The End of the Blog

I started this blog in the spring of 2015.  I was fairly new to living in downtown Minneapolis.  I had gotten rid of my car and was adapting to the car-less lifestyle, finding pleasure in walking along the Mississippi River trails and learning the bus system.  But I remember how disgusted I felt when I saw all the trash floating along the river's edge.  Why wasn't the city doing something about it? Whose responsibility was it?  The first time I took a garbage bag out to pick up trash along the river I remember feeling slightly embarrassed that I was doing this work.  Keep it to a weekday and maybe no one would notice me.  I remember that first year I was working along the river just north of the Hennepin Bridge, two police officers approached me and asked me what I was doing and had I seen anything suspicious that I might like to report.  I hated that feeling that the park is supposed to a dangerous place.  And so I started to write about my "just taking a walk and picking up some trash" adventure.  And today I end my blog, not the walking or the picking up trash part, just the writing about it.  This last picture I include was taken a few weeks back just south of Bassett Creek.  I've spent a lot of time on this beach picking up trash but it was overtaken by homeless campers in the summer.  It started out with one tent pitched way too close to the water's edge and by now that tent has got to be flooded out.  Later, another tenter arrived and in early September there were seven or eight so I took my trash collection efforts to the other side of the creek.  The campers are mostly gone but the mess remained.  I haven't walked back through the area and I suppose Park and Rec could have been notified to clean it up.  I think Minneapolis has its hands full right now with the giant homeless camp that bloomed along highway 55 and the Cedar Avenue exit this summer to pay much attention to this one.  I've not gotten involved with the homeless issue, just trying to help out when folks abandon their camp and help restore it to its natural state. So on the positive side, what else have I discovered with this picking up trash adventure?  First, you can get to a heck of a lot of parks in the Twin Cities using public transportation.  Second, I have developed a new interest in identifying the beautiful wildflowers that I see along the trails.  And lastly I think that there is an absolute positive mental and physical health benefit that occurs while walking in nature.  So, I'll keep exploring the excellent park system we have in the Twin Cities and also take a bag with me to do my small part in keeping the parks looking great.

First day of Trash Picking in the New Year

 I was back out picking up trash along the river yesterday.  First trash walk for 2018. Snow is melting.  Weather is approaching 50 degrees. Technically it's spring but that means nothing in Minnesota.  There will certainly be more snow.  Recently, my brother-in-law Bob showed me a Facebook article about folks in Sweden who jog and pick up trash.  They call it plogging.  https://mashable.com/2018/02/13/plogging-fitness-trend/#9YwcPXibUmqx  I'm only half Swedish and I don't jog. I really only meander and contemplate life while I pick up trash.   I still get all the benefits with walking, reaching, bending, and lifting.  I've got a few aches today.

I'm still working the area in between the Plymouth and Broadway bridges.  "The Stretch" is what I call it and why go anywhere else.  This may be the most neglected strip of park property in the Twin Cities.  There is no scheduled Park and Rec Earth Day cleanup here in April.  I don't think anybody has wanted to work this area.  But really with Pryes Brewery now located across the street on West River Road, it could be the perfect spot for a group to pick up trash and then meet for a beer.  I'll have the Dublin Dry Stout please.  https://www.pryesbrewing.com/

 

 In addition to the usual single serving chip bags, candy wrappers, cans and bottles, there was a ton of plastic sheeting material from pallets and large chunks of Styrofoam that blows in from all the industrial businesses that are located across the road.  It would be great if some of those employees had an opportunity to leave work a little early and stop by the park to clean up.

I came across two burn piles along the river.  That's not a campfire.  That's a spot where somebody is stripping copper for easy cash and sending pollutants into the river.  By the way, there is a pair of ducks that would like to start a family nearby.

