Trash & Shit

Another sleepless night due to sleep deprivation was made worse by the discovery that the the community room at the “old folks home” was still locked this morning. No instant coffee could be brewed. However, negligence by the night security guard was a blessing in disguise. Coffee was procured at the fast food joint in Kahala instead. A caffeine boost was necessary after four hours of non-stops beeping emanating from the rundown private trash collection truck that services all of the trash dumpsters in the Lower Makiki ghetto. Sadly, there really is nothing more pathetic than sitting in the dining room of the fast food joint and observing all of overweight patrons consuming over 2,000 calories of so-called “food” in one sitting.

A 2,000-calorie breakfast at the fast food joint creates a lot of trash. That’s the same kind of trash that fills all of the trash dumpsters to the brim on the entire island. If the damned trash was compacted first, then only one trash collection day per week would required. Instead, trash dumpsters must be emptied daily. The trash allegedly goes to a landfill on the West side of the island. However, that particular landfill was allegedly near capacity several years ago. Thus, most of the trash is being shipped to the mainland empire. Trash collected in residential areas by the City & County of Honolulu, on the other hand, is used as fuel for the H-Power electric generation plant.

Recycling is a joke in the islands. The City & County of Honolulu offers curbside recycling, but the result is a “drop in the bucket” when considering the non-sorted waste produced by commercial venues. Then, there is the matter of curbside pickup for bulk trash. On any given day, various streets are lined with bulky junk that are victims of the consumer and “ownership” society.

As a pariah, there is just no way to understand or comprehend any of the aforementioned. Only the Great Prophet, Ernest Becker, would be able to offer an explanation. Consumerism is yet another failed “immortality project.” Obviously, all “immortality projects” fail because no one is immortal.