ipl-logo

Living Simply In A Dumpster Analysis

728 Words3 Pages

Imagine spending one year of your life living in a dumpster. Not just the average, everyday dumpster, but a customized dumpster suited to meet all of the essential needs for one to live in. Professor Jeff Wilson, also referred to as “Professor Dumpster,” is engaged in a one year project in which he will be sleeping in a dumpster every night. His future plans consist of making the dumpster even more appealing by adding a toilet, solar panels, a second floor, and several other amenities. Wilson says in the article, “‘We could end up with a house under $10,000 that could be placed anywhere in the world, fueled by sunlight and surface water, and people could have a pretty good life’” (James Hamblin ℙ4). In the article, “Living Simply in a dumpster,” …show more content…

In the back corner of Huston-Tillotson University, many will stumble upon a thirty-six square foot dumpster, home to the University's dean. He previously lived in a 2500 square foot house, but ended up moving into a 500 square foot apartment after going through a divorce. Looking more into this experiment, he decided to sell all of his possessions for dirt cheap. The only things left were some of his clothes, and certain necessities like camping equipment. It recently had been nothing but a big, green, rusted metal box with a filthy interior. There was no roof on it, so Wilson put a tarp over the top to keep rainwater and sunshine out. Slabs of cardboard were laid on the floor for him to sleep on. He kept it very basic in the beginning of the experiment, and progressively started adding luxuries to the home. A false floor was installed with cubbies to store his things in. Six months into the experiment, he could no longer withstand the insufferable Texas heat during the sunny month of July. On certain summer days, the dumpster reached up to 130 degrees fahrenheit, and often times dropped to only 80 degrees at night. After living in an oven for six months, he decided it was it was about time to install an air conditioner on the side. Wilson says, “‘We didn’t want to make it too easy. I wanted to see how elastic my sleeping habits would be relative to temperature and humidity. I found that I could actually get to sleep pretty well as long as I went to bed at about 11:00 p.m.’” (James Hamblin ℙ7). Prior to the installation of an air conditioner, Wilson spent the majority of his daytime hours out in the

Open Document