Back when dumpsters were open terrain, friends and I would go shopping in them. Shopping isn’t the best word, maybe exploring is better. The term Dumpster Diving is more commonly used. It’s a reclaiming of what other people have discarded, giving purpose back to things unwanted. Waste stream divergence. Resource reclamation. It’s a way of turning consumerism upside down.
Before we would head out, we’d rally together and give our gratitude and requests to the dumpster Gods. “Here we go dumpster Gods!Ready to receive the treasures you have prepared.” Everyone would tell what they hoped to find or something they needed. “I need some clothes hangers…and some sweaters” , one would say. Another,”Some bread would be nice”. “I’m looking for some fruits and veggies”. It wasn’t really this organized. More like “Hey, wanna see what cool shit people have thrown away? Need anything?…kind of rallying. Then we would make the rounds.
There were the regular dumpsters of bounty. Other places were a crap shoot. Some for particular things like bread. And some you’d never know what you’d find. Some dumpster owners were friendlier than others. Some would post signs and chase you away. Over time we figured out what days the grocery store threw away loads of bread and the day they cleaned up the produce section. The thrift store had mostly clothes. The bagel joint sometimes had trash bags full of bagels. And the super score for everyone was the nearly fresh pizza they were throwing away for no good reason. As a crew, we’d go maybe once a week. But our friend Dave took daily solo rounds and probably had some special secret spots.
One time there was a super load of parsnips. What the Hell are parsnips? We grabbed a bunch for the extended family. We passed them out, “their like carrots but totally not carrots”. Thanks DG, but we think we’re gonna compost the rest of the ones we got, blah. I’ve never eaten parsnips again. Usually we were more amazed at how the dumpster Gods met our needs. Coat hangers? “Hey, here’s the coat hangers you wanted!”. “Sweaters! What colors do you want?”. “Dude, loaves of bread to fill the van”.
Living in a college town, there was the end of the semester big sweep. It’s amazing what college kids will dispose of. Dave once found one of those kick ass remote control cars. He had a ton of fun with it. I think he ended up giving it away or trading it for something else.
It was an adventure, a discovery, and fun times. Instead of the kind of shopping where you pick what you came for, dumpster diving is the kind of shopping where you receive what the gods offer you. You give thanks for what is available. Many people would be ashamed of they were seen reaching into a dumpster and I think that’s unfortunate. Gathering something that would otherwise be wasted should be a reason for pride. Oh privileged cultural ways. How you taint.
Dumpster Diving isn’t the only way to go. There’s also the days when there’s big trash pick up. Furniture and other awesome shit is kicked to the curb. I have an incredible cedar chest and a cute little cafe table thanks to big trash pick up. I picked it up.
This kind of shopping was a way to pass time, puff with friends, and come home with goodies. It was like trick or treating. The Gods seemed to know what we really needed and provided. And those Gods were people like all of us. People who throw good stuff away. Because we live in the land of plenty? We live in the land of the wasteful. And it’s the wastelands that I love. There is a bounty in the places that seem forgotten, unwanted, and not good enough. The trash heap is where you can give new life to what other people have ostracized, to reclaim the sense of “there is plenty” in a world of “I’m not good enough”.
Central and governing meridian zip up. A complete meridian massage could help us all.
ShockedT 