Tuesday 5th (Big Day)
Received fun e-mail about the trash I thought I could use for the start of Issue #5. Had a Trash Walk with Julie Hernandez, 3rd District Code Enforcement Officer and a couple of her associates. Looked at various disgusting piles... Took pic of Julie at one of the piles... she didn't like it but I said if I published it I would at least point out she's from the Third District and not technically responsible for this stuff... Sent her an e-mail afterwards thanking her and expressing my hope that something would be done soon.
Wednesday 6th
Received nice e-mail about the trash site. Felt good. Read some of the new Michael Moore book. Must add it to the site and urge people to read it - but not necessarily buy it.
Thursday 7th
Called Julie to see if any news as a result of the Trash Walk yet... Voice mail, so left message.
Friday 8th
Came up with a full proof way to eliminate fast food trash forever, but the fast food industry wouldn't like it. Came up with a letter instead to deliver to all the fast food places in town to see if they respond.
Saturday 9th
Spotted two condoms along Mesquite Springs Road (City Side)... really disgusting.
Sunday 10th
Read article about the new Listerine Pocketpaks being a huge instant success with $100 million of sales being projected in its first year. Immediately came up with my Future Trash pic idea. Amused myself anyway. Watched the 9/11 program on TV. Footage very disturbing, but not as disturbing as the commercial break when after all this horror and carnage, and death, they fade away to the NY skyline and the announcer says... “9/11 is sponsored by Nextel.” I almost threw up.
Monday 11th (Big Day)
E-mail from Julie to say she's been off sick since our Trash Walk and I would be hearing from her when there was some news... Had to be in Yucca today for a couple of hours while they smogged our car... And I'm sorry to say that I think I took around 70 of the saddest pictures I've ever taken in my life. It made me think of all the natural (and unnatural) disasters that have occurred in the world, and think, ok-they're terrible, but at least they are over with... this one is going on around us now. We have to do something. Made me think how clean it is here in 29 by comparison really, even with the huge mess we've got. Was surprised to see Gary Blackman of 29 Palms Code Enforcement turn the corner in front of us... wondered what he was up to in YV (and hoped the City wasn't getting billed for gas if he was just at lunch). Immediately on my return I sent an e-mail and a picture of an oil filter to: The Clean Team in YV, Julie at the Third District, and Kathy Bingham at County Waste Management... My plan (before I took the Yucca Valley pictures) was to make Issue #5 a fun issue, with constructive ideas, and with links to resources, and offer solutions to problems... I asked them all to send me any information about Trash Day they would like publicized on the web page... I was already thinking these pictures have to be shown, but that would kill any hope to make this a fun issue. Thought to myself: if we can't go back to taking our own bags to pick stuff up from stores, and don't ban all plastic bags now, (at least in the hi-desert), it's a sorry road we're heading down. Issue #5 is now tentatively going to be a Trash Day / Kiss Your Earth Goodbye Day special. I ask myself, if Ansel Adams were alive today, would he photograph landscapes and trash merged like this? Watched the six month tribute to the victims of 9/11 and saw a crane with the word HITACHI on one of the crane arms as it was pulling through the wreckage... wondered if Hitachi make cranes or if this was some kind of subtle sponsorship deal? But actually sponsorship is what we need here in some way... make it worthwhile for a corporation to get involved with the incentive of exposure. The before and after would make one hell of a picture.
