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Vent: My neighbor shamed me for putting recycling in plastic bags and I'm still mad about it
Last week, I was hauling my recycling to the curb and this retired guy from two doors down comes strolling over. He points at my clear plastic bags and goes "you know the trucks won't take those, right?" I've been doing it this way for 3 years in Oak Park. Turns out he was right - the sorting facility jams up on them. Called the city to confirm. Changed to loose bins this week. Still bugs me that a stranger had to tell me something so basic. Anyone else get random unsolicited recycling advice that turned out to be true?
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laura_ross1mo ago
Oh man that's so frustrating! I actually read somewhere that putting recycling in bags is one of the biggest problems at sorting centers because the bags get tangled in the machinery. It's wild that nobody tells you this stuff upfront though. I used to do the same thing until I saw a news segment about it and felt so dumb lol.
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park.troy1mo ago
And @laura_ross is spot on, it's one of those weird things where you just assume you're doing it right because nobody tells you otherwise. But honestly, it's part of a bigger pattern I've noticed with a lot of everyday stuff these days. Like how nobody teaches you the right way to load a dishwasher or fold a fitted sheet, you just figure it out and hope for the best. Then some random person points out you've been doing it wrong for years and suddenly everything clicks. Makes you wonder how many other basic life things we're all messing up without realizing it, you know?
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hugow301mo ago
Yeah it took me finding out the hard way too when I saw a sign at the dump. I switched to loose bins and taped a reminder note to my garage door so I don't slip back into old habits.
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