Merry Christmas to all, especially my garbage man!

I had the good fortune this week of being invited to a special Christmas dinner held for employees of the Corbin Public Works, Recycling and Recreation Departments.

The meal, a rather low-key affair, was held at David’s Steakhouse.

I was honored to sit down and break bread with these men because I feel they are the backbone of our city. It’s mayors and city managers and other elected leaders always getting their picture in the paper, or some special recognition for a job well done, but these employees toil namelessly day in and day out to make sure our city is not overrun with garbage and potholes, that our streets aren’t filthy and that the creek banks and right-of-ways aren’t choked with high grass and weeds. They help us be a “greener” city by taking our recyclables. They ensure our recreation facilities are in top form.

In particular, I’d like to talk about garbage collection in Corbin.

I’ve lived in numerous different cities in my life. I came to Corbin 12 years ago and was absolutely shocked how accommodating and lenient the garbage collection program is here.
In many cities, NO garbage will be taken that isn’t bagged and in a container. Period. End of story.
If you’ve got yard waste you want rid of, better rent a chipper. An old mattress or oven you don’t need, you better hope you know someone with a pickup truck so you can get it to the dump where you have to pay extra for them to take it.

This isn’t so in Corbin.

Our local garbage men will take NEARLY ANYTHING! I’ve never had anything I set out at the end of my driveway refused. It was common in Lexington for the garbage men to steadfastly refuse to take a bag that was a little too big, much less something like a broken lamp or an old nightstand or a weed eater.

Forget it!

I had a small storage building in the back yard of my home there where I stored things the garbage men would not take. I was a student and did not know where the dump was located. I drove a Pontiac Fiero that, as anyone familiar with this vehicle can attest, has ZERO room for hauling anything bigger than a thimble. I couldn’t get my groceries in the thing, so I wasn’t about to try stuffing a worn out refrigerator in it. And quite frankly, when you are on a diet of Ramen noodles and Big K soda anyway, $10 or $15 bucks just to leave it at the dump was a small fortune to me at the time.

I, for one, love the mercy and leniency our local garbage men have on citizens here. To me, the fee I pay every month for collection is worth every penny.

I’ve been told horror stories about what a dangerous line of work trash collection can be. I know that only a few years ago, one local garbage man was fairly serious wounded by a piece of glass that sliced his leg when he picked up a bag. I’m sure they run into every rusty, nasty, smelly, poisonous thing known to man in a typical day, which starts VERY early. Bitter cold or driving wind and rain they are there, reliable, ensuring we don’t get covered up in our own filth.

It’s thankless, tiring, grueling work. Those that do it are nothing less than heroes.
So that’s why I was honored to be among them Monday.

I’ll say here what I should have said then – Merry Christmas to all of you … especially my garbage man!