Tuesday 12th
Manufacturers have to be made to take back old stuff after we've consumed all the parts we need from it. I don't mind doing my bit and consuming as much as I can, but they have to help take the old stuff afterwards... otherwise I'll have to stop consuming for a short period while I get rid of it myself, (and that's not good for business)... Why can't every retail outlet who sell Duracell batteries have a recycle bin for old Duracell batteries to be dropped into.... without such a return bin for old batteries, you wouldn't be allowed to sell new ones... Had an idea the County should make people spend a day picking up trash, just like they make people do jury service... if you get a letter for jury service, you should get a letter for trash pick up one day a year as well - or at least offer the choice of one or the other... Heard back from Barbara at the YV Clean team with info for the Trash Day volunteers Saturday, April 13th. As pleased as I am to see a recognized Trash Day, I'll be the first one checking on April 14th to see what got left behind and has wait until next year... Decided we had to have a name for our trash clean up crew like the Clean Team has... like the idea of “Trash Man Walking” . Still can't work out if we have one or two Trash Day events a year... it's in 29 Palms and YV on the same day, so is that what they mean by two sponsored trash day programs, even though it's only one day? I'm still fuzzy on this one day / two day thing. If there is a second one later in the year, why don't we mention it now to get ready for it and mentally prepare... Tried working on the Yucca collage, but looking at the pictures depressed me and I had to stop.
Wednesday 13th
You've Got Trash! Discovered today that the Mayor of 29 Palms works for Stater Bros. supermarket... wondered to myself if this wasn't a conflict of interest in some way... how do you reconcile being the Mayor of a city that recognizes wind-blown trash is a blight on the desert landscape while at the same time, the plastic bags from your own supermarket chain are part of that blight blowing across the desert right now. Thought about having a contest: Spot the number of Stater Bros. plastic bags hanging from bushes... First prize would be a hundred dollars worth of groceries from Stater Bros. with every item in its own plastic bag for convenient recycling possibilities. Have to make issue 5 the first step in getting rid of plastic bags.
Thursday 14th
Sent e-mail to Gary Blackman about the condoms along Mesquite Springs Road... don't really want to add them to the site because they are too disgusting even for me. Asked him to let me have any Trash Day info for the City so I can post it to the site. Definitely want to make this the last issue... I've said every issue is the last one since I started, but there's always been something new to add, but unless something gets done, I'm not going to keep adding more of the same... I'd rather spend my time out walking and picking up trash than repeating things... I want to do some 'before and after shots' when something gets done but until then it seems pointless doing any more when all the stuff shown on Issues 1/2/3/4 is all still there. If something positive happens I might feel inspired enough to do an Issue 6 - The Clean Up Begins. But until then, this is the last one. That should make some people happy at least. No word back from Gary.
Friday 15th
Definitely a day off today. Will try not to think about trash in any way... breakfast at Bella Rouge then head out to Amboy Crater and Kelso Dunes for some serious R & R. E-mail in from Gary Blackman telling me the person he thinks is handling the City organized Trash Day is out of the office, he's left her a voice mail and will let me know asap.
Saturday 16th
Have to report yesterday's day off from trash was a huge disappointment... I think I must be cursed. Hard to find anywhere and take a picture where there isn't any trash... Amboy Crater, National Monument... tires, bottles, cans, plastic, paper, all littering up the place... Kelso Dunes, National Preserve... looked like a mini-dumping ground.
Sunday 17th
Walked for a couple of hours and picked up three more bags of assorted trash. Must e-mail Kathy and Julie again tomorrow asking them to come and pick this stuff up from my property. Received e-mail from someone in MA who says their trash is out of control as well... seems to be a world-wide epidemic. It's a shame joy of life doesn't mean as much as actual life otherwise something might be done... well maybe anyway.
Monday 18th
E-mailed Kathy Bingham... worked on next issue ready to go online by 25th hopefully. Another e-mail in from Gary Blackman telling me as soon as he knows who is organizing the City Trash Day he'll let me know... (No thanks for my used condom alert or reason why he was in YV... obviously none of my business.)... E-mail in from Julie Hernandez... too bizarre... it seems that due to some recent redistricting, this is her area after all... I can't help wondering why it's taken two weeks to find that out, but I suppose we're at least maybe a step closer to getting something done. Also picked up a copy of the local Sun Runner 'community' magazine today... figured I might as well check out the schedule of events for April and see what they're telling people to do for Trash day... stunned to find no mention of it anywhere... looked again but nothing. Nothing for Earth day either. So much for that brilliant idea. There is an Art & Craft fair though in MV on the 13th... which begs me to ask the question: Why would anyone would organize an event to conflict with the one day a year we pick up trash? I don't get it.... and of course there's a Serendipity Tea on the 14th (to take your mind off the trash I suppose)... Couldn't help noticing as well the 29 Palms Wild West Gran Prix event on the 6/7th... where nearly 1500 motorbike racers are expected to rev their engines to the max and pump out as much smog and pollution as possible in our wonderful hi-desert air. I guess that takes care of the Earth Day celebrations... Am I the only one who thinks recreational pollution like this is an insanity in our time? When I die, and if they name an event after me, I would like it recorded that it must be eco-friendly and non-polluting... preferably a chess match between two non-smoking vegetarians who walked or rode their bikes to the tournament... Sent Julie e-mail an response to her discovery today of this being her area. Another fun e-mail from Arizona today... it seems someone in Surprise wants to camouflage all plastic and other trash so people don't see it along roadsides... must include it in new issue.
