The Energon Pub

Here's a little B.S. for you. The garbage men threw out our garbage can last week during trash pickup. They left the lid.

We bought a heavy-duty $40 garbage can about three weeks ago after moving into our new place. It's a new development, maybe about five families living around there so far. We put out our trash in the morning, came home, and the garbage can was gone. Usually garbage men just toss the garbage cans aside carelessly, so we checked around but it wasn't near the house. It was windy that day, but the wind didn't carry away our lighter recycle bin, so it wasn't that, and we would have seen it lying on the ground even if it was a few meters away. We don't have troublemakers around, not yet anyway. And I don't imagine someone stealing a garbage can for kicks. So the only conclusion I can come to is that the garbage men just threw it out with the trash. A new garbage can.

So I called the city to complain. I got a call back and talked to someone today saying that we need to give them the truck number, the approximate time, and the description of the guy or they can't do anything, not even replace the garbage can. WTF? Truck number? They have GPS systems in their trucks and logs, and they need the truck number? And why the approximate time? What difference does it make if they threw the can out at 8 or at 9? So now I have to supervise the garbage men as they throw out our garbage to make sure they're responsible enough not to toss out the cans? Basically the guy just gave me some B.S. runaround about how they're not liable for what their garbage men do.

Nobody's responsible for anything anymore.

Not meaning to suggest anything good of your local waste management technicians, but are you *certain* it was they who took your garbage can?

First, what the hell would they do with it? It's not exactly a high resale item--they aren't going to post in on eBay for oodles of cash.

Second, as someone who lived in a new development (right near where the old meth lab blew up) for a while: I'd be more suspicious of my other new neighbors. I had one neighbor steal my freakin' *apple tree* one night. Okay, he tried to steal it and I and my little boomstick persuaded him to a wiser course, but still. Look at someone not on your direct street, but a street or two over who just also moved in, but don't want the hassle of buying a can themselves.

And when you replace it, spray paint something obvious on it. A portrait of Cthulhu, perhaps? A pentagram in red spray paint also works well. Something that would make it a) easy to identify and b) 'icky' to some people. And c) would make the garbage can slalom more entertaining.

HK, I've got the Meta symbol on mine.

hellkitty wrote:Not meaning to suggest anything good of your local waste management technicians, but are you *certain* it was they who took your garbage can?

First, what the hell would they do with it? It's not exactly a high resale item--they aren't going to post in on eBay for oodles of cash.

To be fair, I can't be 100% certain. I didn't see them. But I exhausted all the other things I could come up with. And I'm not saying they stole it. I'm saying they just tossed it into the garbage truck with the rest of it. If a neighbour had stolen it, they'd take the lid as well.

And when you replace it, spray paint something obvious on it. A portrait of Cthulhu, perhaps? A pentagram in red spray paint also works well. Something that would make it a) easy to identify and b) 'icky' to some people. And c) would make the garbage can slalom more entertaining.

We did this with the recycle bin. We have our street # spray-painted on two of the sides.

I think half my anger is because there's no accountability. We have to get the truck number, the approximate time, and a description of the person before the city does anything? Really? Sure, I can understand needing to actually see the guy do it, but that didn't seem to be the issue. So if I see him but didn't get a truck number, they can't do anything?? They know the truck number.

i've tried to throw away garbage cans. it's impossible. unless you cut them into small pieces and put them into another garbage can.

and HK- *apple tree* i like that. and chtulu in the same post. AWESOME!

This happened to us once but it was 2 garbage cans in one day

We called them and complained and they replaced them with 2 new garbage cans