tAlkiN' TRaSh wIth raY & dAvE

A special visit to Kansai University: How can we overcome the social stigma of working with trash?

pickitupsf@gmail.com (ray & dave) — Mon, 15 Jul 2013 20:32:00 +0000

It was a real pleasure to be invited to Prof. Meli’s class on Eco-Criticism last Tuesday morning at Kansai University. If you’re reading this as a student in that class, thank you all for your participation. It was the first time that I’ve had the chance to teach a university class about trash, and I enjoyed it quite a bit. Here in this blog post I want to share some of the information that I found in preparing for the class, and to ask you a question for discussion online.

First, here is the PBS article with the video that we watched together in class. It describes San Francisco’s trash policy and efforts to become a “Zero Waste city”. In the video, you’ll read and hear about the private company that manages the city’s waste, recycling, and landfill, called Recology. Try visiting their website and see how they’re trying to change people’s perception about trash and recycling.

Actually, changing people’s thinking about trash is the topic that I wanted to discuss more in class, but didn’t have time. I mentioned the Japanese NPO Greenbird that I discovered recently, and found SmileStyle and other articles like this and this online as well. In the San Francisco Bay Area of California, many groups organize to clean up trash, and sometimes you can see articles about dedicated individuals who volunteer by themselves. For example, Beverly Knight is an individual volunteer featured in a local newspaper, and ZeroTrash.org is a group that works in several places in California.

Still, raising consciousness about reducing trash and living in a clean environment is difficult work and, I think, there is a significant social stigma attached to the act of cleaning up trash. As I have volunteered with a few friends for several years cleaning trash from the streets of San Francisco and Berkeley, this is one of the main obstacles for me: it’s difficult to explain to my family, friends, co-workers and others that one of my hobbies, and one of my new social identities, is being a “trash guy” who takes pleasure in cleaning the streets. To illustrate this difficulty, in Prof. Meli’s class I handed out copies of this blog post; there I described my experience one day in San Francisco, when I saw a bunch of trash on the street, but still couldn’t move myself to clean it up in front of a group of strangers.

If you have time, please read over the blog post and think about whether or not you’ve ever experienced a similar dilemma of overcoming social stigma. Your experience might be about cleaning up trash, or any kind of social or environmental action that you know is the right thing to do, but that people might look down upon.

What was your dilemma, and how did you overcome it? Or were you not able to overcome it?
Why or why not?
What does your dilemma show us about social norms, environmental ethics, and/or cultural differences?

Please feel welcome to comment here in a few sentences, in English and/or Japanese. I’ll be happy to read about your experiences, and will comment back to you from my home in the U.S.

Thanks, everyone!

Dave

No Butts on Bancroft! And other notes from our 1st pick of the year.

pickitupsf@gmail.com (ray & dave) — Sun, 20 Jan 2013 19:30:00 +0000

Well you know it feels like a while since we've been on a good, wholesome outing of trash picking. But with the energy and determination of a new year, with fond memories of last January's Sproul Plaza cleanup, and with the National Day of Service yesterday, we figured what better time to get back to the streets. And in this case, the streets in front of UC Berkeley, where classes start again in a few days, and where you can find some of the grossest trash specimens around.

We put out an announcement on the presidential inauguration/Day of Service website, and were super happy to be joined by an enthusiastic group of faces old and new: Youki, Chika, Mark, Margaret, Pauline and Dave were the crowd. Unfortunately, t-ray was still pulling espresso shots for Japantown's ravenous coffee crowd, but he's sure to be there for the next one...

We cleaned up both sides of Bancroft from Telegraph Ave., though really, we could have spent the whole afternoon around these benches in front of Sproul Plaza--there must have been 50 plastic bottle caps on the ground!

And then as we made our way up Bancroft, past Bowditch, the YWCA, the art museum, past Strada, you know what stuck out most? Sure, there were the usual culprits: #5 non-recyclable coffee cup lids, empty pizza boxes and other random pieces of cardboard, plastic spoons and forks from the local eating establishments. But...

