Monday, July 15, 2019

OLD CARD


I am my own garbage person.  There is trash pick up out here but since I have lived in the country, I have  always been my own trash disposer.  For $7 a week I could have it picked up.

But if I store it in my shed in contractor bags--I call them body bags for they are so large--I can go to the dump station once a month or so for $5.00. So that is what I have done for 15 years.  The bags are so thick that there is neither smell nor varmints.

Yes it is getting harder to lift these 50 pound bags into a wheel barrow, then into the back of my little pick up but so far I am making it. Might be breathing a bit heavier these days but we get'er done.

The dump station is about 15 miles away but I make the trip to town count for more than one thing.

I always turn in my recyclables first, then go to the scales to weigh my vehicle. While I was waiting for the hand signal from the office to indicate they had my weight, I noticed a small truck that was oddly pulled sideways in the dump area and an older fellow was unloading it. 

Usually we back up to the drop off and there is a semi trailer pulled below for us to throw our trash into.  The only person around was the elderly fellow who was just finishing putting his trash at the edge of the drop off.  I noticed he moved as if he were in pain. Either back or hips were killing him. I know that walk from when my sciatica flairs up.

Phooey I thought. I usually get help unloading my trash from the workers but it looked like I was on my own today. No one in sight and that poor old fellow looked like he needed my help.

When I started to back up to the edge, a nice young man appeared out of nowhere and  gave me hand signals to get me close but not too close to the edge.  I was grateful for the guidance and wondered why the old fellow's vehicle was so catawampus. Did no one guided him in??

The old gentleman was getting into his vehicle as I got out of mine.  Again that darling young man leaped to my rescue.  He explained that the trucks had not arrived yet and he quickly emptied my little truck putting my bags on the edge.  The young man handled the bags like loaves of bread.  Ah, the little old lady card worked again.

I thanked him mightily and drove to the ramp to wait for the older gentleman to clear the scales and pay his due.  I hurt seeing him struggle down the stairs to the office and then struggle even more to climb back up. He was in pain.

Then I wondered, why hadn't he been helped like I had been? Not complaining mind you but I sure felt badly for that elderly man.  Does the "old card" only work for women?

52 comments :

  1. Interesting observation, Patti! Good it be the old gentleman only held 'male ego' cards?

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    1. Out to Pasture,
      Didn't think of that. Maybe the kid offered and the old fellow refused out of pride.

      Delete
  2. As a male I'd say Out to Pasture is probably right ... altho' I'd put it in a more kindly way.

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  3. wow perhaps it does but it sure shouldn't. I also think that my husband looks big and strong but he's nothing like he was at 35. So i think when you don't look frail you don't get help perhaps.

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    1. Peggy,
      He looked frail enough that had I gotten there sooner, I would have offered to double team the bags if he would do the same for me.

      Delete
  4. Maybe the young guy had already offered help and the older guy had declined. Sometimes it's hard to accept when we need assistance.

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    1. robin,
      I didn't think of that at the time but I think you may be right. I never refuse.

      Delete
  5. $7.00 a week is a great bargain based on what we paid around here. Here, if you go in with bags on your truck like you do you drive into a building and dump them on the cement. Then a front end loader picks them up and puts them in a big garage compacter. The video recycling is in the same building but I hate driving in there for fear of nails in my tires, so I walk in with my video stuff.

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    1. Jean,
      It really isn't the price so much is that my gate is quite a ways from the house and I would have to deal with getting it out there and making sure neighbor dogs didn't get into the can. That day may come.

      Delete
  6. Oh, that's so sad. I was expecting a much different ending!

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    1. Ginnie,
      Yeah, it wasn't a fun thing to see. That man was in a bunch of pain.

      Delete
  7. Good for you on the 50 pounders. I struggle with a 30 lb dog food bag. After a change in management, the county workers at our dump were told not help customers. My husband made friends with a guy named Benny and whenever he can, Benny will help me. Last time I was there, he was next to me, raking with another guy. He didn't even say hello. After the other guy left, I asked Benny, "Supervisor?" Benny nodded and helped me with the rest of my trash.

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    1. Inger,
      So glad you have Benny and that he is willing to break the rules. Funny about the supervisor that time.
      Wonder what the reason is behind that. Probably some sort of liability though I think a customer hurting themselves without help would be worse.

      Delete
  8. Forgot to say that I was sorry to hear about the old man.

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    1. Inger,
      Me too. Whether his pride or being ignored, it seemed so sad.

      Delete
  9. 50 lb bags? Really, you can lift that, Patti? I have trouble lifting the 25 lb bags of clay we work with in the studio. You are strong. I would pay the $7 per week... and save my back. And I agree, someone should have offered to help that man.

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  10. Rian,
    Well I don't carry them. All I have to do is lift them up about two feet and dump them into the wheel barrow. Then slide them onto my truck bed from the wheelbarrow. If I had to carry them at all, I couldn't do it. The days when I slung feed sacks around are long over.

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  11. Amazing what things in life make us appreciate some of the perks we enjoy. I've never lived in the country --so have never had to dispose of my own trash... We have trash pick-up every Monday here --but we do take all of our recycle items to the county distribution center....

    And --I cannot (in my wildest dreams) imagine living somewhere with NO internet connections.... Guess I'm terribly spoiled...

