Two Kinds of Abandoned T-Shirts

It's the end of Week 1 of this project, and I've found 3 T-shirts while walking in north Berkeley.

Shirts #1 & #2

These two T-shirts were jumbled in a pile of swimsuits, towels, and shirts of all kinds that were spilling out of a broken plastic bag on the curb on a residential side street. I call this the Intentionally Abandoned find--T-shirts that were placed out on purpose. In this case the purpose was unclear, however, because their condition made them unwearable--holes at the underarms and very worn neck ribbings.

Stats: One shirt was purple and the other a faded gray/green--both were printed with pseudo-Southwest designs. No manufacturer labels. Weights: 6.375 and 6.625 ounces.

 

Shirt #3

The third T-shirt was found on the curb near a bus stop on a busy street.

It had been there a while, that was obvious, but the weather has been dry so the shirt wasn't deeply dirty. This was a Simply Abandoned shirt--left behind by accident or just discarded because it was no longer useful. It's a small size, although not a child's size--I'm guessing that someone came home without his shirt and got in trouble with mom. The edges of this shirt were very worn.

Stats: Faded deep gray with a motorcyclist design. The tag was cut out. Weight: 5 ounces.

A Question: Are There Places Where There Are No Abandoned T-Shirts?

A number of people have told me that they have never seen clothing on the streets in their neighborhoods, whereas I see garments and bedding of all sorts everywhere I go. For the record, I live on an arterial on the edge of an upper middle class neighborhood in Berkeley, California--I walk my dog every day, which puts me in a good position to find things. I would postulate that college towns are good hunting grounds for abandoned T-shirts; certainly Berkeley, even the upscale neighborhoods, has a funky shabbiness that contrasts strongly with gated suburban communities. But I've found garments in nice, well-groomed areas of Seattle as well.

I am looking forward to seeing whether geographical, sociological, or seasonal patterns show up in this project.

Comments

[Maia]

Sammie has volunteered to keep his eyes open while on walks. Considering that he doesn't see half of the cats, dogs, or squirrels he passes while out and about, that chances may be slim.

[Connie]

My undergrad degree is in Sociology and this really intrigues me. I ended up a Middle School Social Studies teacher, oh wish I had seen this idea then! What a geographic project we could have had! So now retired, you will keep me interested and amused. I can think of all sorts of social/econonic statements being made and generalized. What fun!

[Connie W]

It will be interesting to see what I find in a mountain resort area, where I hike and bike on trails. I or my husband have found: single ski poles, ski hats, a paddle jacket in the backcountry, a hoodie, single gloves, even a t-shirt. I like speculating about how and why. And the paddle jacket got back to its owner, ironically a friend, after a couple of years, when the friend saw my husband wearing the jacket and remarked on it and even knew where he had lost it, far from any navigable water.

[Karen]

I thought I saw a T-shirt in the wild one day last week ... but when I went to pick it up for you, it turned out to be a tube sock. So I left it where it was. (Now I am embarrased to say this, because I think I should have picked it up and disposed of it rather than leaving it as litter. But at the time, I honestly didn't think of that.)

So my question for you is -- do you want only T-shirts? Would you have had any use for a tube sock?