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    Jobless man builds a house out of $1.82 billion worth of shredded money

    What would you do with $1.82 billion worth of shredded money? In Ireland, people build houses out of it — at least that's what Dublin-based artist Frank Buckley did. The unemployed artist originally wanted to create a gallery for his series of mixed-media artworks called "Expressions of Recession," but he ended up building a house instead.

    Buckley has been working roughly 12 hours a day every day since the beginning of December. During the early part of the construction process, he made bricks out of the decommissioned Euros Ireland's mint lent him. In all, around 50,000 money bricks went into building the house that consists of a bedroom, a bathroom, and a living room. He plans to continue expanding the house that sits on an empty office building to include a kitchen, a shower, and a patio.

    If you're wondering how it feels to live in a house made out of paper currency, he said that it's quite warm inside: "Whatever you say about the Euro, it's a great insulator." Frank is one of the countless people all over the globe affected by recession, and he built the house because he "wanted to create something from nothing." It will take around seven more weeks to complete building his new home, but Buckley (who's been living in the house since December) welcomes any visitor who wants to take a look at his billion-dollar masterpiece.

    Irish Times via Treehugger

    This article was written by Mariella Moon and originally appeared on Tecca

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    • kevin  •  Salt Lake City, Utah  •  3 mths ago
      what would I do with $1.82 BILLION in shredded money, I would get a bunch of scotch tape, and put it back together, I too an unemployed, so I have plenty of time on my hands
      • VinnyBoy 3 mths ago
        You and me andMitt.
      • Clyde 3 mths ago
        Ditto
      • Victor 3 mths ago
        Scotch tape wouldn't work cause it's Irish money
    • Robert  •  Richardson, Texas  •  3 mths ago
      Made something usful out of something worthless, clever.
      • Nancy 3 mths ago
        It's called: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. Even the debris from demolished houses is being "shredded" and used to construct new OSB, Masonite, countertops (there is even a company that uses old $$ + resin to make them), Melting the glass & reusing it etc. Plus there is the "lumber" made for decks which is wood fibers and recycled plastic. Just another way to go "Green".
      • k.d. 3 mths ago
        Then they charge you new prices out of things they got for very little.
      • k.d. 3 mths ago
        FOR things they got for very little.
    • jeff  •  3 mths ago
      Gives new meaning to cash equity in your home...lol
    • AL2FAST  •  3 mths ago
      no smoking please.
      • John 3 mths ago
        lol good one. even i couldn't think that up.
      • Jack 3 mths ago
        Add at little borax when you wet the paper to press the bricks, problem solved. Have to say, your comment was funny.
      • Joshua 3 mths ago
        No fireplaces, heaters, smoking, lighters . . . anything than can cause a flame.
    • Spectator  •  3 mths ago
      In the U.S. people are shredding houses for money!
      • A Yahoo! User 3 mths ago
        Older homes have some nice lumber inside; those old beams are paper money (gold).
      • Intelligent Designer 3 mths ago
        @TL

        I agreed, especially the ones built prior to the '80s before suburban master plan took hold.
      • DST 3 mths ago
        That used to be a Soviet Russia joke.
    • Wiseguy  •  Seattle, Washington  •  3 mths ago
      You gotta Love the Irish.
      • L da Vinci 3 mths ago
        If one were to build it in the US it would cost 3 billion in permits and a ten year study...
    • Eric  •  Davidson, North Carolina  •  3 mths ago
      Isn't it amazing how many people can't read? All these comments about how he could have used that money to feed the hungry, or build real houses for the needy. Did you miss the part about the money being DECOMMISSIONED and SHREDDED? The comment about it being a "worthless house"? I'm pretty sure it's not worthless to him, since he's jobless and may be or will soon be homeless. FYI- the U.S. also shreds it's decommissioned money. I have a 1 gallon zip-loc bag full of it from a Mint tour...
    • S  •  3 mths ago
      wow here we would have had to call the city to have it inspected and get it up to code. pay all the fees etc. nice to see people have some freedoms left.
    • Penny  •  Beaverton, Oregon  •  3 mths ago
      At least he worked until he found a way to provide a roof over his head. No to mention he doesn't have a huge mortgage for it. I admire his ingenuity.
    • Nicole  •  Denver, Colorado  •  3 mths ago
      He’s right though, it is just paper. It’s crazy to think that because of the ink that’s printed on it can make or destroy lives.
    • Goldman's Sach  •  3 mths ago
      In the US he would have been denied Unemployment for "working" on his house . . .
    • Scott T  •  Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania  •  3 mths ago
      Confucius say man who builds house from shredded money makes no cents.
    • eric  •  Sanford, North Carolina  •  3 mths ago
      During the hosing bubble some people here in America built their homes with worthless money too!
    • Mark  •  Concord, North Carolina  •  3 mths ago
      This is a great story. I wonder how he made the bricks though? That would have been abit of useful information.
    • Shick  •  3 mths ago
      I have to ask.. Does that Paper Toilet actually work?
    • gorgsborges  •  Camden, New Jersey  •  3 mths ago
      In the U.S they'd figure out a way to foreclose on him
    • Jeremy  •  3 mths ago
      If he lived in america he would have to pay taxes on the money he used.
    • Damascus  •  3 mths ago
      Frank, you hit the nail on the head. It is all paper that is given a value by our government. As long as we have belief in its value it is meaningful to people. When you believe that money has a higher value then people and God, you have a real problem with humanity. Life can be so much easier if you look at life outside of monetary values. You built a home from once perceived value of billions of Euro that has been converted to a home and a work of art that can come only from love and heart, not just necessity and converted a new value.
    • Josie Buchanan  •  3 mths ago
      thats a good use for used money that is no longer circulated. Paper has long been noted for it's ability as an insulator.
    • BPC  •  Islip, New York  •  3 mths ago
      Dad, can I get a new car? No, do you think I'm made of money? No, but the house is! :)

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