BJ Novak provided proof that Cadbury eggs were shrinking in size back in 2007

In a particularly hilarious episode of Seinfeld, season seven’s "The Bottle Deposit," Kramer and mailman sidekick Newman hatch an ambitious scheme: accumulate an exorbitant amount of bottles and cans, transport them from New York to Michigan in a mail truck, and redeem the items for 10 cents each—double the going rate in their home state. Driving on a back road late at night, they even transform the road song "99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall" into a rallying cry: "We fill up with gas; we count up our cash!" Their plan, naturally, goes awry (it's a long story involving a deranged mechanic and JFK's golf clubs), but the core idea remains tantalizing: What if you could turn literal garbage into a windfall?

One Australian man, 36-year-old Damian Gordon, did precisely that. By patiently utilizing the regional "Return and Earn" program in New South Wales over seven years, he was able to turn nearly a half-million cans and bottles into roughly $45,000, partly funding a down payment on a two-bedroom house. The recycling program, which similarly offers 10 cents per eligible drink container, has a noble mission: reducing the volume of landfill and putting money "back into the pockets of the community."