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[chrystaltree]

Ick...gross....disgusting. And for what? A bunch of ancient magazines that came from who knows where. My dad was long distance trucker and his hobby was "rescuing" what he thought were perfectly good items that "someone can use" from curb sides. But he was a smart man. He had rules. Like he would never take anything that was upholstered because you can't sterilize stuffed chairs, couches etc. He'd take wood chairs with the intent of refinishing them. He'd take lamps that he was sure just need a little rewiring and shade to be as good as new. Things like that. It drove my mom crazy! Because he worked 80 or 90 hours a week and he never actually got around to refurbishing the items he put in his workshop out back and the few that he did repair, he never got around to actually finding "homes" for them. I'm pretty sure he wouldn't have seen any value in magazines that are almost 10 years old.

[DoneTryin]

LOL! I recently gave my youngest sister a small silverplate candy dish that she retrieved from a dumpster back in the early 60s & gave to our mom, & I got it from mom's things when she passed. So sis was dumpster-diving a long time before it became popular among polite folk. It used to be something only the "bums" did to get food, clothing, & the occasional cigarette butt that wasn't smoked all the way down.

[Jacie]

Watched that show on TLC about dumpster divers who got all their food that way, between that and hoarders show, well, the ICK FACTOR is too high for me!

[Frau K]

I have a friend who goes to estate sales, yard sales, finds things in alleys and dumpsters. He then refurbishes the items to sell. A little side business. He was redoing an old sofa and found ten thousand dollars packed in there! WOW

[Southernfriedchick]

On 3/1/2015 chickenbutt said:

I didn't expect to be the oddity. Maybe it's just another neurosis of mine, but I'd have to pass on the dumpster diving deal. No offense - more for those who are open to it.

My only thing, kind of in that regard, is that I will 'save' little stuffed animals and trolls that I've found laying in a parking lot or on a sidewalk (clearly when there is nobody to claim them). I'm weird, I already know - so no need to tell me. But my heart just breaks a little and I have to pick them up, take them home, clean them up, and give them a happy spot in my house. Once I tried not to and I had to go back and get the little guy. Haven't found a troll in eons, but I did save one from a burned out house decades ago and found one in a parking lot once, probably 20 years ago. It's mostly little animals.

Loved your post.

[colliemom4]

I saw the dumpster diver on TLC. She went to grocery stores and took food they were throwing out then cooked up a meal for her co-worker and his girlfriend. I can't recall if they ate it, but I do remember them being grossed out and leaving. This woman also showered in her clothes to wash them and her body at the same time. She said she saved a lot of money that way. She did a lot of strange things.

[Yesyesyes568]

Desperate times thirty years ago, Never say Never to those of you that say Never". I was in that position desperate, and yes I dumpster dove. It was for myself not for anyone else but for me and it was for pure survival, but I survived. That was a very long time ago, in the past, but I don't regret it. And I'd do it again if I had to, but I hope I don't have to. But Never say Never becos you Never know tomorrow.

[RedHeadedWench]

I have. When we lived in Alabama, our next door neighbors sold their home and moved out of state. Someone went in and cleaned the house, and placed a box on the curb and left. I saw something shiny sticking out of it and walked over to see...it was an entire box of Mark Roberts Christmas ornaments. They are very high end and expensive. I grabbed them. About two months ago, we were off to the grocery store, and we noticed a sofa and ottoman on the side if the road in our neighborhood. We knew the people, so when I made my husband pull over, I thought it might be something nice. I got out to get a better look, and there was nothing wrong with it except it needed to be cleaned, and even that wasn't much. The neighbor came out and we spoke to him, and it turns out, they were buying something new, it was being delivered that afternoon, and he didn't feel like taking this sofa to Goodwill. He even helped us get it to our house in his pick up. A great find for my daughter.

[sue52]

On 3/3/2015 maggie568 said: Desperate times thirty years ago, Never say Never to those of you that say Never". I was in that position desperate, and yes I dumpster dove. It was for myself not for anyone else but for me and it was for pure survival, but I survived. That was a very long time ago, in the past, but I don't regret it. And I'd do it again if I had to, but I hope I don't have to. But Never say Never becos you Never know tomorrow.

Very true! Never say never!

[ForumOlivia]

I must mention this.....there was an article in our newspaper recently about the heroin epidemic and how addicts are tossing needles into the trash, leaving them on the side of the road, in parks. It's tragic.