Reduce, reuse......recycle?

We are a disposable society.

Seems like kind of a trite statement, now doesn't it? Political commentary best left to the media.....except I see it every single day on my job.

I'm a janitor. Yeah, I'm one of those people that most people ignore. That's what I do, not who I am. But I digress.

One of the jobs that I do on a regular basis is empty trash at a very large office building. Its interesting to me what people throw away. I have more then one blog post I plan on writing that has been spawned just simply by the act of dumping peoples trash.

For today's post I plan on focusing on soda pop cans. You know the ones....you put in your quarter (or fifty sense, or dollar...depending on where you are) and get out your Pepsi, Dr. Pepper, or whatever your poison of choice is (and I really do mean poison....have you ever looked at the ingredients in that stuff???)and drink it down. Now....what do you do with the can?

Its been my experience lately that people fall into one of just a couple categories on this:

1) throw it in their trash can
2) take it to the break room and throw it in the trash can
3) take it to the break room and throw it in the recycling bin
4) save it for the janitor as they come by and give it to them to put in the recycling bin

Weird, huh?

Not weird to you? Well, the way I see it....why just throw the can away? Why *not* recycle? Why in the world would someone put their empty aluminum can in the trash can when a recycling bin sits right next to the trash can? Why would someone put the cans in their trash can at their desk when the janitor is more then willing to take their can to the recycling bin for them if they were to just save them?

The only thing I can come up with is people just truly don't pay attention. Otherwise...why would they pick the trash can instead of the recycling bin when they are right next to another? Also...why would they throw their regular trash into the recycling bin?

In a broader sense, why do more people not recycle? Overseas its the norm, and expected. Trash service usually only allows *one* bag of actual trash to be put out weekly. All the rest of the trash that is produced is recycling. A bin is provided, recycling is placed in it and hauled away. (The process for separating it is facinating, by the way) Its easy and simple.

So why don't more people do it?

I have to confess that I don't....yet. I plan on calling my trash company tomorrow and getting a recycling bin so I can start actually doing it.

Oh....I'm Fin by the way :) I'm not as verbose as Fate....but I do have more opinions!

--Fin