Trash at the Langmore

I've complained about the landlord. I've complained about the laundry. Now it's time to complain about the trash.

As I've said, the Langmore is divided into five apartments (four are currently occupied) and two store fronts. At the rear of the parking lot, there are four trash large trash bins and a yellow can for recyclables. When we first moved into the building, Rich and Kim lived in the apartment next to ours (the unit we are moving into). Rich can only be described as the "extreme-macho man" and always took it upon himself to get things done around the building (trash, tree maintenance, shoveling snow, etc). In our town, trash needs to be taken out Tuesday nights for pick up on Wednesday morning.

Since Rich moved out two months ago, the building seems to be at a loss of who supposed to take out the trash. The week after Rich moved out, Rachel and I took the trash to the street. Apparently, by taking the trash out the first week, we have been assigned trash duty in the building. It's become an unspoken fact around the building. In the last two months, we've taken the trash out six times. Six times is equivalent to 80% of the trash removal from the building!

About a month ago, we came home late on Tuesday night and one of our neighbors took the trash out to the curb. A few weeks later, Rachel and I went to Laura's for fire and meat, and I thought it I was safe to assume that a neighbor would once again take care of the trash. I was very wrong. Of course, I didn't realize this until Wednesday morning when I was heading to work. As I pulled my car out of the driveway, I noticed that the trash cans were still in the back of the parking lot. Obviously I didn't have the time to take them out to the curb by this point, and headed to work instead, fuming the entire ride there.

Once again, Rachel and I were stuck doing trash duty. Of course Mikey Mullet and Creepy Carl left the trash area a mess, with huge cardboard boxes on top of the trash bins, along with the vanity from our apartment and two heavy sinks in front of the walkway in front of the trash. Since the left the area a disaster, the rest of the building decided to do the same, throwing their trashbags on top of the recyclables container. I'm pretty sure that the plumbers were supposed to take all of their trash with them, and not leave it for the tenants to clean up, but then again we're talking about Mikey Mullet and Creepy Carl.

Rachel and I did what any good tenant would do: we drug the heavy sinks and vanity to the back of the trash area and dumped them there. I'm sorry, it's not my responsibility to lug heavy sinks to the curb. Plus, I don't even think the trashmen will take anything that's not in a trash can. After throwing the boxes left by the plumbers on top of the mess the flower shop left in the back of the trash area (don't even get me started on the raccoon/rat infestation the flower shop has created). After leaving behind all the garbage the plumbers left for us, Rachel and I finally took the remaining trash out.

Golden Rule 7: Nobody wants to take your garbage out, especially your neighbors. Pitch in and take the bins out more than twice in a two month period. Your not special!

Golden Rule 8: Contractors are responsible for the trash they may bring to the site with them and all trash they create while there. Don't expect others to do your work for you. It's ignorant and rude.