Why you think they call me Coolo?
Posted on 04/08/2022 11:07:50 PM PDT by nickcarraway
In a Chicago dumpster one year ago, Angel Williams said she found a piece of pop culture history: the very first issue of Rolling Stone magazine, published in Nov. 1967 with a cover image of John Lennon from the film “How I Won the War.”
“I had no idea who this guy was and so I posted it and I had so many people saying, ‘Oh my goodness, that’s John Lennon!’” Williams said. “So when I looked it up, it was worth a nice amount of money, so I kept it.”
If authentic, the magazine could fetch more than $600, according to online auction listings.
The “Rolling Stone” issue is just one of many fascinating finds by Williams through dumpster diving – the activity of salvaging items of value from trash receptacles.
“A lot of people might not look at it as a profession, but I do,” Williams said. “I absolutely enjoy what I do. Not only am I excited about doing it for myself, but I’m also able to give back to others in need from doing what I do.”
Angel Williams holds what appears to be the first issue of the iconic music magazine Rolling Stone, published in Nov. 1967 and featuring John Lennon on the cover, on April 1, 2022. Williams found the magazine while dumpster diving about a year ago. (Evan Garcia / WTTW News) Angel Williams holds what appears to be the first issue of the iconic music magazine Rolling Stone, published in Nov. 1967 and featuring John Lennon on the cover, on April 1, 2022. Williams found the magazine while dumpster diving about a year ago. (Evan Garcia / WTTW News)
Williams was introduced to dumpster diving about 10 years ago by a woman at her church. Since then, the mother of four has parlayed the pastime into a business and mission.
Williams said some items she finds are sold on eBay for profit, others are kept for her family and items in good condition like clothing and books are donated to local organizations and shelters like the Pacific Garden Mission.
On her YouTube channel Mom the Ebayer, Williams broadcasts her dumpster diving adventures via a chest-mounted GoPro to more than 157,000 subscribers. Viewers get a first-person perspective as Williams sifts through garbage to find everything from designer clothing and jewelry to computers and electronics to even $1,000 rolled into a small, unassuming container.
Williams started posting dumpster diving videos about 9 years ago. At the time, she noticed a lack of content normalizing or providing tips for the cost-saving – and sometimes profitable – hobby.
“I said, ‘You know what? I’m going to show people how to take what other people consider trash and make it glamorous,’” Williams said. “And let people know that this is something we all can do, and you don’t have to be embarrassed by doing it.”
Since then, Williams has become a published author, detailing her entrepreneurial journey and sharing dumpster diving tips in “Finding Your Treasure: Our Family’s Mission to Recycle, Reuse, and Give Back Everything—and How You Can Too,” published by Simon & Schuster imprint Simon Element in July 2021.
The act of dumpster diving covers a variety of needs – from people searching for a novel gift to those depending on discarded items as a source of food and clothing.
Angel Williams shows a Tiffany & Co. baby rattle on April 1, 2022. Williams found the item while dumpster diving and plans to give it to her two-year-old son Samuel as a family heirloom. (Evan Garcia / WTTW News) Angel Williams shows a Tiffany & Co. baby rattle on April 1, 2022. Williams found the item while dumpster diving and plans to give it to her two-year-old son Samuel as a family heirloom. (Evan Garcia / WTTW News)
And it may seem a viable option as consumers continue to stretch their wallets for food, gas and rent amid surging prices and inflation. In the year leading through Feb. 28, the consumer price index rose 7.9% – the largest annual increase in 40 years.
Beyond saving money, dumpster diving can have a beneficial environmental impact by diverting waste from landfills. The greenhouse gases emitted from producing, transporting and handling discarded food in the U.S. contributes significantly to climate change, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
People who dumpster dive for food and other goods are sometimes associated with the anti-consumerist “Freeganism” ideology. The website Freegan.info provides information for where and when some businesses discard food in Chicago and other cities.
As for the legality of dumpster diving? It depends on where you live. There’s no federal law against it – a 1988 Supreme Court case ruled garbage placed in public is not protected by unwarranted search and seizure under the Fourth Amendment. However, cities and counties may have their own laws forbidding it.
In Chicago, dumpster divers may need a “private scavenger” license costing $250 through the city’s Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protections in order to sift through other’s trash.
Williams said she wasn’t aware of such a license.
“I’ve been stopped several times by the cops and wasn’t asked to show one,” Williams said.
A BACP Dept. spokesperson said several city licenses relate to collecting or disposing garbage and recyclables. Under municipal code, a private scavenger could face a fine of $250 to $500 for operating without a license.
However, whether a lone dumpster diver is considered a “private scavenger” could be open to interpretation. The city defines a “private scavenger” as “any person engaged in the removal and disposal of recyclable material, or construction and demolition debris, or grease, fats and oils, or table refuse or animal or vegetative matter usually known as garbage, or other wastes, from any premises where the removal and disposal of such matter is not provided for by the city” under Municipal Code Section 4-6-130. (4-6-130 Private scavenger.)
