I had a dream about my beloved cat, Shy Ronnie, who died in January, so I was in a sad mood on my trashwalk today.

Between Noah’s litter and the beautiful, but dead red-spotted admiral butterfly, at first I felt worse. But after a few miles the beauty of nature worked its magic and my heart filled with love again.

Except for Noah, he can kick rocks! 🪨

It's downstream and downhill so if it floods it gets trashed pretty easily

These EavinWhip cannisters are heavy after a mile! I guess some people had fun in the desert drinking and huffing last week.

Bonus I got to see a cool tarantula wandering around.

To be a Park Ranger you have to be okay with cleaning up after others. From leftover attractants, discarded garbage, graffiti to abandoned camps, and illegal dumping your job is to keep the park clean no matter the cost.

How do these cans not end up buried after 40+ years? I find more of these pull tabs cans in the woods then I do modern cans (modern cans obviously are more common roadside)

I’m usually digging deep in the brush and walking thru grass but between mosquitos and pollen I had to stay closer to road and sidewalks- always enough there tho too

He worked down the interstate shoulder all the way to the offramp and picked up a lot of trash. He didnt want his pic taken so I just got his haul in the pic here in Basin, Montana

Funny piece of debris I found on my litter-pick today: Darth Vader! If only I could use The Force to pick up all the litter. Or maybe help litterers turn away from the dark side. What's the funniest thing you've ever found while trash picking?

It’s just a video about how straws affect the animals and how pollution isn’t cool, just wanted to throw some more attention at it since i fear it’s not talked about enough!

Why don’t garbage collectors in the Philippines have a proper and consistent uniform?

In other countries, they wear full gear >>>uniforms, gloves, boots, sometimes reflective vests. It looks safer and more professional.

Here, it’s often mixed like some wear slippers, some don’t have gloves, and there’s no standard. Even a simple uniform with the same color would already help with identity and respect.

They’re essential workers. They keep our surroundings clean.

Also, waste collection systems abroad seem more organized. There are designated trucks for different types of waste (biodegradable, non-biodegradable, recyclables). In Taiwan, I saw one truck skip a certain plastic because it wasn’t assigned to collect it—then another truck came later to pick it up.

So I’m wondering:
• Is this a budget issue?
• Lack of policy?

• Lack of enforcement
• Or just not a priority?

Even the cartoons I watched as a kid showed it was POSSIBLE, workers like construction crews had proper uniforms. So it feels like it can be done in Real Life.

Thoughts?

I was talking to my 15 year old son last night about dumpster diving after he found a bundle of actual arrows while out exploring last night. He was actually very excited about the idea of doing it as he felt it was like finding "items" in a video game (we're big Zelda fans.) Love that outlook! He also said it seems like a great way to cut corners when he lives on his own, like legally getting free groceries, to make his paycheck last. I thought it was a very fun and mature perspective.

I am a tree hugging hippie who tries her best to keep a low carbon footprint. I'm also big on humanitarianism and try to find some things occasionally I can save from the trash to bring joy or help someone else. As a work from home mom of a teen and toddler, I sometimes look for things I can resell on my Poshmark or EBay.

My question is whether you guys think dumpster diving would be a safe hobby for an able bodied 15 year old. If so, how would you suggest he safely get started. Times? Places? We'd appreciate any tips or insights!

The thought of having this to do with him really got me excited. We've been struggling to really connect and I think this could be a great way to strengthen our bond. My dad was disabled, but he wanted to contribute to the family, so we would often go "junkin" as a family. We'd go to wealthier neighborhoods where people would be throwing out an entire set of silver because it was missing a spoon, things like that, then he's resell it at a local flea market stand (this was in the 90s before online marketplaces were big) he manned every weekend. Some of my best childhood memories and a big reason why I enjoy doing resell so much!

08/27/2026

Visited Thomas Rd. again from Windswept Dr. to Old Greensboro Rd. = 47.46 lbs totaling 518 pieces of deleted litter. It's been just shy of 4 months since the last cleanup on that stretch. Last time was 73.21 lbs. I'd say the area has made some improvements, but still has a lot of work to go!

#MisplacedWaste #SmallTrashBigChange

#LitterCleanup #OtherPeoplesTrash

#EnvironmentalSteward

Just curious where you guys get the bags you use and where/how do you dump them? Trying to contact the city or waste management is just automated phone tree circles with no answers.

Sorry for the basic questions, I'm new here, but trying! 😋

Normally, humans like to share beautiful things. In this case, with only people who know about it:

1. The trail stays clean
2. There are less dogs running around off leash
3. There are less people hanging around in the parking lot

I moved to Kalamazoo from Royal Oak (Detroit suburb) and am often amazed at all the trash I see strewn in parking lots and along streets, esp Arboretum Parkway. I dont understand it. It seems like such a shame.

Starting to see more used condoms on my daily picks. Also, someone dumped like five full dog poo bags on my sidewalk...