Pearls Before Swine by Stephan Pastis for December 18, 2024

I’m actually like Rat in this way; change is scary until you do it.

I leave my change in a piggybank

I stay away from anyone who trash talks me.

Yea, put it out the night before, the raccoons need something to eat.

In my city we have trash pickup every night. You’re not supposed to take the trash down to the bins until 8 PM. Most people ignore this completely and take it down whenever.

Change is good….

We’re not supposed to put it out until the morning before. I live in an apartment, so I don’t know if that makes a difference but it’s supposed to thwart the Crows.

This may be the only time I relate to Rat.

I would find it impossible to set the trash out that early in the morning. (The timing is unpredictable, BUT, setting it out the afternoon, or evening before assures one of TWO things, that being of having the trash picked up, and #2, being able to sleep.

I always put it out the night before, they come at 2 AM!

We have bears that come looking for trash containers at night.

Our trash pickup can be any hour between 6:30 am and 4:30 pm on trash day (Mondays at my address). We take it out Sunday night. Or afternoon even!

I process change by putting it in the truck ashtray !

Our trash pick comes between 6:15 and “who knows when” so people here do tend to put it out the night before. My friend in another state says her pickup isn’t supposed to start before 7 AM. I don’t think we have that rule. I know it comes that early because I’m up and waiting by 5:30 so I can go out and get the barrel as soon as they leave.

Sure… put it out the night before… that gives the raccoons a lot more time to get into it and scatter it everywhere…

I dunno, when we put it out the night before, the rats get into it.

I take it there are no bears in their neighborhood.

I am now so old that I get miffed if they change the location of things in the supermarket.

As EVERYBODY who knows me can attest to, I am RAT in today’s comic strip!!!!!! Dan aka…ps whoa, dude!!!!!!

I’m like Rat; I admit it.

2nd panel answer: Not our problem!

I worked in the technology industry my whole life — an industry dedicated to getting people to change how they do things to be more efficient. I was always amused by the irony that when you tried to get people (including the engineers) in the industry to change to a more efficient process or tool, there was tremendous resistance even if you could demonstrate it’s effectiveness. It was even funnier when you were trying to get them to use the software that they produced. People are people all over.

‘But that’s the way we always did it!’ Heard that at many jobs. Sometimes, someone would offer idea which improved the task. Other times, especially when it came from upper management with no clue what the task involves, the result was SNAFU and FUBAR.

Our prior house we were early on the trash pickup, like 6 am. Same thing here. Bins go out the afternoon before. Garbage, Mixed Organics and alternate weeks Recycling and Glass.

CHANGE?!?

I take out the trash every time it becomes full.

I take the trash out the night before. I’m not interested in chasing a trash truck in the wee hours of the morning. Fortunately, we don’t have any critters that get in the bins.

From an old MAD magazine:

“Come to our hotel for a change and a rest,

The bellboy gets the change,

The hotel gets the rest."

Sometimes it’s best to rip the adhesive bandage off and get it over with.

Our garbagemen sometimes come very early in the morning, so we usually just take the garbage out the night before.

Why can I relate to that second panel so much? Should I be scared.

Well, this was fun. Didn’t really care about the garbage/trash part, but seeing where the GoComic readers are living was interesting.

If the proposed change is in my personal life and it doesn’t make a significant improvement I’ll keep do it the same way. Living your life like the Bunkers (cheaper by the dozen) is no life.