Our garbage and recycling haulers are comeplete asshats, but I wouldn't do what "Bob" did. Don't know if "Bob" had a reason or not to refuse backing up, but it most likely wasn't worth acting like he did. Mr. GarbageMan also shouldn't have hit "Bob" thereby making him just as bad. Just more evidence that the Ross Shafer Era Of Almost Live style of Seattle is gone.

I agree with Milo - you gotta give the wave. Nothing pisses me off more than letting someone merge in, go down a tight street in front of me, whatever, and I don't get the wave. I need that wave! Give me the damn wave!

There is no spoon.

What if we're all living in the Matrix?!

What if Bob was your neighbor?

What if garbage men were fake? Your personal, imagined friends? Your own Snuffleupagus...

You wouldn't act like that then would you Bob? Or would you?

What if this story is a fake?
I bet Bob doesn't even exist.

bob sounds like a whimp to utilize an officer to "document the incident" but never felt threatened.
that officer had bigger crimes to encounter or reports to write. and depending how bob phrase his call into 911 or non er line, that would determine the response time to the call. and a few other factors.....

Reminds me of a story a Fred Meyer truck driver once told me about driving on Capitol Hill, I think it was, but Ballard's just as likely.

She was driving her semi down a narrow block when an old lady in a Benz pulled onto the street and drove right up to her. She waited for a few moments to see if Benz would figure it out on her own; she didn't, so the trucker honked. Benz didn't budge. Trucker got out, went to the car and told the woman she has to back up--there's no way the semi could be backed up on that street safely. Benz flatly refuses. The trucker, not seeing any other solution, calls the cops.

Cop shows up, assesses the situation, and tells Benz to back up. Benz again refuses, and the cop asks why. Turns out the old lady never learned how to drive in reverse. Asked how she parked her car or got it out of her garage, she said always got valets or the help to do it for her. And, sure enough, the cop wound up getting in the seat and backing the car to the corner.

Some people just don't get that the world doesn't (or at least shouldn't) revolve around them.

Ballard resident for 20 years, and I wave too!

I kinda feel like most of us still do, I rarely encounter folks who don't pull over when appropriate. Do others disagree?

Maybe I just don't drive enough, I tend to take the bus/bike/walk, so maybe I'm not a good source...

The garbage collection is contracted by the City, they are not city employees. Our garbage collector now insists the alley is too narrow and the cans have to be put at the curb. Funny, they had no problems with alley collection for 25 years before and the only thing narrowing the alley is a feral holly tree that has taken root next to the alley phone pole-on City property.
Milo is correct on all counts.

very well said Milo...it really says it all

Thanks Milo, we needed that.

I don't know if I would have picked a garbage truck to do this battle with but...

it seems like the courtesy/politeness of making room for passing on the narrow neighborhood streets is getting strained. When I first moved to Ballard 8 years ago, ya always waved at the guy who pulled over to let you pass--and vice versa. Now folks hardly even slow down.

Be nice. This ain't New York. And don't forget to wave.

I'm not sure there is enough information in this story to say who was the problem, but the garbage truck driver shouldn't have threatened "Bob". It all seems rather childish to me. In general, I would yield to a garbage truck because they are doing their job and it is more difficult for them to maneuver.

The garbage truck drivers need to obey the yield laws just like the rest of us trust me when you are driving down a crowded street and you see a garbage truck in the upcoming intersection and he does not wait for you to clear, he is a prick and i bet that is what happened to bob because it happened to me. ande it happens all the time. You go Bob

Nah...your still just a "Bob". Thanks for the tip...I will try slowin it down next time. ; -) I guess my question is how long did it take to have the cops arrive to uh "resolve" this? Did it take longer than to just wait a minute (or two) for the big truck to get by and carry on with the day? Some people just need the drama and are getting pretty desperate to go after a garbage truck that only comes around once a week and is in one spot for sometimes seconds. If it was every day I might sympathize...cheers!

Well, you are right Salidali, we've prolly all been a Bob. For examlpe, when I purposely go the speed limit all the way on 3rd from Fremont to Holman, and even a few miles an hour under when I am being tailgated, am I a reverse Bob? I do the same on 8th....

