This addition of CRV Diaries came about as I was walking along my favorite rocks. I like to walk on the rocks for balance exercise. I highly recommend this form of exercise as a fun way to strengthen all the small muscles in legs and feet.
I wasn’t really looking for recyclables within these rocks. I was here recently, and I figured I had already found most of it. Considering all the crevices between these rocks, maybe it's impossible to get all.
“This is not financial advice”
I was planning to avoid collecting recyclables, but then temptation took over. I was without a bag. I collected anyway and I realized that a few of the tactics I’ve learned are worth sharing.
These first three images show the cans I found while traversing the rocks.
I glanced upon these first three cans, and thought I would just leave them. Then, I found a fourth. A large aluminum can. “Well fučk ît” I said, and then decided to collect all of them.
I didn’t bring anything to carry recyclables with. I don’t like putting soiled recyclables in my pockets. I usually start my walk with an empty plastic bag. I wasn’t really looking to collect. However, like I said, before, my eyes have become trained at looking for this stuff.
Here’s the first tactic I want to share.
As I said, I did not have a bag to carry things. Fluids usually leak out of the cans. It’s a really bad idea to put them in your pockets. Water bottles can be smashed and resealed with the cap, so that’s not too bad. Aluminum cans are nasty and they tear when smashed.
How many aluminum cans could you hold in one hand? It all depends on how flat you can smash them. Our instinct is to smash them from the top to the bottom so that they form a disk shape. This is not the easiest way to carry cans in your hand. I found it’s much easier to put them on their side and stomp on them so that they’re flat like sheets of paper. If they’re flat, you can hold more of them together in one hand.
I could probably hold about six or seven in one hand. This allows me to finish my walk routine without ending early. This tactic assumes you have a good place to drop off. That brings me to my next tactic.
How to store dirty recyclables in your car.
I recommend using a plastic garbage bag to hold the cans. Sometimes you can find barely used garbage bags, but if not, it’s worth it to bring your own.
I use a plastic wash basin that someone was throwing away. It’s nice and acts as a second barrier preventing spillage. The aluminum cans don’t smell good. Beer cans, mixed with soda cans will leave your car smelling pretty bad if it sits in the sun.
The plastic bottles usually don’t smell bad. It’s usually water bottles, so they are relatively clean... MOST of the time.
Never pick up water bottles with yellow liquid inside them.
Pre-separate.
Start out organized and save yourself from the hassle of separating the different types of recyclables later. I prefer to separate them as soon as I drop them off in my vehicle.
Below is an image that shows three sections available for the recyclables I collect.
If you separate the items from the earliest point possible, it makes your life easier. This saves me time and further hassle later. If they’re already separated, you could just dump a large bag and avoid milling over combinations of recyclable items. If I only touch recyclable once, I’m happy.
Organizing the recyclables at the redemption center is annoying to me. Sometimes, it’s a busy place and I would rather just dump off my items and then get out of the way.
That's it for now.
Look forward to part two.
Part 2 is coming soon and discussing a few bad tactics.
“What a time to be alive.”
Thanks for reading and thanks for supporting this post series.
“Stay safe and keep it simple.”
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