Thrifty or “Green”?
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First of all, I must confess. I try my best to save a dollar wherever I can. I clip coupons every Sunday. Shop when my local grocer offers double and triple coupons, try to eat out less, but the generic peanut butter, and lower my thermostat by a few degrees to save costs on heating. But has anyone other than me noticed lately how all of a sudden being cheap thrifty, can become trendy, if we call it “going green”? I mean, have you heard some of the latest trends? Dumpster diving? You’ve got to be kidding me right? Thrift Stores are no back in style? Reusing another person’s trash has become a phenomenal feat because there’s less waste in the landfill.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m not against doing what’s good for the planet. I recycle my cans, my paper, my plastic and basically anything that my local municipality allows. I even have my own garden to grow vegetables free of pesticides. I switched my lightbulbs out for ones that supposedly use less energy and I’ve even stopped using the plastic bags at the grocery store when it’s not necessary. And while I accept that the days of just throwing everything away to end up in a landfill are over, I cannot help but wonder why there are those among us who seem to be taking this whole “green” thing to the extreme. However, it’s illegal to be caught digging through a dumpster. Besides, who knows what you could stumble upon in one of those smelly things!
This brings me to my next thought, is it possible that times have gotten so bad in the midst of our economy that ordinary working folks are actually being forced to search for items in the dumpster in order to make ends meet? I don’t want to seem insensitive as I know there are many Americans among us who have been forced out of their jobs through lay-offs and cutbacks and I sincerely offer them my condolences to them. I know that there are many others who have lost their homes due to foreclosure and again, I sympathize with this awful situation. Yet I cannot understand what motives other than sheer desperation would force someone who has a seemingly ordinary life with a job and a home and a family to search for their next meal in a dumpster. Again, I don’t mean to sound insensitive as I know there are those who cannot afford to put food on the table and warm clothes on the backs of their family, but from the stories I’ve read online, many Americans are turning by night into dumpster diving savages! When asked why, they say they’re doing our planet a favor and keeping “perfectly good items” out of the landfill.
So my question to readers is: what’s driving perfectly sane people to jump inside of dumpsters? Is it really because they feel that their doing so is going to make the planet better for our children? Or is there another motive below the surface? Perhaps it curiosity of the unknown and bringing out their inner treasure-hunter. I’m eager to hear your thoughts.
Tags: cheap, coupons, dumpster diving, Earth, Green, money, planet, recyle, reduce, reuse, savings, thrifty