I watched a coyote scurry on the outside of our fence. I got one photo of his face, but he was moving fast and it’s blurry. This was the only one in focus. We also saw three coyotes on a morning walk this week, darting between houses. FYI, my story has nothing to do with coyotes.
My husband and I walked down our driveway to start our morning walk. I noticed the recycling bin on our curb had a pink note attached to it. Two neighbors walked by at that moment.
“We’re in trouble now!” I said.
“What?” they stopped and asked.
“We got a pink slip from the garbage police.”
I quickly read through the pink slip and discovered we were getting our first warning for not having the lid down all the way. We had a box that stuck up above the lid line. After three warnings, they said they’d stop our service!
“I didn’t know they looked at our trash,” the neighbor said.
While we were walking through the neighborhood, I noticed a handful of pink slips on recycling bins. We weren’t the only violators.
We walked by another neighbor who was walking her chihuahua Duke. I said, “It looks like a lot of neighbors are getting written up by the recycling cops.”
“Don’t get me started,” she said. “I’ve been written up twice. Then the supervisor of the garbage company knocked on my front door!”
We stood there incredulous.
The supervisor told her that our city is the worst in the state for garbage violations. He also said she had broken a number of rules, including not separating her newspapers and putting them in a plastic bag, as well as not breaking down cardboard boxes enough. I’ve never before heard about newspapers needing to be separated from other recycling.
“We especially have our eye on you!” he said as he left.
Other troubles in Paradise? I’ll save the stories for another day. Thankfully, nothing major at all. Life is good.
The last of three coyotes we saw run between neighbors’ homes. The neighbor who lives here said he saw a pack of seven run by this week. Earlier in the week he saw three Mule Deer.
What do your recycling rules entail? Happy Friday! What are your weekend plans?
It really is getting ridiculous. We used to have recycling picked up at our curb but that ended a few years ago due to some ridiculous dispute with the state. Now we have to separate everything in clear plastic bags and drive them to a recycle center that’s only open one day a week (for 5 hours) where the resident trash Nazi picks through them with inappropriate glee tossing half of it back at us as their list of acceptable recycled items grows smaller every week. The latest? No glass. At all.
Grrr.
Wow! Only open one day a week for five hours? That would be a hassle especially if they’re picky. I used to go to a recycling center years ago but they took everything and were open six days a week.
That’s crazy! We don’t get recycling service in our neighborhood, so we take it to a big bin at the park. It’s a bit inconvenient, but I guess it’s a good thing the recycling police can’t pin any violations on us personally. Also, I love the coyote picture. We’ve been seeing more coyotes and bobcats lately, too.
I thought it was a bit over the top, too! I had no idea they would be going through our bins! We have had lots of coyotes, but no bob cats this year.
Those coyotes, are they dangerous especially when more than one? We hear them here in TN at night and it sounds like children crying, but we don’t see them during the day.
I’m wary of them when I see a pack. Once I was out walking and had eight across the street staring at me. I called my husband to pick me up. Everyone says they are afraid of us, but I’m not so sure.
I suppose I can understand people abusing the general rules about recycling but getting reprimanded because something keeps the lid open a bit too much… It sounds like this company may be trying to get folks frustrated enough that they will just say no thanks to recycling and the service can be dropped. The family here has 2 garbage and 2 recycling bins. Things seem to be managed well and without lots of weird rules. I got them started with composting that’s picked up once per week. I wasn’t sure how they would react but they love it now and the company takes so much stuff. Better than I ever had in WA.
We don’t have composting yet, but my kids have it in the Bay Area. Our friends had it in Santa Barbara, too. I think you may be correct about the company wanting to drop the recycling service. My neighbor who had them knocking on her door said she stopped recycling for six months after that. But she’s back at it now.
I am still shaking my head over this. My husband couldn’t believe it when I told him. He did wonder if you guys have to pay an extra fee for recycling? We have to. Its added on to our garbage collection fee. The only rule that has changed in recent years that we think is stupid is that they won’t take glass anymore. Other than that there really aren’t any rules except for us having to use the designated trash can that they gave us to put our recyclables in.
It’s a lump sum bill so I’m not sure if recycling is extra. When we moved here there were two bins, one for trash the other for recycling. Also, no rules. I guess I’d have to go to the website to find out what the rules are! It’s nutty. We’re getting the same strange things happening with the postal delivery.
I hope it doesn’t get crazier for you? Oh my, what is going on with your postal delivery?
That could be a whole other post. But in a nutshell, they refused to deliver a package — which they said they had already delivered but we didn’t receive. Their reason was they aren’t happy with how infrequently we pick up our mail. Our neighborhood has lockers with keys for packages and half were empty. Our mailbox was about half full at the time. A key would have fit easily. We hired someone to pick up our mail weekly while on vacation. Normally we only get junk mail and very little of it. We didn’t think it had to be more often than that.
Wow! Yeah, that would be frustrating.
It’s also a felony to refuse to deliver mail that is deliverable.
Did you tell them that?
We didn’t know that at the time. We got an email from the president of our HOA with a complaint form to fill out about postal service and send to our congressman. That’s when we learned that. We did fill it out and send it in. Again, we’re not the only ones having issues!
I hope with you all complaining that something will be done!
I hope they deliver the mail!
Tell them to keep the junk mail but you want the rest!
That’s funny!
Wouldn’t it be nice if mail worked that way. 😄
Definitely!
Well, knock on wood, our Recycling and Garbage service has been really easy to work with. Coyotes scare me too — we see them a lot here in the winter.
I don’t know why we have so many coyotes right now. I don’t now if it’s unusual or not. That’s good you don’t have issues with trash and recycling services.
