Freegans?
5:44 PM February 27, 2008
I have been under the weather the last few days. My usual routine has had a slight adjustment. The last two days have been work, home, sleep, Oprah, no errands, news, sleep again. I know, exciting right. To just stay home sick, watching Oprah talk to scavengers called Freegans. She, a billionaire trying to understand why a middle class couple would dig through garbage to protest consumerism. This, on a show where Oprah's Favorite Things makes headlines. Ironic.
So, since I have been sick on these two gorgeous days in LA, I have been watching Oprah and that's all I have to blog about. Other TV. Bare/bear with me, I'm not well.
On today's Oprah, correspondent Lisa Ling went out on a garbage tour in New York with Freegans. I had never heard of a Freegan. In case you haven't either or missed Oprah today, this is the definition of a Freegan from the website freegan.info:
Urban Foraging - recovering wasted food, books, clothing, office supplies and other items from the refuse of retail stores frequently discarded in brand new condition, finding usable furniture and appliances on curbsides, discovering computers in industrial sized office building dumpsters, and more. Freegans recover goods not for profit, but to serve their own immediate needs and to share freely with others.
It is a growing sub-culture. From New York to right here in Los Angeles. Most Freegan's are college-educated and come from middle class families. They try to opt out of capitalism in any way they can. Some of the Freegan's Lisa Ling went out with on the NYC garbage tour were college students, but another was a former investment banker. They went to dumpsters in front of supermarkets and bakeries finding what they can recover that has been discarded and can be consumed or reused. From bananas to canned goods, clothes, furniture. One photo on the freegan.info website even showed the Freegan's over the moon to find sushi dumped for their personal consumption. They live the true meaning of the three r's: reduce, reuse and recycle.
Photo Carolyn Cole/LA Times
On Oprah, her guests: a Freegan newly wed couple. The man is a doctor. His wife, a civil engineer. They clearly don't have to live this type of a lifestyle, but are doing it to protest consumerism in America and just how much goes to waste. I found it interesting that people live like this even when they don't need to. Granted it is a bit too extreme for me but these people are the real meaning of "going green".
Posted by Cher Calvin | Permalink | Comments (17) | TrackBack (0)
Previous Entry
Cher, Your "Freegans" blog was interesting. While I admire them for going green I do not think "Freegans" is a good name for them. I think your time is your freedom and that is the cost of their efforts. Get well. George
Posted by: George Mendoza | February 27, 2008 at 07:01 PM
It interesting that people live like this even when they don't need to. Granted it is a bit too extreme for me but these people are the real meaning of "going green". "Freegans" blog was interesting blog.
Posted by: Chan | February 27, 2008 at 08:45 PM
I am not an Oprah fan so your comments today really don't resonate. However, I want to tell you that I think you do excellent and professional work on KTLA. Feel better soon.
Posted by: Robin in San Diego | February 27, 2008 at 09:18 PM
I saw the Freegan show. I had NO idea what it was. I thought Freegans were the homeless. Come to find out some were making 6 figure incomes! Sup with that? At any rate, it was interesting to actually SEE the waste that's going on in America!!! Not a time goes by when I'm in the veggie section of the market and see the workers taking seemingly 'old' veggies and fruits and putting them in a box and I wonder where it all goes. Yep...right into the trash! Don't get me started on Pampers and such... We're going to run out of landfills soon, and then what?
I'd like to see this as a topic in the 9AM hour!
Hope you're feeling better....hubby and I had this flu twice already....not fun....
Posted by: Gaby | February 27, 2008 at 11:51 PM
I saw the Freegan show. I had NO idea what it was. I thought Freegans were the homeless. Come to find out some were making 6 figure incomes! Sup with that? At any rate, it was interesting to actually SEE the waste that's going on in America!!! Not a time goes by when I'm in the veggie section of the market and see the workers taking seemingly 'old' veggies and fruits and putting them in a box and I wonder where it all goes. Yep...right into the trash! Don't get me started on Pampers and such... We're going to run out of landfills soon, and then what?
I'd like to see this as a topic in the 9AM hour!
Hope you're feeling better....hubby and I had this flu twice already....not fun....
