The Great Escape

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Trash-tastic!!!!!!!!



Don't get me wrong - it's not that I am tired of the beach, oh my no, but there are so many other things that this country has to offer, and I hope to see, do, experience, savour and soak up as much as possible before my time here runs out.

Not long after arriving here in Hervey Bay, my bro and I were chatting about this and that. He and his wife have been living here for over 25 years, so have been able to introduce me to many aspects of day-to-day life Down Under - you know, the kind of stuff you don't find in the travel brochures. After touring my brother's workshop, discussing his projects and telling him about my renos and projects back home, the talk, naturally turned to garbage. We have both been influenced by our father, who's philosophy was, "why buy it if you can make it from stuff you find in the back shed or in the trash."

I am not entirely clear on the specific details of how garbage is managed in this country, but I have learned that a lot less is sent to land-fill than in Quebec. In additon to the now-widespread facilities for recycling paper, plastics, metals, Australia has "Recycling Markets" where one can dump unwanted furniture, books, dishes and other household goods, construction materials and the list goes on and on. And, of course, some other "one" can go and buy what someone else has deemed redundant. True, at home I pick through other people's discards twice a year on designated "monster pick-up" days, and grab stuff for free. But that is only 2 days a year.....and while I often find a few cool pieces, the inventory is somewhat limited. But here one can just go to the nearest "Recycling Market", usually open 2 or 3 days a week, and cut loose. Nothing is priced........ one drags the items one is interested in over to a dude wearing a fluorescent yellow-green vest (or vice-versa if the piece is too large to haul) and pour on the charm........the fluorescent-clad dude spits out a price, usually so low as to make haggling seem a little foolish and even inappropriate. Those who frequent these centers regularly no doubt see the importance of building a friendly, respectful relationship with these powerful price-makers, and soon learn which ones are likely to make the best deal.





My first trip to the local center (referred to commonly as "The Tip".....I have no idea why) definitely had the Wow Factor. There was so much stuff to pick through, yet everything is astonishingly well organized.



There is a section of miscellaneous furniturelarge section of chairs



of course lots of booksthe largest collection of glass microwave plates I have ever seen



I found this child-sized arborite table, then came across a tiny silver tray and wee glass....like my staging?



Lots of building materials and lovely old windows.......................

and everything so well organized

We have dozens of lawn mowers......trimmers galore......toolboxes...







this really cool box that I wanted but could certainly not fit in my suitcase..........................lots of hubcaps.........



and just look at this fully-grown-gardener wheel-barrow with a mini version for the little apprentice............



Now after all that home maintenance, some recreation is in order.......perhaps some biking?or skateboarding?

Maybe try out one of this nifty scooters...............and if you take a tumble you'll need some of these......

Once on the mend, you'll need to do some rehab to get back in shape..................



Honestly, I swear they sell just about everything here except the kitchen sink.......

nope, was wrong



and bathroom sinks as well



My quest for trash also took me to a scrap metal depot....pretty much what we have at home and nothing terribly "blog-worthy"........

....except for this sign:...............seems that many words, in the English language, are used differently here. That's the most likely explanation.



About a week after all this refuse-induced excitement, my brother and I took a trip to Brisbane. I thought "The Tip" would be a hard act to follow but nothing prepared me for what I was about to experience. Here I was introduced to something called Reverse Garbage. The concept is so simple and logical that I cannot fathom why I have never heard of a place that does this before. The following description comes directly from their website: "Reverse Garbage Queensland is a not-for-profit worker run co-operative that promotes environmental sustainability and resource reuse. We collect high quality industrial discards, diverting them away from landfill and sell them at a low cost to the general public. We run a variety of environment and waste focused art workshops and educational talks and tours to suit every age and group. We also run a mail order service and host a gallery and gift shop promoting local artists, craft workers and designers who salvage, reuse and up-cycle materials."





My visit to Reverse Garbage had me darting around, trying to take in everything at once, with much jumping up and down, hand-clapping and frequent squeals of delight. The one dark cloud was that my suit-case space is limited and there are many things I just had to walk away from....sniff....sniff.

There are shelves and baskets and bins of all kinds of colourful, sparkly stuff:



These cools hammocks caught my eye and I did actually buy onedespite the dire warning

There is lots of paper and cardboard sheets:cardboard tubingrolls of fabric

a HUGE variety of metal thingieswood dowelsgorgeous tiles sold per kg

rubber matting strips great for letting the floor breathe, no doubt, as for the rest....hmmmmmmm

more metal and rubber thing-a-ma-jigs



Some unexpected items:



....and savvy marketing:



Lots of shiny sparklie things.................................



A vast selection of fake hair for all one's fake hair needs:



Lots of rubber disks, not so flashy but certainly useful (come-on, work with me here)



I can hardly guess how many pots would make up a kilogram but it would certainly be a big ole bunch...this one really hurt me to have to walk away from...................sniff.......sniff.......







I did buy one of these, LEATHER PURSE FOR ONLY $15.00!!!!!!!!! (brand new)



These caught my eye: ............................but yet another dire warning:



There were also items for sale....stuff made with materials purchased here: .....I could do better......





So I hope you all enjoyed this quick tour of Trash Management Down Under. I have been a HUGE fan of garbage since those early days visiting the local dump with my father.....and let me tell you, I for one, am very, very impressed.

But not to worry........I shall be back to the beach before you can come up with a use for all those "Teeth Moulds"..........(or even just figure out why the white ones are cheaper....)

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