The lights were out and I laid in bed untangling the day’s thoughts when I asked Steve, “Hey, have you heard of Freegans?”
“No,” he yawned, deliberately.
“I was watching Oprah the other day and her show was all about Freegans. They’re people who are tired of being parts of the rat race of consumerism so they basically don’t buy anything. They dig through grocery store dumpsters for their food and-,” I paused. “Wait a minute. I probably shouldn’t be telling you about this because you’re going to make me go Freegan, aren’t you?!”
“Why would you say that?” he laughed.
“Have you seen the van you make me drive? If that’s not making a statement against consumerism, I don’t know what is. And you always tell me that you’re not going to let me use our clothes dryer anymore and how I should be line-drying my undies in the winter so we can save money. The next logical step is dumpster diving.”
11 Comments
Freegan is a bit extreme but I’m all for voluntary simplicity. :)
Oooh boy! Love those moments.
hehehe … that’s something that (thankfully) my husband would never go for!
I personally think Slow Cities are a much more appealing route to fight rampant consumerism.
Hahaha!!! We have a Spring Clean-Up Week coming up here and that’s the perfect opportunity to go through your neighbours garbage for treasures!!!
i like the van and i like frozen undies and, with the exception to the social stigma that i’m so addicted to, i’d be ok with dumpster diving. i have done my share of dump diving, but i’ve also stolen houseplants from neighbors that i felt were treating them badly. Some days I wish I could be more emotionally stunted like my male counterparts.
I’ve never heard of the freegans and quite honestly am going to stay away for fear of jumping on the bandwagin. My heart bleeds enough that if I received a papercut i’d probably faint from the extra blood loss
As much as I’m a frugal gal, I don’t think I could bring myself to the dumpster dive. I don’t have plants because they are “dirty” so I can’t imagine submerging my entire body in a dumpster. But hey, whatever floats your boat.
(Are you boycotting Steve on the public display of frozen undies? Does he want his out on the line too?)
Um, we don’t own a dryer (voluntarily) and dry our clothes on the line in good weather, or on the indoor drying rack next to the woodstove in winter. We’re all for living simply and being good to the earth! :)
I am all for simplifying my life, but I promise you won’t find me diving around in the dumpster for two day old ground meat and expired milk. I’d like to think of your van as retro, you are just starting a trend.
i have a friend who does this. one day, i went to his house. he was cooking. it smelled delicious! he’s a vegan. fine. but, when he starts getting all excited and telling me WHERE he got said items, i almost lost my lunch. he was really excited, too. ew.
Hahaha.
I don’t know if dumpster diving is the next logical step, but you sure make me laugh! :)
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