Posted by: Gaby | February 27, 2008 at 11:52 PM
If freegan living is the true meaning of "greening America" I'll opt out. Madeline from New York was clear about cleaning the food and packaging before storing. And she gathered her groceries from boxes outside the store/bakery. But Daniel and Amanda from Nashville climbed inside smelly, unsanitary dumpsters to collect their bounty. Wouldn't they equate the smell of garbage with that food? Seems an extreme, and possibly risky, way to live. You never know why the stores discarded that food - expiration date or tainted food, like the Hallmark meat.
Thanks for the story. Feel better soon!
Posted by: jozielee | February 28, 2008 at 12:09 AM
If freegan living is the true meaning of "greening America" I'll opt out. Madeline from New York was clear about cleaning the food and packaging before storing. And she gathered her groceries from boxes outside the store/bakery. But Daniel and Amanda from Nashville climbed inside smelly, unsanitary dumpsters to collect their bounty. Wouldn't they equate the smell of garbage with that food? Seems an extreme, and possibly risky, way to live. You never know why the stores discarded that food - expiration date or tainted food, like the Hallmark meat.
Thanks for the story. Feel better soon!
Posted by: jozielee | February 28, 2008 at 12:11 AM
Great blog! So far, it is the most interesting one (Sorry Mark and Sam). I had no idea that there was such a thing as a Freegan. I understand their "green concept" and can appreciate what they're doing...but digging through trash?...i dunno. I don't even like looking through my own trash (when something ended up in there that shouldn't have).
Posted by: Danielle | February 28, 2008 at 07:08 AM
Thank you all for your comments!
I had originally wrote a blog about Mark's blog... but technology at home shut down and I lost it! Glad you appreciate the replacement blog on Freegans
Posted by: cher | February 28, 2008 at 07:45 AM
Sorry you have been sick. I hope you are feeling better. Saw Oprah and the freegans. Don't truly understand it nor do I want to participate. Question I have: If the people who can afford to buy food are digging in dumpsters, where are the homeless or the poor getting their food? The other thing that I question is the lady that took her dumpster food to work. I wonder if she told her coworkers where she got the food. I bet she didn't. And finally, if you notice, Oprah did not embrace their lifestyle.
Keep up the Blog
Posted by: TJ | February 28, 2008 at 08:28 AM
If it weren't for fear of rampant trial lawyer abuse in this country, restaurants and stores would be able to give food to shelters and homeless folks.
Yes, I realize we need trial lawyers. We don't need the massive number and virulence of those that we already have.
Posted by: CM, Huntington Beach | February 28, 2008 at 09:10 AM
Oh, and BTW, Cher, I did take off my clothes as you directed before I posted.
;)
Cher: "Bare with me, I'm not well."
Love you, cm
great! then its an active blog... Thanks for your comment!
Cher
Posted by: CM, Huntington Beach | February 28, 2008 at 09:13 AM
I'm not much of an Oprah fan so I can't really comment on the blog. Just wanted to let you know how much my husband and I enjoy the early morning news with Eric and yourself. You two make a great team.
Sorry to hear you're sick. Hope you feel better soon!
--------------------------------------------------------
Thanks for the vote of confidence about Eric and I on the a.m. news. I am not a huge Oprah fan as well, just seemed to wake up when she was on TV the last few days. Thankfully I am feeling better... so back to my normal schedule and no Oprah
--Cher
Posted by: Melanie | February 28, 2008 at 02:00 PM
Cher - I enjoy you. Maybe you can take Frank's place from 7:00-9:00.
Sounds like Freegans are like PETA-people. So extreme no one takes the situation serious.
Hi Richie
They are a bit intense. Agreed. One of the Freegans found boxes of crackers, sealed, but still in a dumpster and brought it to work for her co-workers the next day!
Posted by: Richie-Rich | February 29, 2008 at 08:27 AM
I had never heard of this practice till reading about it on your blog. However it brings to mind many years ago (60's) in a suburb of Chicago once a month would allow the residents to put at the curb anything they didn't want for all to come by and take if they wanted it. And let me tell you there were some wonderful things, furniture, garden equipment, plants, paints, and so on. This was a wonderful way to pass on something that had many more years of use.
Posted by: Mary T | February 29, 2008 at 09:06 AM
What a cutie you are! Nice to see your face each morning through the steam of my oatmeal.
Posted by: Ted Taylor | February 29, 2008 at 01:38 PM
This grossed me out so much. No wonder the trash cans near my house have locks. I could never do this.
Posted by: Belen Cardoza | March 03, 2008 at 11:18 AM