Okay, so I’ve been messing around with this whole “waste management standings” thing, and let me tell you, it’s been a journey. It all started when I was looking at my overflowing recycling bin and thinking, “There’s gotta be a better way to track this stuff, right?”
First, I started by just jotting down what I was throwing away each week. Like, literally writing down “2 cardboard boxes, 1 plastic jug, 5 tin cans” on a scrap of paper. Super basic, I know.
Then, I thought, “This is dumb, I need a spreadsheet.” So I fired up a new spreadsheet and started making columns: one for the date, one for the type of waste, and one for the quantity. Felt pretty organized for a while there.
Getting a Little Fancy
- Date
- Waste Type
- Quantity
But then I realized I needed a way to compare my waste over time. Was I actually reducing anything? No clue. So I added another column for notes, like “Bought a bunch of stuff online this week – hence the extra cardboard.”
After a few weeks, I started getting into the data. I made some simple charts to visualize the trends. Seeing those bars go up and down was oddly satisfying. It’s like a game, but for trash!
Next thing, is try to find the best way to show the weight, so I can see the real, I mean phisical data to show how it change. Then I use some simple tools to calculate the weight.
It’s still a work in progress, but it’s been really interesting to see my own waste habits laid out like that. It’s definitely made me more conscious of what I’m throwing away, and I’m trying to make some changes based on what I’m seeing. Still so far to go to be perfect, I think.
