Get in my belly: Invasion of the Portland trash robots  The
invasion of the trash robots began in the year two thousand and
ten, when the foolish humans of Peaks Island, Maine, allowed two
units to establish a beachhead on their outpost in Casco Bay. In
the chaotic years that followed, this would prove to be a
strategic blunder, as it made the island inhospitable to
refugees attempting to flee the mainland.  The first pair of
robots were invited to the island by a group called the Peaks
Island Environmental Action Team — think The Avengers, minus the
super powers and any actual “action.” The robots hoodwinked the
humans by promising them convenience and litter control.
Instead, they delivered death and destruction.  The robots stand
about four-and-a-half feet high. They are square and stout, with
a tough exterior made of gun-gray metal and hard black plastic.
The humans would eventually learn, much to their chagrin, that
the trash-bots are bomb-, fire- and bulletproof.  photos by
Sarah Bouchard  A crude illus