But yeah, how about this Reddit discussion thread with over 6,000 comments??? *

Yeah, but. But. Butt. Butts. BUTTS!!!

Seriously, they were everywhere. As if it's not littering to throw your cigarette butt on the ground after smoking. Do that many people really smoke in Berkeley? Pauline counted 20 she picked in just a minute or two before the butts got the best of her. And that wasn't even outside of Henry's or any of the other drinking spots. Clearly a topic for more debate. And potentially even a Kickstarter campaign.

As we walked back from the International House and picked up Durant Ave., swung back up Telegraph to Sproul Plaza again, and now, looking forward to 2013, I was excited talking to Margaret about possibilities to work with local youth on trash-picking and awareness-building, to team up with cool ideas for documenting experiences and outcomes so that the sense of community and personal satisfaction grow grow grow (like, for instance, doing a podcast about trash!)

Well, that's it for this little report from the streets of Berkeley. Back atcha again soon! I'll sign out with a few questions...

If you were on this pick, what were your most memorable experiences?
Where should we go & how can we spread the love next time?

* thanks PL for the Reddit introduction!

pickitupsf@gmail.com (ray & dave) — Mon, 13 Aug 2012 18:43:00 +0000

TRASH/LITTER Update: Japantown, San Francisco, Monday August 12, 2012

The weekend brought in an energy into the neighborhood...a contributing factor, could have been the lovely weather we had....sunny, crisp, cool breeze, blue skies...
people were out and about chatting, smiling, kissing, always a good sight to see on the sidewalks and plazas of any town....
as for the litter left behind...well, the streets were pretty clean overall, just a few scattered bits and pieces here and there... things were looking clean in the Peace Plaza..

could it be that we are becoming more aware of our surroundings, and doing our best to keep trash off the streets and sidewalks? i think so....

more later

ray

movin' trash like the Albany Bulb

pickitupsf@gmail.com (ray & dave) — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 23:21:00 +0000

Have you ever heard of the Albany Bulb, locally famous for its trash art installations? Check out this blog post by Jane, where she talks about her trash and shares this video about the Bulb.

Thanks, Jane!

Talkin' Trash trailer featuring Patty and the Mystery Picker

pickitupsf@gmail.com (ray & dave) — Fri, 29 Jun 2012 21:47:00 +0000

If you haven't seen it yet on Facebook, Twitter, or your other favorite social network, check it out here, the sure-to-be-hit trashy show of Summer 2012, pushing us to ask anew: Will the world ever be free of litter? What would it take to get everyone to pick up just one piece of trash a day? How can you & I work together to make our neighborhood better?

And that's just the tip of the iceberg folks...

Thanks to Jim, Mike, and Patty on the production, and kudos to t-ray on the vid production here!

Sharp Eye Pays Off for Oakland Picker

pickitupsf@gmail.com (ray & dave) — Mon, 25 Jun 2012 17:44:00 +0000

Long-time trash picker Claire A. was rewarded handily for her hawklike eyes last Thursday. Following an apartment fire on 7^th Street in Oakland that had displaced residents and disrupted transbay BART service, A. reported that she was riding near the affected area when she spotted a suspicious-looking green piece of paper on the street. “It looked like money,” she explained, “so I went back to get it.”

Sure enough, A. had stumbled upon the largest sum yet to be found by a Talkin’ Trash volunteer—$20, nestled right in there with the other bottle caps, pieces of cardboard, and cup lids. “You never know what you’ll find when you’re out on the street,” A. concluded. “I just wish it had been $100."

let's write, let's sing a picker's "that's cool, that's trash

pickitupsf@gmail.com (ray & dave) — Sat, 23 Jun 2012 21:27:00 +0000

So Ray & Dave & Patty are trying to cook up a smokin' rendition of the Street Cleaners' 1964 song, "That's Cool, That's Trash", as a theme song for the upcoming TV show. Check it out here:

So as you can probably tell the lyrics are basically a celebration of a "general spirit of drinking age joie de vivre". Yeah. We wanna soup up the hot rod here for our trash pickin' endeavors, and wanna ask you for your help. What would this song sound like if it went for the general spirit of neighborhood walkin' and trash pickin', and made you smile all the while? Let's mash it up, re-write it, put words that you think should be in the new version...comments below welcome!

