"Dumpster diving" doesn't sound like the most pleasant activity to enjoy with your child, but one Redditor detailed how their daughter was "stoked" after finding a "holy grail" item.
"Well, it finally happened," they captioned an image of their discovery. "My teen found a Stanley."
The reusable beverage container was in apparently impeccable condition, and a sticker on the bottom suggested it may have been brand new.
These products have a notable collector following, making them coveted items. On Stanley's website, a similar cup to the one found in the dumpster could set you back around $45.
There are a couple of issues here, of course. Finding something in a dumpster that you would be using to drink liquid from seems like a bad idea, with a risk of illness from possible bacteria.
What's more, the collecting of Stanley cups is almost going against their main intention. A reusable cup is supposed to stop overconsumption of plastic and reduce manufacturing waste. Hoarding the items is pretty much doing the opposite.
Still, with the appropriate sterilization, and assuming this is the only Stanley cup this particular person will use, they will have saved money on a popular item, reduced their personal consumption of single-use plastic, and kept a perfectly usable product out of a landfill — where it won't break down and contribute to the production of methane gas, which the EPA has said is 28 times more potent in planet-warming potential than carbon dioxide.
Dumpster diving, if done safely and legally, can bring a number of benefits, as plenty of people often throw out items despite them having a lot of life left. One person found a bounty of unused cleaning products, while another discovered a bunch of Sephora cosmetics.
"That's awesome," one Redditor said about the Stanley cup find. "People went nuts over them."
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