Angel Williams looks through a garbage can in Chicago’s Roscoe Village neighborhood on April 1, 2022. In 2021, Williams wrote and published a book on her entrepreneurial journey as a dumpster diver. (Evan Garcia / WTTW News) Angel Williams looks through a garbage can in Chicago’s Roscoe Village neighborhood on April 1, 2022. In 2021, Williams wrote and published a book on her entrepreneurial journey as a dumpster diver. (Evan Garcia / WTTW News)
While dumpster diving, Williams stressed the importance of staying safe from potentially harmful objects by using gloves and an extended picker tool. Some dumpster divers have been trapped, seriously injured or even killed while scavenging.
Williams also emphasized the importance of a smiling face and kind demeanor while partaking in an activity some might find invasive.
“When you come out here and you look nice and you’re kindly speaking, people are more open to you looking in their cans,” Williams said. “But if you come out here with an attitude, oh, you’ll be in a world of trouble.”
Williams said dumpster diving provides her family a supplemental income while allowing her to stay at home longer with her kids compared to a conventional job. She said the online community she’s built for nearly a decade is like an extended global family of dumpster divers.
“I’ve been able to have some great connections with people all over the world, who are also following suit, so I can’t ask for anything more,” Williams said. “Don’t knock it until you try it!”
Cool story, bro.
Why you think they call me Coolo?
She's been doing this for TEN YEARS, and has even created YouTube videos about "How to Dumpster Dive," and yet didn't INSTANTLY recognized Lennon (who is identified by name in the caption!)?!
I'm calling B.S.!
Regards,
She looks young enough to not know who the Beatles are, much less their individual names.
Of course, anything is possible nowadays (young folk confusing FDR with Ronald Reagan, etc.). Probably made for a better story to claim that she didn't know who it was (even though the photo was captioned).
Regards,
In Chicago, dumpster divers may need a “private scavenger” license costing $250 through the city’s Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protections in order to sift through other’s trash.
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This piece of garbage law is worse than dumpster diving. Only in Chicago. I say that but I’m sure a lot of other liberal hellhole‘s have similar laws.
I know someone who does this. He often finds gold jewelry, silverware, and other sellable items that others foolishly throw in the trash.
If this is not a reprint the magazine could be worth anywhere from two $50-$1000 depending on condition.
It looks like that picture is from a movie about WWII he was in. Maybe that’s why she didn’t recognize him.
How does anyone not know who John Lennon is?
CI was put off from dumpster diving early in life. I can still recall a neighbor child needing an ambulance after he jumped into a bin and stepped on a rusty nail. The nail came up through his gym shoe and through his little foot.
The fire dept. pulled him out. Naturally, all the children in that neighborhood stood around staring, many with their parents saying that’s what you get when you blindly jump down into a filthy dumpster.
Im a proud scavenger. Not so much anymore but I am not above pulling over and sifting through garbage piles. My kids first riding toys and bikes came from discards waiting for trash day. I ve pulled toys, tools, shop vacs, furniture and other useful items.
One thing I really dont get though is why people wouldnt take those useful items to a thrift store and donate, or even call for a pick up (locally I give discards to an org that helps prevent child abuse). Even in todays social media culture there are many ways to sell stuff, and you might be surprised what people will buy.
“This piece of garbage law is worse than dumpster diving. Only in Chicago. I say that but I’m sure a lot of other liberal hellhole‘s have similar laws.”
This was my takeaway from this article. In Illinois, and in Chicago in particular, if you are not sitting on your sofa and watching TV, you probably need a permit or a license with educational/training requirements for whatever else that you may be doing.
My Dad. RIP 1995. Did this for most of his adult life. He was born in 1921 and grew up poor. It wasn’t called recycling then. He did not dumpster dive but being in Chicago with a neighborhood of vast alleyways he walked them and found all kinds of neat stuff. He especially liked finding good books.
You would be surprised what people throw away. Many times it’s practically brand new stuff whether electronic gadgets, clothes, kitchenware, you name it. Dumpster diving has been deemed illegal around certain colleges in the area.
Good friend of mine who is in his late 40’s lived outside of Chicago in a rich neighborhood and told stories about cruising the neighborhoods on trash day. People would throw out nearly new weed trimmers and such because they didn’t know to re-string. They’d take them, fix what was ever wrong with them and sell.
Sometimes there is a very good reason nice things are trashed.
I have a storage locker for my job. I always scan the dumpster when I drive by.
I got a brand new bicycle once. The best one though was the day I saw a 6’ folding table in the dumpster. As I was pulling it out, an old guy came out of his locker and said he was thinking of grabbing it. I offered to let him have it but he told me to take it.
Then we started talking. This 92 year old man is a picker. He mostly buys and sells books. He told me that he had several suitcases full of stamps. I told him I have a friend who buys and sells stamps. My friend ended up buying the entire lot for $2,000 and then gave me a 10% finders fee.
$200 for talking to an old man at a dumpster.
If my wife goes shopping, she could drop me off at a salvage yard with an open lot policy and we'll both be happy all day long.
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