Fluffy Garbage
It is time to confess a dirty little secret.?
This writer not only intensely dislikes but is closer to hating fluffy kitchen garbage. You know, all the light stuff we toss in the trash that gives the illusion the trash container is full. For example, uncrumpled paper towels and uncrumpled microwave popcorn bags.
When the fluffy garbage reaches the top right under the cover of the trash container, the need to compact the stuff is overwhelming. But by its very existence trash is dirty and full of germs.
So, when the automated top barely opens, this semi-germaphobe lady feels compelled to reach in and push everything to the bottom.
When she cannot find something to use between the trash and her hand, she cleans the kitchen counters with a Clorox wipe and crushes it. And that becomes the barrier between her hand and the trash.
After that manual compacting process, this writer rushes to the sink and scrubs her hands with soap and water.
Mind you, dealing with trash has become easier since this lady discovered the automatic kitchen trash cans. All you do is wave your hand and the top pops open ready to gobble up whatever refuse you intend to toss in.
Once upon a time, we threw cans, bottles, and other garbage into the kitchen trash. But at some point when the bin was full, we had to take out the trash and dump it into the larger bin for the trash folks to pick up.
The entire process was messy because over time the kitchen container got filthy. All those cans and bottles leaked the remains of their contents into it. Although the visual did not seem to bother anyone else in the family, even the younger version of this lady felt that the filthy bin needed a periodic cleaning.
It was a dirty job, but the alternative of leaving the germy and nasty bin to become a worse odorific and visual issue was intolerable. Consequently, she periodically took the bin outside and washed it with the garden hose.
After marrying Hubby, his wife discovered semi-automatic kitchen trash bins with pedals. You stepped on the pedal, the top opened and you dropped in the refuse. But, she still hoses out the bin.
Somewhere along the way, as our roads became littered with flying trash, the municipalities required everyone to bag up the collected trash thereby minimizing the roadside litter, at least from that particular source.
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Of course, the piggies still continued to dump dirty diapers and other trash out of their car windows. In their minds, they assumed all that litter would magically disappear. At least their vehicles were less filthy. Or not.
They probably never noticed the folks wearing orange attire or orange vests picking up all the refuse along the roadways.
One day, Hubby and his wife spent a couple of hours picking up the litter on their three-property county road. That experience was backbreaking and grubby.
It seems some of the piggies visited the property at the end of the road and shared their refuse along the way. So nice of them.
Eventually, people lined their kitchen and bathroom trash with either plastic grocery bags or the fancier plastic bags you could purchase. Some of those bags were decorated with flowery designs and the super fancy ones came with built-in deodorizers. Of course, the fancier the product, the higher the price.
The good news was that with the plastic liners, this lady did not have to scrub her trash bins. An upgrade that was worth celebrating.
Since this lady has always loved gadgets, she coveted the stainless steel trash bins with automatic openers. Granted, they were not as inexpensive as the plastic ones with swinging tops or pedals, but those trash gadgets lured her in.
She bought one and loved it. Her grandchildren entertained themselves for extended periods by waving their hands over the sensor. That fascination did not diminish as they grew into adults. Who can blame them, when even Hubby took an extra turn or two playing Open Sesame?
Now the bins have plastic liners, but this lady still cleans the tops.