Tuesday 19th
Read some pretty disappointing articles about global warming, ice sheets melting, and emissions... Don't think we have much hope for the future anyway, maybe I should just kick-back like everyone else .... should at least offer the graph and the links to some of the stories around the world for all the good it will do.
Goodbye Cruel World: http://www.guardian.co.uk/globalwarming/story/0,7369,659892,00.html
Story Index more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/globalwarming/0,7368,395145,00.html
At least nobody can say the people out here who litter aren't conscientious... While walking we found a prescription drug bottle from Walgreen's... It was empty so no real hazard there, but the person who threw it out was dumb enough to leave the computer numbers on while smart enough to scratch off their their name... funny stuff... No word back from Julie today - or Gary for that matter - or even Kathy... what cushy jobs some people have.
Wednesday 20th
Nice e-mail today from Nancy at the JTNPA telling us our design work for them was recognized at the APPL convention for Parks, Monuments, and Historic Sites in Atlanta last week. E-mail in from Senator Boxer's automatic e-mail reply service thanking me for my comments. Sent an immediate reply thanking her for her generic thank you e-mail. Maybe a fax might be better next time... re-sent my previous e-mail to Kathy Bingham again with additional comments... again asking for urgent response. Still no word from Julie. How this County functions without replying to people is a mystery to me. I'm sure they'd rather just pretend the trash doesn't exist and that I would stop complaining about it. Working flat out to get the new issue online asap, and responding to e-mail, but it's taking up a lot of my time that I'd rather spend outside picking up the trash... be glad when this issue is done and online.
Thursday 21st
Woke up early and was making the usual cappuccino when I heard a truck pull up outside in the driveway... looked outside and saw the words Code Enforcement on the side... strange I thought. I wasn't even dressed yet but went out to see what it was about... seems someone (I assume Julie or Kathy) had arranged for the truck to come out and pick up all the bags we've collected. Apparently there was supposed to have been some advance notification that never happened, but who cares... at least they took the stuff and we now have space for more. A positive step in the right direction at least. They also took the bed in the road. Now just got to get them to address the large piles dotted around. I'm tempted to e-mail them and thank them, but since they haven't replied to any of my latest e-mail's I'm also inclined not to... we'll sleep on that one, probably will tomorrow. Followed up the phone number in Ontario about TV and computer monitor disposal... seems they charge a $30.00 per item disposal fee for everything you need to get rid off... I imagine that, plus the round trip to Ontario and back, will put off a lot of people from disposing of this old equipment properly to say the least. I asked what happens to them when they get them and was told they are shipped to Phoenix for recycling... lucky old Phoenix I say.
Friday 22nd
Spent all day and night writing e-mail and working on this final issue. No news from anyone worth reporting... Almost 3:00 AM... time to shut down and resume tomorrow.
Saturday 23rd
Almost finished, should be online by tomorrow and then I can rest up for a day or two. Had amusing idea to take picture of myself covered in bag blight.
Sunday 24th
Big day, finally get to get Issue 5 online and cross my fingers that this will be the one that gets the problem sorted out... but I've thought that to myself every issue so far and been disappointed. This is the last diary entry.