Managing Our City's Garbage

It seems that no matter where we look nowadays we see clutter of one kind or another. These leftovers are often deemed of "no value" and so they are tossed into the commonly shared spaces of our lives. When we are driving on Interstate 5 we easily see a wide array of folk's extra stuff, enough to fill a couple good sized dumpsters. On a "good day" this visual landscape might include appliances, furniture and even spare car parts. There are also countless recyclable items: cans, bottles, newspapers, junk mail and enough plastic bags to refill all the "check out" stands back home.
This past weekend Blaine hosted the annual cleanup day for our spare rooms, closets and basements that have too much crud for too little space. The city hall upstairs ballroom turned storage loft was over stuffed with everything from past won parade trophies to broken chairs that all went into a huge trash container. City manager Gary Tomsic is an everything has it's place kind of guy and really supports this all neighborhood wide cleanup project anyway he can. His efforts go from gathering garbage, to coordinating labor, to cooking dinner for the day's community volunteers.
When we reach out and embrace our neighbors we see pictures that enhance everyday life in our own international community.
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