Speaking of birds, I came across the remains of this large headless one.  Definitely 20 plus pounds. Is this a snow goose or maybe a swan? I wonder how many plastic bits were in its stomach.  As I was looking at these remains, I noticed a family further down the river throwing something in the water where I had just cleaned up. Up went a puff of something in the air.  As I was coming up off the river to the trash can, I saw them carrying an urn back to their car.  There goes Grandpa heading over the St. Anthony Falls to the hereafter.  For myself, I am starting to think that the mushroom suit might be a cool way to dispose of whatever is left of me. Do we have that option yet in Minnesota?  https://grist.org/living/mushroom-burial-suit-turns-dead-bodies-into-clean-compost/

There are always a few of these needles to be found.  Put them in a bottle and cap it off. Safety first.

Someone has been having fun under the Plymouth Bridge recently.  How warm does the air temperature have to be for the city to repaint this?

Final photo for the day before I head home. This decaying fish (an eagle's lunch?) along the shore reminded me of that big trash pool the size of Texas floating out in the Pacific and the problem it is causing for aquatic life.  https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/great-pacific-garbage-patch-full-ocean-plastic-keeps-growing-n859276    Personal responsibility and the work we do in our own communities is only a part of it.  So how are we going to solve that problem?  Will it eventually wash up on Venice Beach in California?

Cleaning in the Weeds

I've had a busy couple of days here walking from downtown Minneapolis to the Broadway Bridge and beyond.  I wanted to get out some of my aggression by picking up Styrofoam bits along the stretch after listening to Trump tell the world that the USA would be leaving the Paris Climate Agreement.

First I want to thank the City of Minneapolis and Park and Rec for their removal of this graffiti at First Bridge Park.  I used the online city graffiti complaint page to ask for this to be covered over because it is neither artistic nor interesting.  The online method is pretty painless.  Take a picture, give the location (street address or intersection) and wait a couple of weeks.  (I did pick up that trash there on the steps.) 

I made a little cardboard dust pan to sweep up this mess.  I left 3 pennies behind.

Goat's Beard are blooming along the walking path.

I found this stuff in the weeds near the ramp where the water skiers do their summer shows.  That can opener is an old model.  The engine additive has probably already caused some pollutants to get into the river.

Artifacts...we are just supposed to leave them alone.  I think it depends on what it is.

There is always so much Styrofoam along this section of the Mississippi River.  The small bits are such trouble to gather up.

Sometimes I find interesting stuff along the way.  That's a bag of weed just below the beer can.  About 2 cups worth.  What's the street value of that?  Since I was almost to the Park and Rec Office I walked it over there.  The Park and Rec Police office in that same building.  They were not that eager to have me turn it over to them.  They said I should have called 911.  Such a bother.  I should have just dumped it in the weeds and recycled the bag.  Anyway, if you are missing your pot, try the lost and found at Park and Rec.

Earth Day vs Science March

It's hard to know where to put your efforts when there are two worthwhile events on the same day.  I'm going to choose the Science March this Saturday because I can get back to picking up trash anytime.  Minneapolis Park and Rec have almost 40 sites for folks to choose from. Just look online and pick up your bags and gloves from one closest to your home.  Of course you want to clean up your own neighborhood first.  If I was going to host a work site it would be the green strip along the Mississippi River and West River Parkway between the Plymouth Bridge and the Broadway Bridge.  It's a mess right now and it's not listed as one of the work sites for Earth Day.  I started working up there today. It would be better to have an Earth Day event on a Friday there because you might get help from the businesses across the street.  But on Saturday I'll be at the Science March.  And if you ask me why I will leave you with their Mission Statement from their website. "The March for Science champions robustly funded and publicly communicated science as a pillar of human freedom and prosperity.  We unite as a diverse, nonpartisan group to call for science that upholds the common good and for political leaders and policy makers to enact evidence based policies in the public interest."

