Things I found in the trash

Lately I haven't had any luck dumpster diving. but I was on my way to school yesterday, when I came across this entertainment center on the side of the road. With a little bit of work, and some help from a friend we were able to set this up in my basement.

This set of shelves, is something I found a few weeks ago, while I was out walking my dogs. I brought it home, and we painted it, we now use it as an art shelf for art supplies.

This key-board was found on a curb in Portage by Portage Central High School. It came with the stand and everything. Every single key works as well as the control panel. 

As a broke college student I was able to refurnish my basement with things I found for free. I was able to create a space in my house that is constantly changing and evolving with the weird things I come across on the side of roads and behind buildings. The point I'm trying to make is that we live in a disposable culture, if something breaks then just throw it away. The amount of waste around us is something we can utilize and use to our own benefit, and with a little bit of work an empty basement can turn into a space of creativity. There are also things found in the trash that can be used for monetary gain as well. A friend of mine recently came across a few computer monitors, and after taking them apart he was able to get around fifty dollars worth of copper. The world of trash around us is a fun one, you never know what your going to find.

A Response to Bill McKibben's Eaarth

After reading the first few chapters in McKibben's book "Eaarth Making Life on a Tough New Planet" I was struck with a mixture of emotions, anger, fear, and frustration. Human impact and its affects on climate, and the environment for me as I'm sure for many others seemed so far into the future that I never really thought I would see the impact in my lifetime. Our ocean temperature's are rising, the glaciers and ice caps are melting, (at surprisingly alarming rates) and the results of those warming temperature's are harsher storms, and stranger weather. McKibben not only puts climate change into an immediate perspective, but he also presents the issue from an economist's point of view. Why would an insurance company pay to re-roof a house if its just going to blow off in the next storm a year later. He points out that there is a huge chain of events that happen with the constant change of climate on our new planet, and part of the larger picture is that we spent so much time and money building up the old world, that to change it to accommodate the new is either going to be extremely difficult, or impossible. One of the reason's I felt angry after reading these chapters is because so much of the third World is not only hit the hardest by the new changes in climate, but also the fact that they have so little to do with whats actually changing our planet. Third World countries like Haiti don't have the money to rebuild after violent storms, and places in India are losing their sources of fresh water, as snow packs are melting too early. I feel my frustration on this issue comes from many different things. I feel powerless, is there any way to change all this, the coal fire plants are not going to stop, it will be too late before any real change happens, and by then the first world will look very much like the third. I also feel frustrated because people cant see past their privilege, so many people are not willing to give up what they already have. America's culture is a disposable one, buy something new and throw the old one out. I see dumpster diving as not a sustainable path for everyone but as a way for me to at least do my part. I dumpster dive not only to keep things from reaching the land fill but also because I'm too broke to buy most of the things I find anyway. If it keeps me from going to the store, and consuming what I could find for free, and I could save a little space at the dump, than why not. 

Hope Human And Wild:

In chapter two of Bill McKiben's book "Hope Human And Wild" the author dissects the South American city Curitiba. Within a country that is very much in the third world, there is a city that is moving in a direction, that I wish more cities would follow. Curitiba is a shining mecca within the country of Brazil,  a country otherwise full of corruption and greed. Cities with large populations deal with similar problems whether they are located within the third world or not. The way government officials dealt with some of these common problems in Curitiba is what this made this city interesting to me. Waste is a difficult problem to solve when a cities population reaches close to two million people. One of the ways to solve Curitiba's waste issues was a government program that exchanges garbage for food. People who inhabit the slums of Curitiba collect garbage take it to a designated location, and depending on the weight of the trash would depend on how much food they would receive. The country of Brazil also has problems with the number of children that would roam the streets, and destroy city property. Curitiba solved this common problem in a few ways. One government program that was implemented was free daycare centers any city resident. Another way they solved this issue was to employ these children to occupy their time, simple jobs were given like helping the elderly carry their groceries, cleaning up parks, and helping in community gardens. Unlike American cities that push their poor and homeless away ignoring their issues hoping they would some day disappear, Curitiba attempts to work with the poor and uneducated giving them more opportunities to find employment, housing and a better life.This is what I took the most from reading about this wonderful city in South America, government officials actually working with the people's best interest in mind.

Dumpster Diving, and Sustainability

          Sustainability is a lifestyle choice everyone can move towards in many ways. I was sitting in my apartment the other day when I came to the realization that 65 percent if not more of everything  I own was either found on a curb, in the trash, or given to me. The idea of recycling is taken to new extremes when applied to rooting around in the trash. Furniture, clothes, dog toys, a vacuum cleaner, picture frames, the list is endless.With the amount of waste I have found and was able to reuse just in Kalamazoo, I was able to move from one city to the next with absolutely nothing. I only had to pay for such a small percentage of the possessions I use on an everyday basis  around my house. The purpose of this blog is to try and expose  people to the things some may view as worthless, many of my exploits may fail miserably, but there really are some treasures out there.