17 DEC 06: YOU HAS-BIN

The view outside my bedroom window changed Saturday. It happened when a road tractor backed into the driveway, hooked up a giant dumpster and hauled it away. At least it all made plenty of noise, so I could wish it good riddance....

A construction company has its office next door to my apartment complex, and the staff apparently decided to do some major renovation this past week. It started when a dirt driveway on the far side of their building was covered with gravel. If dirt isn't good enough, you know they're serious.

Gravel covered the open space behind the construction company's building as well. Then a small Caterpillar front-end loader was brought in. For all I knew, they were going to build a giant Christmas tree in the pack - and videotape it, to show off to prospective clients.

The reconstruction work came as a surprise to me. It was also jarring, since I working an overnight shift and trying to sleep during the day. I mean, have you ever considered the people who have to live next door to an "Extreme Makeover Home Edition" house for a week?

While I kept my bedroom window closed during sleep time, the sound of the shifting construction equipment kept me awake one day. I don't normally set an alarm clock when I work overnights - but with neighbors like these, I didn't have to.

The good news was that the next day, the construction noise stopped. The bad news was that it was replaced by banging, as if someone was filling a giant dumpster. At my scheduled wake-up time, I climbed out of bed - and when I looked out my window, my guess was right. A giant dumpster was close enough for me to add my own garbage. And it was so full, I doubt the staff would have noticed.

How ironic it was to discover the giant black dumpster had "Sandman" on the side. I certainly wasn't sleeping as a result of it. In fact, Mr. Sandman had brought me a nightmare - sort of like an overnight shift I worked in suburban Atlanta years ago. On one memorable Friday, a next-door neighbor just HAD to turn up rock music outside while he worked on his car....

Once my short stint on overnights ended, I walked by the Sandman dumpster to take a close look at its contents. It was filled to overflowing, with what looked like wooden tables and shelving. I had no room for any of it - but couldn't they have sold that stuff in a yard sale, or on the Internet? Or was all the throwing the staff's way of getting daily exercise?

The best news so far is that the renovation seems to be over. The Sandman dumpster was loaded onto the back of a road tractor Saturday, and driven away. But we're sad to say trash piled next to the dumpster was NOT picked up. It's still there as I write this, late on Saturday night. "In the neighborhood" usually is close enough for the prison inmates who pick up trash....

The dumpster was right next to the construction company building, and I suppose it's on their property. But people in my apartment complex have used that spot to park cars over the years, including me. Who knows what stray junk may be left there now -- although it's probably an improvement from the bullet I found in the driveway one afternoon.

I thought about walking over to the construction company, to ask exactly what was going on. But I haven't -- since it's probably not really my business. If they decide to pile up the gravel next and leave my window looking like snow flurries fell, that could change....

E-MAIL UPDATE: It's always nice to hear from readers like you:

Thanks for an entertaining year...hope next yr is the same...

You're welcome - but we're not quite through with 2006 yet. In fact, on Monday we'll start our annual review of the year's most important and most unusual stories. Maybe all the big stories will converge somehow - and we'll learn Jim Wetherington tried out to be a Little League pitcher.

Now for news headlines from a weekend which feels more like mid-March than mid-December:

+ Columbus city officials held a public hearing about drainage problems on Effingham Way. New development near the Ginger Creek subdivision apparently has caused occasional flooding, but the city lacked the funds to buy out necessary property. And at this time of year, a lack of "Ginger bread" can be embarrassing.

+ Muscogee County schools began an extra-long winter break. Counting weekends, there's no class for 18 days -- which makes that "12 Days of Christmas" stuff look pretty old-fashioned and out-of-date.

+ WRBL reported a Phenix City man won $250,000 in the Georgia Lottery "Slots of Luck" game. Maybe he can donate some of that money to the Don Siegelman defense fund....

+ Two Columbus radio stations held dueling "holiday help" missions. WAGH-FM provided dinner and clothes to the "98 neediest" families. WFXE-FM gave away toys at the Civic Center. And perhaps "Viva 1460" will hand out free Spanish-English dictionaries.

+ Tickets went on sale at the Columbus Civic Center for a Toby Keith concert in February. I walked by the main entrance Friday afternoon and saw a man with a folding chair, talking on a cell phone. Does this make him a bigger loser than the guys who waited all night for PlayStation 3 systems?

+ Peach County pounded Shaw 28-7, to win the AAA high school football title. Somewhere the Northern Little League All-Stars raised a toast with soda cups - because for now, they may be the only major sports champions in town.

(Peach County's nickname is the Trojans - which I guess makes more sense than calling yourselves the Fighting Peaches....)

+ The Atlanta Falcons hurt their playoff chances by losing to Dallas 38-28. The Falcons ran several plays with Matt Schaub at quarterback and Michael Vick at running back. Now if Vick can teach some of his receivers how to catch passes more often....

(Atlanta kicker Morten Andersen kicked four extra points, and set a National Football League record for most career points. And WDAK radio set a local record for the longest "ten-second pause for station identification" - thus missing a tie-breaking Dallas touchdown by Terrell Owens.)

+ Instant Message to the Dairy Queen on Macon Road: Huh?! You're selling two chili dogs for $2.23? Why not $2.22? Are you already figuring in a higher minimum wage?

BURKARD'S BEST BETS: Gas for $2.08 a gallon at Fuel Tech on Milgen Road.... "Celtic Woman: The New Journey" at 7:00 p.m. ET on GPB.... and a full parking lot at Peachtree Mall around 3:00 p.m....

Thousands of visitors read this blog every month, in Columbus and around the world. To advertise to them, offer a story tip or comment on this blog, write me - but be warned, I may post your e-mail comment and offer a reply.

BURKARD BULK MAIL INDEX: 3393 (+ 114, 3.5%)

If you mention this blog in public, please be polite enough to let me know.

© 2003-06 Richard Burkard, all rights reserved.