It's Friday morning here in lovely South Pasadena, and that can only mean one thing, It's Trash Day. The town has decided that we are so upscale, that we do not bring our trash out to the curb like other reasonable communites. We pay extra so the trash hauling people drive onto our driveway and empty the barrels where they sit. I don't agree, but the Keep South Pasadena Unsightly contingent is strong.

What this means to your hero is that every Friday morning I need to get up and move Michele's truck out of the driveway before 7AM. 7AM is when the trash haulers begin to arrive. I also tend to uncover the barrels to make it a little easier on the guys.

Today I moved Michele's truck and went open the barrels when I saw a big mess. Some woodland creature had pulled a bag out of the trash barrel ripped it open to get to the contents. As I walked up, I saw this:

It was the turkey sandwich I tossed out after leaving in my briefcase overnight. The creature, I suspect a raccoon, smelled the turkey and made a beeline to it to retrieve a midnight snack.

Michele's eagle eyes spotted this other telltale clue:

Tracks! Tracks on the hot tub cover. Again, I suspect a raccoon. Why? I don't know one kind of animal tracks from another, but it's much cooler to talk aboiut raccoons in the yard than boring, commonplace possums or cats. Those aren't cat tracks!

I must ponder how to deal with this situation. This is the second time the raccoon has gotten into our trash barrels. I must think. Suggestiosn welcome.

Posted by michael at August 23, 2002 07:42 AM