Realizing the international nature of the blog-o-sphere, I’m sheepish (‘Baaa!!!’) to admit that we U.S.-ians create a lot of trash…no, I’m not talking about our ideas or music or literature or whatever…but I can easily see how you thought so. I’m referring to actual garbage to be hauled away.
In my town, there is a limited amount and size that they (you know – – – “they”) will haul away each week. But, once a year, there is a bulk trash day where you can get rid of the bigger stuff. The street sides become lined with tables with 3-and-a-half legs, vacuum cleaners that have sucked their last, seatless chairs, and much more.
Over the years of this event, I have noticed a ritual also occurring on the days prior to the pickup. The streets become patrolled by slow moving trucks driven by, what appear to be, denizens of the very trailer parks our dear daisyfae escaped from. The trucks are battered, dirty, and emit foul odors – – much like the drivers themselves. It’s like Christmas for them!
This year, I hauled out a 20 year old fireplace rack and a broken heater. I returned to the garage for my next load of bulk trash, only to come back out to find both items already gone–claimed as a prized treasure by one of these trailer park entrepreneurs. Leaving a non-functional coffee pot and corroded rice cooker out next, I took station at a window to see how long they would last…about 5 minutes, with one seeker who drove by sneering at my paltry offering.
In all honesty, I feel good that something I could no longer use will find its way to a loving home…or trailer…where it might find a useful second life of (likely duct tape-bolstered) productivity.
Would that we all have that same opportunity of second chances in life.
The Wilds of Ohio 