In case you haven't heard the joke about where the Lone Ranger takes his garbage, sing my title to the tune of the William Tell overture/Lone Ranger theme.

Dumping is free at the Lockwood landfill this week! But don't be like me—read the fine print and don't make assumptions.

I hate to whine, but wouldn't you think a dump would be open during daylight hours or at least all day? We arrived there yesterday 10 minutes after it closed—at 4:30! (Note that the dumping article says it ends at 4, which probably means they won't let you in after 4 but would give you until 4:30 to dump and get out of there.) The transfer station in town manages to stay open until 6, so I don't know why the landfill can't do the same. And silly me for assuming the hours were the same at both places.

You need to know something else if you haven't been out to the Lockwood dump in a while—you don't get there through Lockwood any more, so don't take that exit. Now you have to drive even further, take the Mustang exit and drive the long way toward the east and then double back before approaching the entrance. What's several extra miles when the public is paying for the fuel?

I guess the ride wasn't a total waste because I got to see a lot of wild houses along the way.

There's wildlife at the transfer station, too—birds. They drenched our pickup while we were unloading last night. Expect to pay about $20 for a pickup load there. (They won't take vouchers for mattresses and other items.)