Lyrics copied over (by hand, thanks) based on version on this site:

there's gonna be a big party at my house
(la-la-la-la-la-la la-la, that's cool)
I'm chargin' two bucks to get into my house
(la-la-la-la-la-la la-la, that's trash)
you know the food and the drinks are all for free
if you wanna pay the cook you gotta find-a me

now there ain't gonna be any kissin' on the dancin' floor
(la-la-la-la-la-la la-la, that's trash)
and there ain't gonna be any dancin' on the kissin' floor
(la-la-la-la-la-la la-la, that's cool)
i got a lot of records for you to hear
but my phonograph hasn't worked for over a year

...

there'll be a lot of cool chicks who love to rock now
(la-la-la-la-la-la la-la, that's cool)
they gotta leave by nine o'clock now
(la-la-la-la-la-la la-la, that's trash)
but later on we can go for a ride
i got a new motor scooter with powerglide

June 3rd in Oakland: Bashin' Trash with the JLDA

pickitupsf@gmail.com (ray & dave) — Wed, 06 Jun 2012 06:06:00 +0000

Well, it seems that trash-picking activities are gathering momentum in Oakland and across the bay. Just a little over a month since hundreds of volunteers picked and cleaned their way around East Oakland at the April 28 Keep Oakland Beautiful event, and following our own pick in uptown Oakland the next day, we were tipped off by stalwart trash talker & picker Claire the Extraordinaire about an annual event in her neighborhood that would be too good to miss.

Since 1999, the Jack London Neighborhood Association and in more recent years the Jack London District Association has put on an annual "Trash Bash" that brings residents in the area together to set broom and pickstick to the pavement, and remove dozens if not hundreds of pounds of plastic bits, wood pieces, cardboard scraps, empty cups and cans, cigarette butts, and all kinds of other junk from the streets--all while collecting pesky e-waste from community members too. If you want to read about all their past bashes you can see them on this page; being of the academic ilk, I'm personally a fan of their write-up of Trash Bash III in 2001, mostly because of the spiffy PDF format and their nice before-and-after pictures (see below).

We had great conversations and informal interviews with Ben Delaney, a founder of the Jack London District Association and long-term president of the association; Dan Dunkle, leader of the Radiance Oak live/work community, and long-time community advocate Gary Knecht. And we all walked away with full stomachs thanks to Steve Sacks of Prime Smoked Meats and the team of food donors and volunteers they had lined up. Tons of fun talking to you at lunch, Jamel and Lance!

And yes, because by this time we know that you're all wishing you had been there and wondering how you can find out more, we can tell you for sure that some footage from our conversations with Ben and Dan will be featured in the first episode of our TV show forthcoming via the Midpeninsula Community Media Center (expect within 6 weeks--sorry, folks, this ain't the nightly news, but we'll keep you posted).

In the meantime, and in the rest of this post, we want to shift modes from mostly language to mostly images, because they tell so much of the story of the spirit of the streets that you can come in touch with when you're out there picking with like-minded folks. A few of us took the shots below but they're right in tempo with what the folks from JLDA read from pictures like these, when they write: "While roaming the streets you may discover the answer to life, the universe and everything" (from the Trash Bash VI page). So, here's to the answers, or, at least, to the discoveries:

Here's Youki, Claire (taking picture), and a few other Trash Bash volunteers (out of view of the camera here) working the street. Before...

and after...

And now here's Claire putting the finishing touches on this street by the 880 overpass. Looks almost picturesque, doesn't it?

...while Jim focuses on pickin' butts out of hard to reach places:

Now Ray models his modified trash picker's belt, replete with found tools, bags, and even chopsticks for those hard-to-reach items:

Then, after the three hours of picking was over, Ben and Dan spoke to the crowd about just how much had been accomplished:

...and everyone listened in the middle of all the eating, drinking and dancing:

Last, but not least, I have to share the second sighting of the rare bird known as a "wug" (thanks, Humphreys, for the point-out). Because, while in the days, weeks and months following a trash pick-up like this, the wind blows and more trash accumulates on the street's surface, there are discoveries made and memories formed that go much deeper.

