I like to glean and gather. Neighborhood fruit trees heavy with uneaten apples and pears, young dandelion greens in the early spring for stir frys, blackberry patches on the edge of school yards for late summer jam, and returnable bottles from the curb on recycling day.
When I remember, on Wednesdays I gather up bottles in the few blocks around my house on early morning dog walks. Our neighbors across the street put out a full 2 x 3 ft. box weekly full of bottles with a deposit (I usually just switch our near empty identical box for theirs to make carrying them easier, which might be puzzling if they notice). Minou returns them, and puts the change in a small metal box on top of the fridge.
Last night he counted it and there was close to $20 from April. That's a lot of bottles at 5 cents each! Small change, yes, but found...a little like finding money on the street (oh wait, I did find money on the street). When Minou and I make our trek to Portland this weekend so that he can vote in the French presidential elections, it will provide several coffees or maybe even (how fitting) a nice dark stout stop on our planned urban hiking getaway.
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