One Man’s Trash…:
I grew up with regular trips to the dump. You know, that huge smelly place where people take truck loads of rubbish to a dropping off point. You pay for the privilege of discarding things no longer worth anything to you. In fact, after some clean-ups, especially after storms, there were days we made several trips.
I always wanted to go.
Yes! It was smelly. Putrifying waste piling up on top of decomposing heaps of discards from days, weeks, months…and even years that have gone by. You would drive on top of garbage that had been compacted by bulldozers and loads of soil. Seagulls seemed to inhabit the dump. There must have been just enough food stuff to draw the thousands of birds, sort of reminiscent of Alfred Hitchcock’s, “The Birds”.
And the steady line of homes bringing their refuse seems never ending. Some folks I know, this is the only way to get rid of their personal refuse. There is no pickup in their area so they store it up and make a dump run… I’ve done it in the villages of Alaska. Only, there, you have to watch out for rummaging bears!
Some dump yards are reclaiming the methane and using it for energy. Probably the wisest thing to do, but at the same time, I always expect that in a far off future, these fields may be mined for chemicals, minerals and other goodies that can be turned into profit. Or, an archeologist will drool for the chance to unearth the past and study our refuse.
Yesterday I made a dump run. Other than the large wood items, everything could have eventually made it through our trash and recycle curbside service. But I needed it gone quick. The large wooden items had been offered to a local recycle shop that benefits house building in needful areas, but I was told they did not want the bookcase, headboard and lumber left over from a remodel project. Nor did the local resale shops want anything. My neighbors would frown if I left it at the end of the drive with a “Free” sign tacked to it…
Watching dozens of others in the same boat, I slyly glanced at what they were tossing. Stuffed animals, wooden shelves, broken appliances, fixtures that were no longer useful, and the same kind of debris that was in my truck. It made me wonder about their recycle value. All that metal is worth something, right? Glass? Cardboard? Paper? Aluminum?
Then I thought about the latest storm of Harvey and Houston. Already, homes are being stripped of all kinds of debris from the aftermath to be left by the curb for special pick ups from the refuse companies.
Perhaps. Perhaps there were valuable products that could be salvaged, but we do live in a time with so many chemicals I truly wonder about all the flood waters. What are the waters swishing through on their way to your home? Do you want all those chemicals dried out and the furniture reused? Probably not. But then the hundreds and thousands wading through those same waters…how long till they were clean again?
And just like that!! Here’s a good memory for me.
We had our own dump yard at Champion Paper Company Employee Park… Dad would take all the refuse from the park, load it into the truck, and dump it way back on the property. Back then we would burn the refuse periodically. And that was a fun time to be involved. Especially when the fire seemed to get a little bit out of hand!
And just like that! Another fond memory.
My grandmother loved to collect ancient bottles. Colorful and unique shapes that resold well in her resale shop. As kids, we would wonder through waste areas where debris was often tossed. Often it was in a gully needing something to help stop the land from washing away with every storm, so good future wealth was simply tossed as something not worth saving today.
Grandmother would tap into her memory of the area from a generation ago and remember where all the dump areas were. It was like searching for treasure, all the while watching for nails, snakes and other potentially hazardous items.
And just like that, another memory pops into my mind.
My brother, Vaughn, was helping me prepare my 1977 GMC pickup for our move to Alaska, the fall of 1980. I wanted more fuel capacity for the remote areas of Canada and Alaska. We had both driven the route and knew it would be hours between small waysides with very few supplies available. We hit the junk yards looking for similar trucks that we could scavenge for parts, especially an extra gas tank.
Bing! Found one. After taking it off in the muck and the mire, we found it 3/4 full of fuel. Vaughn worked at Shell Oil Refinery and knew how to test the fuel. It was good! That $15.00 tank had about $20.00 worth of good gasoline… That was a good deal!
And just like that….
Another memory. So many memories. So little time to share. But think about this the next time you decide to toss away that pile of refuse. Perhaps there is someone who would take your refuse and make it into something profitable for their own livelihood. Before you pay for the privilege of tossing, why not make a donation to a worthy soul… There’s gold in them there hills!