Trash Bash 2012 with JLDA on Sunday!

pickitupsf@gmail.com (ray & dave) — Mon, 28 May 2012 05:01:00 +0000

image from JLDA site--click to visit

Hi folks, ready for a little pickin' fun this weekend? Join us as we join the Jack London District Association for their annual Trash Bash event, featuring a few hours of picking, free lunch, and a trash Art Show in the early afternoon. Yeah! RSVP on their site to make sure you get a free lunch, & we'll post more info soon...event flyer? pick challenge? trash quiz? who knows what might happen when a group of wily pickers gets together...

Before You Just Do It by silly.millions

pickitupsf@gmail.com (ray & dave) — Sun, 27 May 2012 23:58:00 +0000

This is a song about many things..some of these things we all need to consider, think about, question, and act on.....it was written in 1991 and performed by the swamp zombies in Huntington Beach, CA. lyrics by t-ray vogelzang

when do you listen to shoes
to tell you what to do

my shoes tell me nothing
my shoes just keep walking

when did all this pavement get laid
weren't feet meant to walk on the earth

my feet wanna feel the sand
the mud and grassland

Almost 20 years later, this song re-emerges as a possible theme song for the Talkin' Trash with Ray & Dave Community Access tv series....

its basic commentary focuses on the individual human being in relation to the non-human corporate machine...

'listening to shoes' in the song refers to Nike shoes....who has always been telling us to JUST DO IT...
but why should we....
let's think for ourselves before we just do it...

what do you think?

Amplifying the pick with the Sea Scavenger Conservancy, May 12 2012

pickitupsf@gmail.com (ray & dave) — Sun, 13 May 2012 19:39:00 +0000

Yesterday Youki & I hopped on BART so we could join up with Lorraine Palmer and the Sea Scavenger Conservancy for their monthly industrial shoreline cleanup. We were expecting to be down on the rocks with our toes almost dangling in the water by Mission Bay or further south, but yesterday the schedule brought us to the stretch of the Embarcadero between Pier 40 and the Bay Bridge--"from plate to gate", as Lorraine said.

We could try to report back on every bottle cap and cigarette butt, every plastic wrapper and empty chip bag, every bottle of booze and torn piece of fabric, every lone shoe and single-use dental floss--and so on and so forth--that we picked off the ground and put into the big lined malt bags that SSC uses for picking. Actually, these bags are worth a post by themselves--they're perfect! Easy to carry, tough, big, and as Lorraine showed us, having a liner lets you keep the occasional little treasure separate when you don't want to toss it in along with the rest. And you'll find lots of little treasures when you're out on the pick long enough.

Yup, we could report on that stuff. And sure, hopefully we did help keep a few (dozen) pounds of plastic and other junk out of the SF bay. One thing we definitely did was to meet some cool regular volunteers and others who were just discovering the joys of picking after signing up through the volunteer placement organization, One Brick. Those little things--and for us the mini talkin' trash team getting joined by Hsinyu who BARTed over from Berkeley in the middle of the pick--give you inspiration, and help you learn about the place you're in too.

Yeah, we could try to report on everything. But after looking at the bay, and the ocean, while you put one little piece of trash after the other into your bag, it's also pretty easy to feel overwhelmed. It's too much for a few pickers, or ten, or even a hundred to do. How, I've been wondering since yesterday, inspired by the spirit of all the volunteers, do you not only amplify the efforts you're making (getting more and more people interested, picking up more and more trash), but also to make efforts that take place in one place in one time by one group of people stand up and speak further, longer, and with another audience? Even after the wind has picked up and the empty chip bags over there blow back onto the sidewalk we just cleaned....

