A Trip to the Fairfax County Solid Waste Management Dump

It’s a sight to see. The Fairfax County Solid Waste Management Dump is a well run organization. We oftentimes went to the dump when we lived in the Midwest. You needed to show proof of residence and pay one dollar. Sixteen years later the price jumped to six dollars for one piece here. That piece was a plant console table that we no longer needed. There probably are a few other items we could have brought with us but this table was too big to leave hanging around. Since we live in a condo we can’t just leave things at the end of the drive for garbage pick up and scheduling pickups means scheduling elevator times. So we put the table in the car and drive about half an hour away to the dump. The signs were clear and the place was buzzing. There were trucks of all sizes and cars and pickups. After paying the six dollars we moved to zone one where the guy helped us unload the table. We were happy to tip anyone who was working there given the heat and hubbub. At least now we know where we need to go for things like this. We should check with our building to find out the limitations for dumping things in our own dumpster. Hopefully we won’t need to need it anytime soon. It definitely was an interesting experience. Thanks goodness places like this exist. 

Spring Time Trash

Usually around this time of year people are spring cleaning, or moving, or just getting rid of things. We used to purge junk in Wisconsin, leave the items on the curb, and notify the city that a pick up was needed. Another option was to bring the items to the city dump. It is not uncommon to find large items like mattresses and large furniture left on the sidewalk here. The difference is is that most of the time, no one arranges to have the junk removed.  So the eyesore sits for days and weeks until someone (like us) calls to make arrangements. For the first time since we moved here, someone else took the responsibility to actually notice the junk, comment about it, and asked what could be done to eliminate it. Maybe there is hope yet.

Junk in our yard from another house

Between that and the two foot tall grass it is quite a sight

The next day more junk was added

Much to our surprise, someone made arrangements for the bulk items to be removed,
but the other stuff is still there

Recycling Taken to the Next Level

In Milwaukee, we started recycling trash a very long time ago. In our kitchen, we had separate containers for paper, plastic and garbage. We actually kept up the practice here even though it is obvious that a lot of people have never heard of the concept, in spite of the environmentally friendly activists that surround us here. The grocery stores have taken it a step further... you have to pay if they bag your groceries with plastic. So we keep a bunch of cloth bags in the car at all times to collect all the groceries. But we also took another step to support this notion. Whenever we go out for dinner, we bring along both plastic containers and a recyclable bag that I always keep in my purse to collect the leftovers. Then we don't keep adding to the plastic and styrofoam volume, and more plastic bags. Not such a bad idea wherever one resides.

Everything is in the trunk of the car- the trick is to remember it
when we're walking in the neighborhood

This bag gets a lot of use!

Couches, Mattresses, and Toilets

The other day, a lovely torn up couch was sitting on the sidewalk right in front of the garden on the corner where our building stands. I knew the moment I saw it that it would probably sit there for at least a month, as is the past experience with mattresses, and toilets that have found their way to different parts of the sidewalk. It so happened that we took a short walk, and were completely amazed that upon our return, the couch was gone! I could not believe that someone may have actually called first to have it removed. Wonders never cease! This is something that simply never happened in our Milwaukee neighborhood. You either had to move it to the dumpster, or have it picked up pronto.

At least it matches the sidewalk color

It'll probably be there a month

Disappeared within the hour!

Not so lucky with this

Or this

TRASH

Call us old fashioned and generally tidy (or Midwestern), but we have this horrible tendency to follow the rules - particularly when they are clearly stated. You could call it a clash of the cultures. Case in point: disposal of trash and garbage. There is very limited space in the disposal area to support all the occupants of the building, and trash is picked up twice a week. We've had packing "peanuts" fly all over the courtyard and into our garden, huge boxes left opened and filled with rain water (the mosquitoes love it), and large pieces of furniture dumped in this small area.  And oftentimes there are trails of coffee and peripheral trash from the elevator along the first floor leading out to the disposal area. The recycling containers are commonly filled with garbage. When we first moved here, the cleaning crew would have to move all the garbage from the designated spaces inside the building to the disposal area. To cut back on cleaning expenses, but more importantly, to create needed storeroom space, it was deemed appropriate for each occupant to move their own trash. "I might slip on the ice" and "It's dangerous to go out back at night to empty trash" was rationale used to maintain the expensive trash disposal service. At our private residence, we always took our trash and recycling to the curb ourselves. Is this what community living is all about? All new owners and occupants receive the guidelines handbook and bylaws. Doesn't seem like everyone reads them, even when they are plastered in front of their faces.

The "rules" are clearly written and  posted by the disposal area

The rules are rarely followed or enforced
"break down large boxes; if it doesn't fit in a garbage bag,
the crew does not have to take it- and they might not."