A couple are on a constant road trip across the US in an old school bus, feeding themselves from food they find in bins.
Leah, 30, and Oak, 33, Greerslanian decided in 2018 that they wanted to commit to full-time travel and bought an old school bus for $3,200 (£2,500).
The festival waste managers worked together to convert the bus into the perfect mobile home, spending about $17k (£13,400) on the project.
While working on the bus, they lived in a tent on a friend’s property after meeting each other on a year-long biking tour of the US.
Now, they spend their free time travelling and dumpster diving - which usually consists of collecting ‘expired’ foods thrown out by supermarkets.
“It’s hard to say what the best haul we’ve had was,” said Leah.
“One of the best ones off the top of my head is one time we pulled up to a store and saw the employee dumping lots of full cardboard boxes into the dumpster and when he was finished he just turned around, closed the door and never looked back.
“We immediately went to check it out and there were cases full of still super cold bacon, cold cuts, milk, feta, cheese and eggs.
“We just barely had enough storage for it all but made it work and ate a pound or two of bacon a day for about two weeks, it was great.
“The more you look, the more you find. We usually gather produce and things to resell or donate.
“Being in a tiny home there is limited space, but we always make room for the good food.”
Sometimes the pair are spotted as they ‘dive’ - and they get mixed reactions to their method of shopping.
“Most of the time they ask you to leave,” said Leah.
“Sometimes they are really nice and just say don't make a mess please.
“The other day I got yelled at by a guy because he thought I was throwing trash into his bin.
“I was like ‘No, I’m looking for good stuff to take out!’. It is illegal to throw away but not to take stuff out unless it says ‘no trespassing’.”
Leah, who was previously a waxologist, and Oak, who worked on a farm, try to use as many second-hand items as they can.
“We have done the whole conversion ourselves and it's an ever evolving art project and labour of love," Leah said.
“It cost roughly $17k for build out and bus [ approximately £14,848 ]. We did a ton of thrifting and second hand searching and buying so as to not have to spend an exuberant amount on new stuff.
“The cost of living this way depends on if you're stationary or travelling. Overall for us, it is much more affordable and enjoyable to live this way.
“Right now we are staying stationary on a friend's property in Florida, and have very little overhead cost.
“But, we did do two cross-country tours in the bus last year and that was major cha-chings in diesel and as always with an older vehicle, possible breakdowns.
“Sacramento rent, being outside of San Francisco, is always getting higher. It's nearly $2000 now for a mediocre apartment. The same goes for the gulf coast areas of Florida we are in now.
“Our bus gets around 10 miles per gallon with a tank the size of about thirty gallons.
“We would have to fill up every day and give it about $100+ each time.
“When we left Florida in 2021 the price was around $2.99 and by the time we made it to California it was up to $4.83 per gallon. Now it is $5.19/ gallon here in Florida.”
The couple’s expenses, aside from gas, boil down to just two things - phone bills and car insurance, which Leah says they pay yearly in lump sums, with the phones costing $720 a year, and the insurance $600 a year.
Leah and Oak both grew up in middle-class households, and say that their friends and families didn’t understand why they have decided to live the way they do at first.
But now they are supportive after seeing how positive the lifestyle is.
“They thought we were crazy and going to be ‘living in the woods like the homeless’,” said Leah.
“Now they think it's brilliant and definitely see the bright side of things and are happy for us.
“With dumpster diving, mostly people are shocked to learn that such beautiful foods are being tossed, and at alarming rates.
“One person I know says ‘Why don't you just grow your own?’ and we laugh.
“We have grown our own food. It’s a lot of work, this is already grown and ready to eat and save from the landfill.”
The couple says that their lifestyle gives them freedom and the chance to learn more about the world.
“I love being able to explore all the opportunities the world has to offer,” said Leah.
“Also, I love to forage, foray, and learn about the flora and fauna in new areas. I love all the plants and animals we get to learn about.
“The main benefit of dumpster diving is free food, of course.
“We both love to eat and cook so a surplus of food makes for a great time in the kitchen - we are always trying new recipes.
“The biggest benefit to the earth is the reduction of food being thrown into the landfill, and in turn creating methane.”
