2.25.2012

Sunshine Came Softly Into My Dumpster Today

Sunshine came softly into my dumpster today, coulda tripped out easier but i've changed my way. [Sorry Donovan].

One California artist is taking the idea dumpster living to a whole new luxury level with his art project. Gregory Kloehn of Berkeley, Calif., is transforming a garbage dumpster into a deluxe home for one, complete with kitchen, washroom and sleeping area for his project, “Elite Waste.” He installed granite countertops, stainless steel appliances, hardwood floors, a gas tank, power bars, lights, a six-gallon water tank, a retractable roof with windows, and TV.

Then there's dumpster diving beyond the Freegan model as a sustainable life style where the concept is to undo your entire carbon footprint through the recycling of other people's former stuff. Treehugger recently ran an article explaining that there are many things in the dumpster that do not deserve to be buried yet. The article said, "You will see some things that do, and some that do not, belong in the dumpster. You can recycle them, repurpose them, make them into art. You can clean them up and use them, donate them or just set them next to the dumpster hoping they are adopted (Catch and Release)."

mr. mud's idea though is not the so much one of the moneyed artistic persuastion or even the moral carbon footprint version, though a bitta comfort both moral and material might tag along from time to time. No, my concept is born outta the mud, outta poverty, pride and homelessness [coming sooner or later to this mudatarian].

Right now my concept includes a bike with a heavy duty rack that could be packed up quickly each morning [after the sunlight came softly into that night's dumpster]. A person, and maybe a small best friend would need a sleeping bag, a blowup mattress, a one burner gas campstove, some candles, a library membership, maybe a pre-paid cell phone to talk to the grandkids and access to a university campus where it's usually fairly easy to use the bathrooms and showers in the gym or pool area. Granted this is an urban-ish concept and mr. mud has been living a rural life for many decades now so the plan might take a bitta tweeking. But there are good people everywhere including near urban dumpsters. Just imagine, every morning new take out pizza and sushi leftovers would be delivered airmail and as Donovan said, 'Superman or Green Latern wouldn't have nothin on me cause during the night i would use a little bucket to pee.'