Gates open
It doesn’t really matter if March comes in like a lamb or a lion. All that matters is that the Elora Waste Facility was set to officially reopen on March 3.
You have no idea how big of a deal this is in my house. Just ask my husband, the Carpenter.
The man who can’t remember important dates like anniversaries, birthdays or bill due dates unless I write them on the giant calendar posted to the front of the refrigerator has mentally marked this date in his mind since Wellington County officially announced the reopening.
In fact, he remembers that it closed at the end of business on Saturday, April 5, 2025. He’s been counting the months.
You think I’m kidding. I assure you, I’m not. This event is bigger than the seasonal opening of garden centres for spring planting, and I assure you, he’s champing at the bit to get to those greenhouses. His needs and amusements are simple (I’m literally skipping over the obvious punch line here because I adore him and also, most days, I still amuse him, and after this many years, I’m grateful for that).
But in my heart I know nothing makes this man happier than a trip to his favourite place in all of Wellington County.
We aren’t even allowed to call it “the dump” anymore. It’s the transfer station.
It has status, you know.
He actually pondered aloud whether the kiosk at the renovated facility would still be blue. “They likely had to change that up for the new scales. Oh, new scales. Imagine what this is going to be like,” he said dreamily, staring into the void of possibility.
It’s nothing against the Belwood Waste Facility. He enjoys that one too. It’s nothing against the Riverston landfill, or Rothsay, Aberfoyle or the further drive to Harriston – places he would go to if absolutely necessary.
But, as we once lived near it, his affection for the Elora Transfer Station is akin to his favourite ball cap or hoodie or his leather recliner chair. Comfort. Nostalgia. Community. Maybe they feed him snacks. Not sure.
I was going to mark the grand reopening date on our refrigerator calendar. Why bother? All I had to do was mention that come spring, we were going to need to get rid of the accumulation of items we’ve been holding on to since the clearing out of my recently deceased aunt’s home. Items that couldn’t be donated or recycled are housed with us. Winter weather has stalled the effort to discard it. Spring cleaning will now include several truckloads to the Carpenter’s happy place.
By the time you read this, the Elora Waste Facility will have had its opening day. I sure hope they handed out goodie bags, coffee, maybe gas barbecue grills, something, because I know who’s going to be amongst the first at the gate. It will be a reunion 11 months in the making. An emotional moment for sure. I won’t know though, because I’m not invited to ride shotgun on a run to the dump – er, waste facility. That’s a sacred mission. So be it.
The world needs more simple joys and deep gratitude for where we live and how we live. In all of this, a happy Carpenter makes for a happy life.
Thank you, Solid Waste Services staff at the County of Wellington, for opening the gates and getting our early spring off to a good start.