Ludacris is da man 50...!! We have all been a Bob at one time or another in our life (I am not saying that how he handled it was the best way, nor the guy who has to deal with our disgusting waste). Maybe he had to get somewhere like REALLY bad. This is kind of like when Wolf from Wolf's garage was seen buying beer in the middle of the day and was immediately classified as a dirty alcoholic...boy were yah wrong...This is no different than when someone tailgates me all the way down 8th (and you know who you are) when I am already going well over the speed limit trying to get them to back off...I sure want to get out and beat em but I don't...I just don't do it. I slam on my brakes instead...

BOB U SUCK! MOVE TRICK GET OUT THE WAY GET OUT THE WAY BOB GET OUT THE WAY!

I am usually blown away by the politeness of the drivers in the Seattle area. I'm new and they are much nastier in all of the places I've lived.
Bob is being a jerk.
I guess it's the exception that makes the rule.

Our garbage man is rather rude, to be honest. He throws our cans into the street after he picks it up. He's thrown our trash can lid away instead of placing it back on the can, and several times now, he simply doesn't bother stopping to pick up our trash. I've watched him do this.

One day, about a year ago.. I watched him slowly drive by, look at the can and drive off. never bothered to stop for it and just kept on going.. I called his supervisor about it, they came out and told me that the garbage man felt the trash was too heavy for him to lift. Keep in mind.. he actually didn't stop to check it, he just drove by. The supervisor made me walk outside and dig bags of trash out of the can.. telling me she would have him come back in an hour to pick up the "lighter load" Guess what.. he didn't show up until the next week, where now my trash has doubled. Now, I'm just over 5 feet tall and have joint and back problems... if it was too heavy or him, how the heck was I able to carry it to the street with no problems??

I should also point out, my dad is a garbage man. He called bullshit on this too. I don't know why our garbage man is so rude to us, but it gets old. I watched him just last week toss our can into the middle of the road and almost run over it. I drive most of our trash to my dads house now, where he takes care of it for me.

I won't say this "Bob" was in the right, because this actually makes him sound like a huge ass. BUT.. there is probably way more to this story, and if this garbage man is the same one we have.. well, I wouldn't be surprised if it was the same one.

I'm with Bob on this one. Our garbage collector is a jerk. Even when there is plenty of room to pull over, he will sit his truck in the middle of the road all the way down the street. Makes everyone else back into driveways and turn around.

the garbage truck driver is gangsta

Ballard woman...prolly...ha, ha. I haven't seen that word in a long time. Love it!

There must be more to the story...simply for the fact that it makes no sense whatsoever to triffle with a garbage man.

For the record, our garbage man is the best.

Jeez Bob, it is obvious that the city workers have a job to do, and it is much more difficult to move the big truck than your car....what was the point in making it so difficult and putting him off his schedule? I agree...Bob is an ass

I'm with boardbrown. Bob is an ass. And a tattletale. Come to think of it, he prolly has a chip on his shoulder cuz he spent his early years gettin' pounded on the playground for pissin' everyone off...

Bob digs in his heels, pisses off a garbage collector, forces him to back up...then complains to the police. Forgive me, for I can only go on the imformation provided, but Bob comes off looking like a total ass. And a whinny one to boot.

Hmm, I agree with pioggia. Trying to get a garbage truck to back up vs. a car are two very different things. Hard to say who's at 'fault' from the story. Seems like both parties could have acted in a more congenial fashion.

Bob needs to appreciate that it is alot harder to back up a huge garbage truck than it is to back up his car - and that while he may be trying to get someplace - those guys are just trying to do their job. I say, when in doubt it is common courtesy to back it up, bob.

Bob the Backer?

I wouldn't take on the garbage collectors, they're doing a vital (and unpleaseant) service in trucks that genuinely have no manouverability on our tiny side streets, but I've sure as heck wanted to do something similar to the UPS drivers that regularly double park & block our streets when there is plenty of parking space not 10 feet away...