What will I write about next?
On the 15th of every month, I change my Twitter (@trash_obssession) avatar to go with that month’s theme, and I post a new blog.
Here is what I have in mind (not cast in stone) for the next few months:
October reducing the use of non-recyclables
November owning my stuff (or What do Fight Club, SIOL and Cleen Sweep have in common?)
December electronic waste
Stay tuned!
Are there any other topics you would like to discuss or read about?
This is a new blog/twitter account: I would love to get feedback on what you think of it. Any additional ideas for improvement?
I’ve been dealing with garbage for a long time.
…or how I cut down from a two to five per week habit to a less than one per week habit:
It goes back to my childhood…Ah yes, there I am in my fluorescent orange T-shirt and faded overalls riding my fluorescent pink and sky blue skateboard back up the driveway…
I load another garbage can onto the skateboard and pull it down the driveway. Repeat. I lived in a household of five, plus my dad had a small home-based business. It was the late `80s inCornwall: acid-washed jeans were cool, and fine paper recycling was just starting to catch on at school.
We produced in the ballpark of 2 to 5 cans of garbage.
Every week.
Fast forward to 2012. Today, my family of four produces between 1/2 to 2/3 of a can of garbage per week.
How did I get from there to here? My household changed its habits over time: we recycle a lot, and I’ve found ways to minimize the amount of garbage we produce.
I look for ways to reduce the amount of non-recyclable garbage we produce; I think of ways to make it more convenient to make waste-reduction a habit.
The key is continuous improvement of habits.
My goal, this summer, is to only produce 1/2 a can of garbage per week, and only take out the garbage every second week.
I’ll blog on my thoughts and progress. I’ll ask for your feedback and ideas. Every month, I’ll focus on a different theme. Even though the mantra is ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’ in that order of priority, I’ll focus on recycling first since I think that’s the easiest way to quickly reduce your amount of ‘garbage’.
I’ll share my experience as a sort of case-study only. If you’re looking for detailed information about the City of Ottawa’s waste management services and recycling programs, please visit www.ottawa.ca.
I think that one way or another people care a lot about garbage: either how fast it can be taken away, or how much there is…to some degree, I think we all have an obsession with garbage!
Obsession with Garbage 