Thursday, July 10, 2008

Greed and garbage

Gordon Gekko (a fictional character from the 1987 film Wall Street) -

"greed is good".

To get the quote straight, it is a much broader piece of Rhetoric that is quoted and I include a big piece of it here. -

"The point is, ladies and gentleman, that greed -- for lack of a better word -- is good.
Greed is right.
Greed works.
Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit.
Greed, in all of its forms -- greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge -- has marked the upward surge of mankind.
And greed -- you mark my words -- will not only save Teldar Paper, but that other malfunctioning corporation called the USA."

First, I just want to say that this attitude is probably prevalent in event corner of the world every day, not just the U.S.A...

What does greed have to do with garbage? Bear with me and you will find out.

It is hard to argue with the phrase "free is the best price". It has been a phrase often heard out of my mouth, whether it be "free press" for the band or free discarded items. This is where greed becomes a factor. Given a free object or opportunity, how can you go wrong?

Well let me give me a revised look at greed. To someone like myself, who acquires unwanted items from the garbage - greed is my enemy. Most everyone in the world has some "pack rat " in them and it's worst form is plain greed.

Greed is storage.
Greed makes you work too hard, moving the same item from place to place many times over.
Greed confuses, as you dig through mountains of boxes and bags and it drains your spirit.
Greed, in all of its forms -- greed for broken and new electronics, for books missing page 364 and whose cover is upside down, for empty ink and toner cartridges, useless facts that cloud your mind and burn your time -- has marked the downward spiral of our quality of life but we choose to let it happen anyway (especially when it is free).
And greed -- you mark my words -- will not only bury us, but that other malfunctioning corporation called the human race."

So take it from one who has too much stuff in his closets, garage etc.. Let go. Be happy to pass it on to the new user for free. Make your big "warehouse" decisions by the road side before it follows you home. Trade for what you need (one I highly recommend!). For I have found that even when it is free and greed should reign supreme, be humble and thoughtful and leave some for the next hunter/diver (or the garbage truck). Be able to walk away. That is freedom.

Goodnight.

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

To hunt and not to dive

I might give a mission statement but, I will not. I might philosophize but, not yet. I will not share my locations but, I will give some trade secrets that are of the highest order of value if you want to be efficient with your time.

You see, I started out hoping this would be temporary. The groundwork way back when was based on "get in and out fast" (please hold back the humour) of bins and sell it for what you can get quickly in order to pay for my main pursuit in life, drums and music where the (enter guttural humour) "ins and outs" are hopefully much cleaner. O.K. , there will be less humour. Maybe. Maybe not. Anyway...................that meant being a commando of sorts. Don't gloat, don't sit there and look at it, don't get excited and waste time. Get on with it.

Very few things I have read by others going through trash give details on hands on experience of what to do. I will start here and now with this very point. I will try to give two every time I touch on the hands on stuff.

I won't cover safety and the common sense stuff because I hope you all suit up for the hunt properly. Gloves, boots etc. Be ready for the weather (watch and listen to weather reports or your exploits could be miserable).

Trash Trade Secret Number One: When you want to understand what is in a garbage bin, the best possible way to do so is to stalk it. Meaning, go every day - no exceptions. Keep a very short SIMPLE point form diary or use your memory (easier). By visiting every day (every work day they toss) you dig less in that, you hopefully can remember what was there the other day and make use of the layer concept. Each day only one layer of garbage is usually left. Since you visit each day, you will come to know how much content needs to be disturbed and checked based on the increase in volume from the last day. This adds up to surprisingly less work, digging and moving the same trash around. It also means bio hazards are minimized over time by new garbage layers (hopefully thick enough to block any older strata of decaying stuff that might be there). Less time and energy is expended and saved for the countless bins ahead. The key is to use the eyes and head, not muscle until it is time. Then move on.

Trash Trade Secret Number Two: Bring your own sturdy and reliable garbage bags and boxes. Why waste time over the target looking for boxes nearby or relying on the quality choice of garbage bags of the janitor/person/warehouse worker. Often , people make the cheapest choice as it only needs to make it in and usually with a toss. If the strength of the bag or box is compromised and you dump it on the ground or yourself...................well......you know what you've done. Now get down and clean that up!

Re bag the bags in your bags (also minimizing bio hazards somewhat) and use your boxes when necessary.

Don't ever leave a mess! Leave it like you found it or better.

Talk at you soon. Hopefully tomorrow. It's late. Good night folks.