Oh good grief! You’re right – nothing major but a little silly. I know we worried that people would inspect our trash when Seattle banned food waste from garbage but fortunately no one seems to look that closely here. Thank goodness because I always have stuff above the lid on my recycling bin! Hope you have a great weekend, Elizabeth!
I wouldn’t think they’d have staff to look through our bins! I’d be in trouble if they banned food waste. We had a “severe” thunder storm last night. That’s what my phone called it. It was lighting up our house, pouring down rain with loud thunder. It’s still going on. It’s kind of fun and makes me want to hunker down.
Once upon a time we lived in a community with garbage police who’d came around. If they didn’t like how you put out your garbage and recyclables, they’d dump your stuff on your front lawn. No pink slips. You’d come home from work to find the stuff all over your yard. It was gross— but damned effective. I became hyper vigilant about doing the garbage the right way.
Oh my! Those were the garbage police. I can imagine how effective that would be.
Oh my goodness…I’ve never heard of such a thing. Wowza…discipline from the recycling/garbage folks? I understand the why…but it sounds like your whole neighborhood got “pink slipped”. 😜
Our neighborhood is definitely in trouble! The story my neighbor told about them having their eye on her was so funny! 😂
I would never want to disparage those who are doing important work…especially related to recycling, but my brain is a little “Friday fried”…I keep thinking of comedy bits to go along with the pink notifications….oh my goodness! 🤣
It is funny! People do take their jobs so seriously.
💝😉💝
🥰
Well, we are not recyclers, and our neighborhood is not an HOA. I can tell you this: when I DID live in an HOA (before I knew Cupcake), I had a “Life Member of the NRA” sticker on my car rear window. Nobody….I mean, Nobody…fucked with us. Ever. About anything.
Our HOA is pretty good. The homes were built 20 years ago and they have never raised quarterly dues. The HOA meeting I went to this week, because I write the newsletter, was done in 22 minutes! Once, I took an Uber from the airport and the driver was a former deputy sheriff. We were new to the area and I asked him about crime. He said the biggest crime was speeding because it’s a Constitutional carry state. I know that’s true in our HOA, too.
The presence of armed civilians is a greater threat to criminals than the presence of Police. The civilians have less protocol. Hell, we do not even have to start with Miranda Rights or Mace.
That’s true.
But now, what about those coyotes? That seems to be bigger than recycling.
We’ve had a ton of them lately. They look small and skinny, which means they aren’t getting enough to eat. All of our yards have fencing, as in the top photo so they can’t come into our yards. I only worry when I’m out for a walk. I bought a loud whistle and also a small air horn for my safety.
I have a wrist carry on of mace from Amazon as the pug is so small and I worry about loose mean dogs but for the most part, this year, not seeing any at least when we are walking.
Yes, I always forget that I have that too! I’ve had it for years and thankfully never needed to use it.
Most homeowner associations put pink slips in your mailbox. Yours sends coyotes to naughty homeowners. Wow, that’s one tough homeowner association, but I bet it gets your attention. Ha, ha. How big was the coyote? Big or small? Looks scary to me no matter the size. Ha, ha.
You gave me a good laugh. The coyotes I’ve seen this week look skinny and small. Maybe teenagers?
I’m not sure what our recycling rules are. I just think that we’re not allowed to put body parts in the bins with the yellow lids.
😅
I’ve never heard of garbage police, but I understand the reasoning. I guess there’s a ticket for anything! 🙂
I guess so! I think the worst thing would be for the trash company to fire us as customers!
Garbage police and coyotes! Yikes!
Isn’t that the truth!
We tip it into the dumpster! Trash police? Oh brother. I know that it’s important not to contaminate the recycling, but that doesn’t sound like what you all are getting cited for.
Exactly. We weren’t having contaminated items there. Just too much cardboard and the lid couldn’t close all the way.
These people are very strict!
I hope the coyotes aren’t a threat to the birds?
They are strict. The photos I take are of the birds in our yard. Because of the fence, they are safe from the coyotes. But they live outside our fence and are vulnerable there.
Yes, in nature- it’s the strongest that survives.
Yes. We didn’t live among wildlife in Southern California. I see so much more next to a nature’s preserve and a National Forest in Arizona.
That’s the way nature survives and thrives
Hmmm….i have to separate paper from plastic. But we have staff that make sure we’re doing it right
Yikes on the coyotes!
Our recycling in Naples is really easy, everything goes in one bin, no worry if the top is open a bit. I can see why it’s problematic, though. If there is a windy day, the tops could open, and things would be littered all over.
Our garbage, however, must be all bagged. In our previous house, you could toss anything into the large trash bin, and I received a violation earlier this year, but now I’m familiar with the protocol. Rules Smules. 🙃
At our current Georgia house, we used to be able to recycle at one bin/facility in the gated neighborhood. Still, people kept putting things in that weren’t actually recyclable, and then the bins were totally ‘tainted’ and everything had to be trashed. There are rules and guidelines for each recycling area in our world because everywhere, there are different things that can actually be recycled. I get it, it’s a pain in the butt, but I understand.
I keep seeing coyotes, but they run away. It’s only when they stop and stare that I get nervous. I saw on Next Door yesterday that a woman posted a video of coyote following her on a walk! No thank you!
As for recycling, I’m more cautious now and have to break down boxes so the lid is closed. It difficult, because we weren’t given any rules. I guess I can go online and find out what they are! It must be hard with different rules depending on where you are. My kids in the Bay Area have about five bins with composting and other things. I have to ask them when I’m there what goes where!