Thank you Minneapolis Park and Rec

I just have to say a big thank you to Minneapolis Park and Rec.  Sunday morning I was working on my "adopt a river" mile and noticed this new trash barrel.  I was going to take a photo, but there was a homeless man sleeping on the bench so I had to come back after he had left it.  This is the bench that I wrote about in my blog last December the 15th.  This is the bench with the nice overlook of the river at the mouth of Bassett Creek. It's also a good spot to hide and have a drink or two and a nap and it's also the place where a lot of folks pitch their trash down the hill.   When I first started picking up trash last spring, I came across a couple of guys on this bench and my first thought was I just better get out of there.  One of the guys turned around and looked at me.  A native american guy, he was definitely drinking, but when I looked at his eyes I thought this man is really ill.  Unexpectedly, he just said "thank you so much for cleaning up".  Recently I met a guy here who started up a conversation with me. He thanked me for picking up trash and said "Don't think that what you are doing goes unnoticed".  And then he asked me if I knew why people leave their trash here.  I knew what he thought was the answer and so I said "yes, it's because there is no trash barrel here".  He agreed.  He also told me that people like to drink here because they want to hide from the police and not be hassled.  I noticed he had his backpack chained and locked to his waist.  I wondered if he was homeless.  He said many of the homeless guys are chronic alcoholics and are just looking for a place to hide away from people who might take advantage of them.  This path isn't as isolated as that guy thinks.  I see all sorts of people here, dog walkers, grandma with the grand kids, runners, and park and rec police patrolling on bikes. The barrel will help I think.  It was half full of trash already when I walked by the second time that morning.  So thank you Park and Rec.

Cub Cart

Last Wednesday I spent a couple of hours collecting trash along the stretch of the Mississippi River between Broadway and Plymouth Bridges.  This Cub Foods cart was down a slope and in the weeds about a 100 ft north of the Broadway Bridge.  I didn't try to bring it up because, really, what am I going to do with it anyway.  I thought about that cart when I got home and looked online to find the nearest Cub Foods.  There is one in North Minneapolis on Broadway so I called the store and told them where to pick it up.  I thought about calling Park and Rec first since its on their property but why not just let Cub solve it instead of one more thing that Park and Rec needs to do.  Park and Rec has been in the news lately because they might be asking the citizens of Minneapolis for money this fall.  A lot of money.  Something in the neighborhood of $300 million.

http://www.startribune.com/minneapolis-parks-to-seek-300-million-from-taxpayers/365999511/

I'm not sure about what I think about raising property taxes, but I do know what I think about the parks that we have in Minneapolis.  I've been in Minnesota thirty plus years, but only lived in Minneapolis for the last year and half.  I rely on the parks to get me out of the urban-ness that I have thrown myself into.  My walks in the park are different than my walks downtown or in the skyway.  The skyway is like a pedestrian freeway.  I weave in and out of people just like they were cars, passing by slow walkers and dodging inattentive ones that are looking down at their cell phones.  I avoid the tall, agressive panhandler that can make a walk turn nasty.  My mind is not quiet as it is in nature.  I do like to observe folks downtown. Where are you going for lunch? Why did you choose those shoes to go with that outfit? I eavesdrop on conversations.  The endless complaining about co-workers, work load, bosses, etc.  Sometimes there's something good to overhear.  There was the Dad who was trying to convince his three small boys that the fountain in the IDS Tower is where a giant comes to shower in the morning.  I enjoy my downtown walks, but my mind is not peaceful.  I came across a great article in the New York Times about what parks mean to people like me who live in an urban setting.

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/07/22/how-nature-changes-the-brain/?_r=0

So walking outside for me quiets the city life of noises and drama.  I walked in the park on Wednesday for two and half hours. I picked up some interesting stuff and I felt particularly peaceful when I got home. So ok, I might be convinced to vote yes next fall.

