Ailz Says I'm Obsessive...

[poliphilo]

But you can't mess with the bin-men.

These are powerful individuals- and if you pile things in your bin so the lid won't shut they're perfectly within their rights not to empty it.

So imagine my dismay when I looked out this morning and found that Samina- who doesn't have a clue about the rules and etiquette of waste disposal- had loaded her surplus junk into my bin- there was a lot of it because some weeks she'll miss a collection-  with the result that there were two bins- hers and mine- side by side- both over flowing- and with extra grot piled up on the pavement.

I could see the binmen turning up their noses at us- refusing to shift either bin- leaving the rubbish to fester- and festering rubbish means rats.

So I did something a little desperate. I borrowed Renee's bin- she's not at home, she rarely is these days- and redistributed the surplus. Now there were three bins deployed on our stretch- all full, but with lids that would shut.

The binmen turned up shortly afterwards. I had acted just in time. A crisis in public health has been averted. 

Comments

[shewhomust.livejournal.com]

I salute your public spirit and quick thinking!

(We live in a student area, and it's end of term. The neighbours are clearing out, and when their own bins are full, they use ours. This is better than piling black bags next to the bin, because the bin men won't take those. Luckily we don't produce much rubbish ourselves... But I recognise the value of your prompt action).

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

If an area looks squalid, it becomes squalid. I am a bit obsessive about keeping my stretch of the road looking reasonably clean. If there's litter on the pavement outside our property I pick it up. I do the same with the path that runs along the back of the houses.

[heleninwales.livejournal.com]

I applaud your actions!

I'm starting to feel a bit twitchy because the new people at No. 2 seem to be leaving their bins out by the road all week instead of dragging them back to their house. It looks untidy, especially as they have piled too much stuff of the wrong kind into the brown wheelie bin (for garden waste). The bin men refused to take it last week, but the occupents of No. 2 haven't done anything to deal with it. :(

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Bah, that's annoying.

We have a rule here that you're not allowed to have your bins out on the street except on collection day- but I don't believe it's ever enforced.

[veronica-milvus.livejournal.com]

Good neighbour! You might have to educate Samina in this.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I have tried.

[pondhopper.livejournal.com]

The problem of individual bins doesn't exist here as we have large "dumpsters" at strategic points around the neighbourhood.
When those are full we are allowed to leave black bags next to them and as we have daily garbage collection, it all disappears overnight. The only problem that arises is when a handicapped or elderly person can't walk or get to the bins. That is the one drawback.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Daily garbage collections- how splendid!

What about recycling? Do you have different dumpsters for different categories of rubbish?

[pondhopper.livejournal.com]

Yes, there is a whole collection of dumpsters, ie one for paper, one for glass, one for tins, plastic and a final one "for all other stuff".

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

We have three bins. In this borough they mix glass and metals.

[ibid.livejournal.com]

Phew well done.

I remember the horrors of living in a student house as I was the only one who put my rubbish out regularly and at the end of term the others would come with their bin bags...

it is one consolation of no longer being at university.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Students are notorious....