The Adlington Post

My chum Eric from the Shed and I scored some free metal for the Shed from a local demolition site. See more pix at my Shed blog: www.shedyarns.blogspot.co.nz

On Sunday 31 March the Sunday Star Times here in Auckland published an article on the tremendous waste of perfectly good food worldwide - and included an interview with myself: photo by Lawrence Smith/FairfaxNZ Diary of a Well-fed Freegan 0ne man's Waste is another’s dinner, and it’s not just about dumpster diving, writes Shabnam Dastgheib. AFTER SEVEN years of not paying for food, tools or art supplies, 63-year-old Martin Adlington has freeganism down to a fine art. He finds wine, biscuits, eggs, cheese, and bread and dips in a typical haul from a typical dive in a typical supermarket dumpster. He goes only when he feels like it and often finds enough to donate to large, hungry families in Auckland. This month, World Bank senior economist Jose Cuesta targeted retailers and consumers to find a solution to the world’s staggering food waste. A United Nations- backed campaign Think Eat Save estimates that in industrialized nations 300 million tonnes of food fit for consumption i...

Last Sunday I went for a drive amongst detritus of the annual inorganic collection...finds included a sleeping bag (new), a pair of woman's hiking boots (good condition), an oil can (with oil), and a couple of old wooden planes - I will refurbish the tools at the Men's Shed North Shore. See: www.mensshednorthshore.org.nz and my Shed blog: www.shedyarns.blogspot.co.nz  

The annual inorganic collection is on at present here on the North Shore, maybe for the last time if the whingers about the collection "lowering the tone" of their neighbourhoods get their way. Three of my more interesting finds last Sunday were a filter mask, a cast iron pot - great for the campfire, and a bevy of broken Barbies. The latter demonstrate the fate of most consumer products - fervently desired, soon trashed, and then dumped. I haven't found any iPhones in the trash - yet....... While I was going through a pile of trash a Japanese TV crew came along & interviewed me re the inorganic collection & the reason for my collecting junk: "Is it part of your culture to pick up what other people have thrown away?"......I asked them to send me the link for the programme, but won't hold my breath.....

One of the doctor's offices in the Bay is closing, and they have a skip for the trash. I found this compressor last night. It was a bit wet from the rain, so I stood it in front of the electric heater I bought at the market on Sunday for .50c and dried it out. It works perfectly - now I can finally hook-up my airbrush and do some graffiti stencilling.

Overseas pupils from the local language school dump their old phones etc into the bin. I found this phone today - complete with charger & sim card.

The annual inorganic roadside trash collection has begun in my area. I cruised around in the van on Sunday & scored a 25kg bag of cement. This year there are even more people trawling through the kerbside offerings - most of them after scrap metal, but there are lots of other goodies and freebees out there as well.

A recent freeganing trip netted a 350grm tub of (still chilled) chicken livers.  A while ago while trash trawling I found a well-used copy of Leah W. Leonard's 1951 book of "Jewish Cookery" on p. 301 is the recipie for molded chicken liver ( a firm favourite with my Jewish friends): "Combine broiled chicken livers,hard cooked eggs and greben. Run through food chopper, season to taste with salt, pepper, celery salt or garlic salt, add chicken or goose fat, or salad oil. Use as a canape spread.Top with tiny bits of pimento or green pepper, minced parsley or water cress, or stuffed olive. Or press into a well-greased mold. Unmold on shredded greens and garnish." OR on p. 382 Leah gives the recipie for "Chopped Liver and Peanut Butter"!: "Two parts chopped liver to 1 part peanut butter makes a delicious spread".