Walk to Ole Olson Park

About 2 miles north from downtown Minneapolis is Ole Olson Park, a small park of only a couple of acres. The Park and Rec path from downtown dead ends here just before the railroad bridge. There is a lot of trash to be picked up here. Maybe I'll walk back up here in March to work on it.  We noticed the slope going down to the river was bare.  Friends of the Mississippi is working with Park and Rec to remove invasive species and restore the slope to dry savanna.  The details of that project can be found here:  https://www.minneapolisparks.org/_asset/y5ssr0/orvin_ole_olson_park_fmr_factsheet.pdf

Now that the slope has been cleared you can see that it's a graffiti playground under the BNSF Railroad Bridge.  It was so bright yesterday morning and the shadows so intense, it was a challenge to take photos. By the afternoon it was in the high 50's.  Not normal for February in Minnesota.

Leftovers from the party.  Nice shoe.

Freshly done? The graffiti here is mostly stylized lettering and while I have little appreciation for that I do like the color combination here.

If I were going to go back to clean the litter in this area, my policy to still to leave homeless camps alone.

Here is where I have a problem though.  This is a closeup of a burn pile for removing the insulation from copper wire.  There were several burn piles here.  Whether or not this stuff was obtained legally or not, you don't burn it. It's illegal and we don't need these toxins released into the air or the river.  

http://www.scrapmetaljunkie.com/873/burning-wire-illegal

Ok, enough whining and time to start the walk back home.

Whose Trash Is It Anyway?

I was out early this morning for my trash walk to Far Beach wearing long pants and a sweatshirt.  JOY! The heat is gone. Watched thunder and lighting and rain last night from my balcony while listening to an old Outlaws version of Ghost Riders in the Sky.  Yippie i ay, yippie i oh. Naturally, after the storm there was new trash that had floated onto the beach.  This Marine Max sign must have floated in from some business selling boats upstream.  It was laying half on the beach and half in the water.  So whose property is it actually on?  Does the shoreline of the Mississippi River belong to the State of Minnesota?  When the shoreline is part of the park does it make it Park and Rec property which means City of Minneapolis?  I don't know.  I collected a bag of junk as usual plus this sign and brought it up to the Park and Rec trash bins.  A trash collector from the City of Minneapolis was there and said I couldn't leave the sign there.  After some discussion he took my sign (after smashing it up) and was off to the incinerator.  I asked him about the stove top down on the beach and he let me know that I can't just drag anything out of the water or I could incur a stiff fine.  (Just how much of a fine are we talking about?)  The stove top was technically not in the water, it's on the beach and the last time I looked for it I couldn't find it. Someone else may have brought it up!  I told him about the big fan thingy I dragged up a few months ago.  I called the city about it originally but after waiting for a week or two I finally broke it into pieces and put it in a trash bin.  It was definitely on park property to begin with so I think I'm safe there.  What about when I pick up trash under the Hennepin Bridge (not park property) and put it in the Park and Rec trash bin.  Ok, not ok?  Isn't it all city property anyway? Today I took a stick and grabbed a Frito bag that was floating in the river.  Clearly in the river, three feet out into the river.  Guilty!

New wardrobe

Monday afternoon I was thinking about going to get that microwave I saw in a ravine north of the 327 James I. Rice Playground but I didn't make it that far.  Instead I went down the side of a hill just south of the playground to a spot on the river that I had started cleaning a few weeks back.  Heavy wet jackets, pants and the usual assortment of bottles, cigarette packages, styrofoam cups, water bottles, hot sauce packets.  I find a tremendous number of hot sauce packets along the river.  By the time I climbed up I was kind of tired and the trash can was several hundred feet away.  I decided to call the city 311 number instead which is what you call if you have a problem that is only 34% as problematic as a 911 emergency.  They connected me to the Park and Rec department. I explained my problem and I asked if they could send someone over to haul this stuff away and possibly look for that microwave.  The guy I spoke to was very nice and suggested I sign up to be an "official" volunteer.  (I might but I don't like to be supervised!) The problem with stuff along the river's edge is that it might not technically be park property so who is responsible for cleaning it. We are fortunate to have many parks in Minneapolis but only so many dollars and workers to take care of that much property.