    That being said, I have always dreamed of living in the country or the mountains --with lots of land and few people nearby.... Guess that will be in my next lifetime.... ha

    Hugs,
    Betsy

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    1. Betsy,
      Think you would love it. Country living has a few drawbacks but the pluses so out weigh them. We do have Internet here but do not have a cell signal.

      Delete
  12. Still, you are plenty fit to haul those bags even a little! I feel bad about the hurting old man. I know how it feels, too. I hope it was his own choice, but now I wonder.

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    1. Djan,
      At first I thought he was being neglected but now after some of the comments, I am leaning towards the fact that it was his choice so I don't feel so for him now.

      Delete
  13. Perhaps that sweet little ole gentleman had been there before and had not been so nice...Just a thought.

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    1. Latane,
      Ooh, hadn't thought about that but a possibility. Pain can make a person cranky.

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  14. If he's like my husband, he refused help. We are always being asked at Rural King if we needed help out with our bags and before I can say, "yes," my husband speaks up and says, "No, we can handle it." One day he is going to want that help. I get help wherever I can get it.

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    1. Snickelfritz,
      Had to laugh. I use to tell bag boys that I could get it myself also. I once even said, "Someday I will need help, just not today."

      Delete
  15. Maybe he just didn't want to admit he needed help.

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  16. I agree with the last comment, maybe he wanted to do it, just to see if he could do it, even with the pain.

    Sad though.

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    1. Joey,
      I guess it is hard, even when necessary, for men to admit they need help. We are so use to them being so strong.

      Delete
  17. Dear Patti, as with the last two comments, I wondered if the man was offered help, and he declined. He may be at the stage when he's not willing to admit he needs help. I was there for a while, but now I'm just grateful for whatever help is offered. And I do think that asking for and accepting help is harder for many men than it is for most women. We perhaps know when to conserve our strength for another day, another task! Peace.

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    1. Dee,
      Totally agree. Men are so use to just being able to do things that the loss is hard to accept. I have always been grateful for the extra muscle God gave men.

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  18. I have no idea what the situation was with the man. The thought came to me though that he may be like me and wants to do for himself for as long as he can and appreciate any help he gets if needed. I am a true believer in 'if you don't use it you lose it' so I use all of my body parts that I can to keep them working for as long as they will. Good job getting your trash bagged, loaded and hauled to the dump. Hugs sweet Patti

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    1. Maggie,
      Me too on the use it or lose it theory. Many things have slipped past me as age has claimed my stamina. Still keep doing stuff that some people now pay to have done. I'm sure those will eventually slip past me also. For now, will do what I can. Probably that man's attitude also.

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  19. I have no idea, unless maybe he was just a grumpy old man.

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    1. Linda,
      You might just be right on about that. He did have a "don't ask" look on his face. Of course that could have just been a grimace from the pain.

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  20. Us old dudes may have to ask, the young guy does not want to insult him, a possibility, where t is probably not insulting for a lady.

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    1. joeh,
      It really could have been the young guy just not wanting to show up the older fellow. Male respect. No, we ladies are usually delighted when offered help with a difficult task, mainly because men have done that for us all our lives.

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  21. Like you, I'm wondering why he wasn't helped. That certainly doesn't seem fair at all. On the other hand, perhaps help was offered and he refused it, preferring to manage on his own as much as possible? Some people are stubborn that way.

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    1. River,
      My original feelings have changed with the comments. I didn't look into all the possibilities and others have made me see that it might not have been neglect but choice. I'm happy for these different views.

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  22. I sure hope not. But perhaps as others have said he was being stubborn and resisting assistance.

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    1. Eileen,
      I am hoping that is the reason also. Feel better about that than his maybe being ignored.

      Delete
  23. He may have been cantankerous about getting help. I hope it wasn't a sexist thing. I know I would be likely to say "I do it myself!" because I have been that way since I was a toddler.

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    1. Olga,
      When I was younger I was the same way unless it was physically more than I could do. Then I gladly stepped aside and let the muscles take over.

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  24. He should have been. Ask next time you are there.

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    1. Mage,
      Good idea and if I see that same young man I will ask.

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  25. Poor man! Sounds like he is of the generation that doesn't want to ask for help. My dad was like that.

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    1. Susan,
      You are probably right. A lot of men don't want to admit that they can't do what they use to do easily.

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  26. Maybe he declined help when offered...some men are that way. I really don't know what the cost is here (it's combined with the city's water bill]...but, we have huge trash bins on wheels both for recycle & household trash. Curbside pick-up. We have no truck to haul trash...but, if we did it's free if you have proof of living in corpus.

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    1. Hootin' Annie
      I am pretty much sold on that idea. I sure like the idea of free where you live.

      Delete
  27. I persist in doing what I can for myself though others who see the effort it sometimes take offer to help. I always kindly thank the person, sometimes even accept the offer if I feel the need. I'm inclined to think that's what that man was doing, too, and that nice young man helping you was just respecting the old man's wishes -- maybe keeping and eye on him to see how he was managing. Guess we'll never know the real situation.

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  28. Be careful lifting 50 pounds, Patti, even if it's just a short distance. My only 2 restrictions after my artery tear were that I couldn't shovel snow or lift over 25 pounds. We have garbage pickup here but a couple weeks ago a bear "picked up" before the truck. What a mess. I was hiking, but Bob had a BIG cleanup. A neighbor got a video of the bear on his security cam.

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