Our neighbors took our trash

by wednesday 22 Replies latest jw friends

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  wednesday

  Maybe i am fussy, but when i put trash out to be picked up, i don't expect my neighbors to come and get it. We did not see them this time, but we have seen them before. My hubby put a burned out Mr. coffee out beside our trash can last night, and this am it was gone,prior to the trash men picking it up. It really creeped me out thinking someone came to our property and took something-even if it was trash. If they had ask me i would have gladly given it to them, but to just take it-well it seems odd. I talked to enviromental services and they said jactully u are not supposed to take or put anything in anyones' trash.

  am i being too fussy, or should u leave your neighbors trash alone?
• 

  LB

  I've had my fair of trashy neighbors over the years but none that stole my trash. Then again I never put out some great stuff like a coffee pot. Gee what do you expect? Next thing you know you'll be putting out coffee grounds and angry because someone takes them!!!!

  What about putting a box in your garbage can. Gift wrapped and addressed to your neighbor? When they take it home to open of course they'll discover carefully wrapped dog crap. Can they possibly complain???
• 

  SheilaM

  Wednesday:

  I know when we lived in Massachusetts, everyone would go to North Andover which is a mega wealthy area and pic up all the things sitting out for "trash". Antiques you name it but I always asked once I drove by and there was an old desk chair maple from the 20's 30's they were throwing it away. I asked them and we still have it and it is worth some $
• 

  Satanus

  I guess different places have different cultures. Where i live, a lot of people do that. There are even people that drive around w trucks collecting metals, fridges, electronic stuff. My old fridge was gone within 24 hrs. They take the metals (especially aluminum) to be sold to scrap metal yards. An old computer wouldn't last an hour.

  SS
• 

  nilfun

  Dumpster diving is one method used by identity thieves.

  Although your neighbors are probably just doing that "one man's trash is another man's treasure" thing,

  it wouldn't hurt to shred any documents that have personal info on them prior to throwing them away...

  nilfun, who owns a shredder and uses it....
• 

  wednesday

  I guess part of its b/c they took it during the night. And once in the past i had someone stop during the day and ask if they could take something we had put in the trash.That seemed polite to me. Obiviouldy i didn't want it, or i wouldn't have thrown it out. But i wouldn't go into their yard and take something, trash or not, without asking.

  Usually, items like fridges and large electronic items, we just haul to the dump ourself. The city is sort of unpredictible about picking up stuff like that,and leaving them out for long periods to be picked up sort of looks -well not so good.
• 

  A Paduan

  Some people's trash is often someone else's treasure.

  One time we took some stuff to the dump, and later that afternoon a friend visited, and he brought some stuff for us that he had found at the dump, on the way over - it was the stuff we just dumped.
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  ballistic

  I've left a TV out which was making popping sounds and we thought it was going to explode. It was gone within couple of hours. I don't know about the recipient.
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  Oroborus21

  Hey I live in LA so I am on a first name basis with most of the local "dumpster divers". It is a problem of course but very difficult to discourage under most circumstances. And actually there are very good reasons why we might encourage such salvage and recycling so look at this as less of a problem and more of an opportunity to do some good.

  here are some tips for you:

  1. Generally speaking digging into garbage placed in the public right of way is not considered a "search" of your private property requiring a warrant or even permission. (Although local ordinances may address non-law enforcement or sanitation worker access.) Therefore, the police or anyone else may sift through it at any time so naturally if there is something they shouldn't find don't dispose of it this way.

  2. Be a good eco-citizen. If you don't recycle make it easy for others to do so. Separate your aluminum cans and bottles into a separate container and place it where the trash diggers can get to it. Incidently, these articles are primarilly what they are looking for. If you don't want them making a big mess and taking forever to dig through everything by doing this you will actually speed up the process. If it become regularly understood that you will place all such things in a separate box or bag for them, when they see that it is empty they may leave right away. And again it is better to encourage recycling than to discourage it.

  3. Anything that is large and merely used, old, slightly broken or otherwise in working condition, either don't dump it--take it to the salvation army or some other place where they will let you donate it (good tax deduction) or if you are too lazy to do that place it on top or beside the garbage. That way again the divers can just take it and go without making a mess.

  4. Finally get a small paper shredder (they are very cheap now) and make sure you shred all credit card statements, financial records, bills, etc. etc.--anything that may contain your name, DOB, SSN, address or other private information.

  5. Leave some WT literature by the dumpster and a note offering a "Homeless" Bible Study (only don't use the word homeless since not all divers are). Offer to make a "return visit" the following week when they come by again trash digging. Your study with them will ultimately lead to them becoming respectible and hopefully not having to dig through your trash any more.

  --either that or you will soon notice that they begin skipping you on their route.

  :-)

  -Eduardo
• 

  imanaliento

  some people love trash.

  if you talk to them on occasion mention in a jokingly way how some one took your trash and that add thats it's property of the garbage collector once it's placed out.they won't know you know who did it.

  yes identity theives look through the trash for names, statements and such. I tear up my address into little bits and hang on to bank documents.