Trash Talk

     The newspaper had a lot of trash in it.  Sometimes that seems to be the norm, but this was real trash, aka, garbage.  

     On the other side of the earth, people were rioting in the streets because their government had shut down the landfill and the trash was piling high in the streets.  They were mad as fire and wanted something done about the situation.  I felt their pain.  A couple of weeks ago, the new driver for our trash pick up missed our house.  

     I kept trying to figure out if there had been some sort of holiday that I had missed out on, that would throw the pick up schedule off.  I checked the calendar and discovered no new holiday had been created, at least not one that would warrant a day off for the collectors of garbage.  These collectors are a dedicated bunch and rarely get many holidays.   I decided not to worry about it.  The new trash receptacles are very large and since this household of two does not create a lot of trash in a week, it would be OK.

     The next week rolled around and still no trash truck in sight.  I began to panic.  Not quite like the people on the other side of the earth, but there was no way we could go another seven days.  I jumped in the car and instantly turned into the little old lady running down the garbage truck.  When I caught up with him and explained my plight, he smiled and assured me he had just picked it up.  I thanked him and sheepishly returned to our dwelling, sure enough, I had just missed him.

     The other trash talk was about people who make a living, or part time income, dumpster diving.  They said it was not a job for the weak of heart, or for anyone who had a germ phobia.  I had to agree because I knew what two weeks worth of trash smelled like.  

     These people talked about all the treasures that others throw out.  They would gather things like TVs, VCRs and other electronic throw aways and either repair them for resale or scrap them for recyclable metals, even gold.  Some of the people gathered food that was thrown out because it was a day over the expiration date, and rarely had to buy groceries.  What's for supper?Dumpster Caesar Salad! 

     Recently, having made the decision to downsize, I had a garage sale.  As I strategically placed years of accumulated items on the tables, I began to wonder if I had some kind of syndrome that has yet to be named.  It seemed I had two of everything that I thought, at the time of purchase, must have been really special.  At one point in my life I had an attachment to fish.....and dishes.  Not just fish and dishes, but fish shaped dishes.  There, on the table, set  my beautiful cobalt blue, fish shaped, plastic dishes.  I had three sizes and two of each size.  Next to them were the brightly rainbow colored plastic fish shaped trays......I had four of them.

     Having come to the realization that it is nearly impossible to get rid of thirty plus years of stuff at one time, there will have to be another garage sale.  Having also come to the conclusion that not everything will sell, I foresee Dumpster Caesar Salad in a cobalt blue, fish shaped, plastic dish.