Here's one idea. Try clicking on the blue lines and the little colored pushpins on the map below. See the half mile along the Embarcadero where all the Sea Scavenger Conservancy volunteers picked bags of stuff off the streets, out of fences and bushes? See the picture of the mystery schedule that Zack guessed was for training truck drivers? See the sewer cover where I tried to fish out some paper and plastic (luckily didn't lose the stick down there, whew)? See all the places where more pins could be added, telling the stories and showing the sights? If you were on the pick, and heck, even if you weren't, you can add to this map too...click it...go there...drop a pin...make it grow...

View Sea Scavenger Conservancy 5/12/12 Embarcadero pick in a larger map

Looking back on this pick, looking forward to the next...

pickitupsf@gmail.com (ray & dave) — Tue, 01 May 2012 16:04:00 +0000

finding trash with heart...

Well, we have to say that our trash pick in uptown Oakland and over to Lake Merritt on Sunday afternoon was pretty much as awesome as trash-picking can get. Good conversations, thought-provoking finds, a public poetry reading and, oh yeah, lots of trash cleaned from the streets! Altogether we were seven volunteers and spent almost three solid hours cleaning and bagging trash, and chronicling some of these experiences, thanks to our steady cameraman Mike.

There's lots more to say of course but instead of my trying to summarize it I wonder: if you were on the pick, what's one memorable experience you had? Connection you made? Thing you found? Picking technique you developed? Or other memorable aspect of the afternoon?

And if you weren't on the pick, but were there in spirit or involved in picking somewhere else, we'd love to hear your pickin' thoughts too!

Uptown Oakland trash pick on April 29

pickitupsf@gmail.com (ray & dave) — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 18:34:00 +0000

Even though there were hundreds of volunteers picking yesterday for the big National Day of Action via Keep America Beautiful (see the link in our blogroll), apparently there is still some trash left on the streets of Oakland. We're gonna hit the streets with Claire, Jim, Mike, and anyone else who'd like to pick. Meet Sunday the 29th at 1pm right in front of Rudy's Can't Fail Cafe, at the corner of 18th and Telegraph Ave., next to the Fox Theater, and a super short walk from the 19th street BART station. From there we'll go toward Lake Merritt...welcome all, join the pick & smile...

View Larger Map

Investing in the Fillmore

pickitupsf@gmail.com (ray & dave) — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 08:53:00 +0000

We were glad to see this article on the Fillmore, just down the street from Ray's place...: "S.F. Mayor Lee and Supervisor Olague Announce Increased Investment in the Fillmore"

Many Things

pickitupsf@gmail.com (ray & dave) — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 20:25:00 +0000

Many Things A cool song by theFinalscubadivers...listen to it and dance ! He quit the final tourguides, or was he kicked out? hee hee

"C'mon, let's go!": Overcoming picker's anxiety at Geary & 25th

pickitupsf@gmail.com (ray & dave) — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 22:45:00 +0000

A few days ago I was transferring from the 38L to the 29 in San Francisco's Richmond district, heading to visit a few dear friends who were leaving the country later that day, starting a new life again in their home country of Japan. The clouds had broken above, after several days of rain, but still a very sad day. As I crossed the street to wait at the bus stop, I checked my bus schedule. 5 minutes until the bus would arrive. And this is what I saw:

Yup, your eyes aren't lying. There's a plastic big-gulp cup, a bunch of papers, a to-go container with some noodles spilled out over the concrete, and why not, parts of an orange smashed onto the sidewalk. It looks like someone(s) almost made it to the trash can, but decided to dump things right next to it. Or was it a windy night the night before they emptied the can, and there was overflow spilling onto the sidewalk. Or someone, or your local raccoon, foraging through the can in the early morning hours. A mess no matter how you look at it.

I was thinking about the time, and looking at my watch. I wanted to pick this up, such a mess! But I hadn't brought my pikstik. Then I thought--wait a minute, I have some plastic bags in my backpack. I'll just use one as a glove, and pick up the pieces of trash one by one, and drop them into the can. Kind of like dog owners do with the dog's...well, you know.

