Curbside scavengers find bargains in the rough

One man's trash is literally another man's treasure. Maybe it's the recession, or maybe it's just a new twist on the old sport of recreational shopping -- where you hunt down bargains because doing so just makes you feel good -- but curbside scavenging has gotten greater respectability lately.

Cindy Bagwell, an assistant news editor at the Dallas Morning News and part-time jewelry-maker, recently discovered the sport. She was working a late shift and had the morning free and decided to investigate what some neighbors who were in the midst of a major remodel were discarding. Taking her dogs out for a walk was the perfect camouflage for the scouting mission.

Her score: a five-drawer wicker dresser in excellent condition and a solid wood door that with some refinishing and sealant will make an excellent dining room table top. Buoyed by the experience, Bagwell roamed a little further into a neighboring community with bigger homes and better cast-offs. This trip yielded a stack of old books that when sold into her favorite used book store got her an $18 credit. Not bad for not much effort.