year? Their litterboxes DID make a noticeable difference in our garbage output.......LOL. And I experimented with different types of cat litter becuz of the garbage issues. LOL. ANd then I found THAT kinda funny/weird- to decide what litter to use becuz of garbage? LOL. --see, cats are not permitted to be outside in my town, either---a rural town, but cats cannot be outside......
Thats yet another huge huge fine.

 

[Marguerite]

Do you have a battery-powered hair dryer? You could use this to sculpt a bin-holding area. Or if it's way beyond hair dryer capability, what about a chain saw? You never know, you could end up with an alternative carer of ice sculptor.

Our garbage collection is paid for by our local council rates. They supply the bins but we have to pay for replacements. The bigger bins are supposed to be better at keeping dogs out of the rubbish. But while everywhere else has only the dog problem, we have a DEER problem. These critturs were released here 150 years ago (Rusa red deer from Java) so the early gentry of the colony could 'ride to hounds'. The idiots also released foxes and rabbits. While the last two have spread around the country, the deer are mostly in our part of Sydney, and south in the bushland along the coastline.

And the beggars get into our rubbish. The council were telling us it was people's dogs that were the problem, but we kept saying, "Dogs wouldn't knock over the bins to eat the vegetable scraps and leave the packet of rancid hamburger." They just didn't believe that the problem was that bad. And unless you live here, you don't see it. If we have visitors staying with us overnight, we can just about guarantee them seeing a large herd of deer roaming the village streets. Even right into the heart of the village, outside the shops.

So for years more, it continued. Every flippin' night, we'd hear CRASH! and the bins would be over, contents spread everywhere and as we dashed out to fix it up, we'd hear the clatter of hooves as thirty or more head of deer run down the road, like a gang of teenage vandals after they've shoved a lit pipe bomb in the letterbox.
And they're smart, and work in teams. Several will bang their antlers against a bin - whump, whump, whump - until it goes over. Then they will all rip into the bins, drag out bags and nose around to find the vegetable scraps.

The garbo pick up is supposed to be before sunrise, often 5 am. Then the council finally agreed - the garbos would come round after 7 am. We could keep our bins locked behind fences or tied down with ocky straps until we left for work, then put the bins out. The deer only come into the town after dark; during the day they 'go bush'.

Works fine. Except for Christmas Day and New Year - the garbs came round at 4 am. We DID get a note about it - it arrived several days AFTER Christmas. And no note abut New Year, so at the time of the year when we have most garbage, we got a useless service. And the deer got lucky.

Venison, anyone? Or barbecued councillor?

Marg

 

[Marcie Mac]

I remember when I was small, and living in PA we had two metal drums for our garbage, and there would be two garbage men who came put down two HUGH pieces of gunny sack material picked up the drums, empty it in the middle, then tie the ends and hoist it over their shoulders - what grueling work - those poor guys were always held over us as an example as to what our jobs would be if we didn't do well in school. Fast forward to today, and my kids should be so lucky to land a job as the trash person - they make a LOT of money, and never so much as get dirty.

Our garbage man NEVER gets out of his truck - trucks have automatic arm thingies that come out grab the bin lifts and dumps. Any "bags" will sit there till the cows come home (with a note saying sorry, if its not in the bin...LOL)

My bill for the garbage pick up is around 60.00 every three months, so thats about 10.00 per month which is fair I think. With recycling our own bottle and cans at the local center where you only get half of the crv, three large bags will get us about 20.00. The bags just stay in the garage and the boys use them as piggy banks, when they are short of money, they just grab a few bags and off they go.

Well, I just remembered it was Tuesday, and I didn't see the green bin by the curb, so I am off to take it down to the street. Marge, that was a good story about the deer - there are actually some in the hills up the road, but the only wild life we have here in the flats are possums and skunks - probably just as well cause I know myself and I would be putting out stuff for the deer to eat

Marcie

 

[dreamer]

Marg, oh my, thats a LOT of deer! We do not get more than 2 together at a time in our yards here, thank goodness! We do get lots of raccoons, and YIKES darn things got in my attic two different sessions worth, one time were so difficult to get rid of and caused tens of thousands of dollars damage to wireing, cables, insulation, - fell thru ceiling- ate rafters etc- just awful.

I do not think any blow dryer would be effective against the snow mess....a chain saw mihgt, but I have never used a chain saw and there is nowhere to get solid footing, everything is ice, and the mound of snow is at least 7-8 feet tall, pyramidish shaped- sounds quite dangerous.
My sons friends dad is a garbage truck driver, and yes, they make a very nice living......my dad was one but way way long ago- 45 years ago. It was heavier dirtier work then. BUT he made good money then, too, doing it. My brother lays blacktop- drives a tractor moving dirt working on OHare expansion Project, and makes twice what I made as a nurse, easy, maybe 3 times what I made- simply driving his tractor in circles all day- and his cab is air conditioned, heated and has an awesome stereo and phone in it. LOL.