Then I started to hesitate. There were 7 or 8 people sitting at the bus stop already, waiting there with me. People dressed nicely, even fashionably, with sunglasses on, looking at their smartphones or disinterestedly off into the distance. Was I ready to start handling those noodles? No matter that I would be using a plastic bag; it still seemed like I'd be touching that trash with my hands, and suddenly I felt the stigma of being a trash guy, a trashy guy. I had the bag in my hand, but I thought about it more, buying a little time by looking down the street again. Was the bus coming yet?

And then, the most beautiful of things! An older man, maybe close to 70, and much shorter than me, had jumped right in, taken up the task, with no hesitation whatsoever! He was crouching down, reaching and grabbing at the trash with a pink bag (mine was white), dropping the junk into the can. Then he saw that I was looking at him, bag in my hand, and motioned at me: "C'mon! Let's go!" he said.

And so I did. I reached down next to him and grabbed some noodles, and then that piece of orange that you see in the picture above. Cleaning it up only took a few seconds (sorry, we didn't have the tools to take care of all that moisture underneath) and before I knew it, the man had produced a bottle of water from his bag, and was pouring it over both of his hands, washing them. He offered it to me, and though I wondered if our hands even needed washing (they were protected the whole time--was it a symbolic cleaning ritual?) I accepted gladly and he poured the water over my hands too.

We had had just enough time to shake off the water and grab our bags, smiling at this moment of unplanned partnership, before the bus came and everyone else got in line. I got on first and sat in the middle of the bus. He stopped at the door to talk to the driver, and sat down in front. And just like that, we never got to speak to each other again, but I smiled again at this picking experience. Why worry, I thought, about how it looks to be picking up trash alone. There might just be another picker right there with you.

And an article for your consideration...

pickitupsf@gmail.com (ray & dave) — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 15:35:00 +0000

Which Award-Winning Author Thinks The 1% Needs Us More Than We Need Them?

A song for your listening pleasure...

pickitupsf@gmail.com (ray & dave) — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 05:38:00 +0000

My Father Looked Splendid In His Uniform

pickitupsf@gmail.com (ray & dave) — Sat, 24 Mar 2012 02:38:00 +0000

Dave Malinowski for Bike Commuter of the Year 2012 !

Dave has been a dedicated 2-wheelin' get around the world guy for all the years I have known him...
going on 10 plus years now! He commutes to his work at UC Berkeley daily, hits the cafes to study and grade papers, and write, crosses the bridge to San Francisco to meet colleagues, gather language study groups, hangout with friends at the coolest cafes, and more...always on his bike!

I remind you this has been his lifestyle for years, and he even brings his fold-up bike on trips to Europe!
Not to mention that he carries a trunk load of 'stuff' with him when he rides...unbelievable..really!
Of course he trash picks from the bike, albeit a difficult endeavor...

There is no one more deserving to be crowned Bike Commuter of the Year 2012! Please show your support for Dave! Let's do this!

Click the link below for more info on this...Thank you everyone !

Sincerely,

Ray from Talkin'Trash with Ray&Dave

http://www.youcanbikethere.com/nominate-bike-commuter-year

House to Vote on 9th Transpo Extension Just as Time and Money Run Out

pickitupsf@gmail.com (ray & dave) — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 23:03:00 +0000

House to Vote on 9th Transpo Extension Just as Time and Money Run Out

Eyes on the Street: More Progress on JFK Drive Parking-Protected Bikeway

pickitupsf@gmail.com (ray & dave) — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 22:51:00 +0000

Eyes on the Street: More Progress on JFK Drive Parking-Protected Bikeway

Television Personalities - Magnificent dreams

pickitupsf@gmail.com (ray & dave) — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 15:56:00 +0000

The Street Cleaners - That's Cool, That's Trash

pickitupsf@gmail.com (ray & dave) — Sat, 17 Mar 2012 19:55:00 +0000

FM Belfast: Par Avion

pickitupsf@gmail.com (ray & dave) — Sat, 17 Mar 2012 19:51:00 +0000

Television Personalities - 'The Girl Who Had Everything'

pickitupsf@gmail.com (ray & dave) — Sat, 17 Mar 2012 19:48:00 +0000