Living in Wal-Mart

[snopes]

Comment: I heard that, somewhere in the U.S.A., a woman lived in a Walmart
store and also had a baby there. And, when discovered, Walmart bought her
a house and furnished it for her. Is this true?

[kmcm]

Wasn't this part of a movie? If i remember correctly it had Stockard Channing and Natalie Portman in it.

[Jenn]

Yes, the movie is called Where The Heart Is.

[LittleDuck]

This comment reminded me of that episode of The Simpsons when Principal Skinner and Miss Krabapple are caught kissing in the closet. Specifically the part where Ralph Wiggum tells his folks.

[WildaBeast]

It reminded me of the King of the Hill episode where Hank and Dale discovered Chuck Mangione living in the Mega-Lo-Mart.

[PrincessLeia]

Originally Posted by Jenn

Yes, the movie is called Where The Heart Is.

And the movie was based on a book with the same title.

[Auntie Witch]

Originally Posted by PrincessLeia

And the movie was based on a book with the same title.

In the version of the book I had, there was an interview with the author, where she stated that she was unaware of anyone ever having lived in a Walmart, and that the plot was inspired by a trip where she started thinking how easy it would be for someone to live there unnoticed.

[snopes]

Originally Posted by Auntie Witch

In the version of the book I had, there was an interview with the author, where she stated that she was unaware of anyone ever having lived in a Walmart, and that the plot was inspired by a trip where she started thinking how easy it would be for someone to live there unnoticed.

It's been tried since:

http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pb...0342/1001/NEWS

- snopes

[Signora Del Drago]

What fun! I wonder how much college credit he got for his little experiment.

He saw some strange sights. He followed two birds who swooped into the produce section and swiped some grapes. He named them Laurel and Hardy.

"One sat on the grapes, and the other pulled them off," Bartels said, insisting he wasn't hallucinating.

I know he wasn't hallucinating. One of the grocery stores here is home to a couple of birds. I quit shopping there because I didn't want to get bird poo in my hair and didn't want to buy things that might have bird poo or bird mites on or in them.

I did mention it to the manager and went back a few times, but he didn't seem interested in getting the birds out of the store, so I was no longer interested in shopping there.

[Ms. K]

Well, Where The Heart Is was a pretty good read. I still have the book.

I never heard of anyone actually DOING it, but hey, what do I know?

I gathered from the article about Bartels that the Wal-Mart he lived in for a few days was open 24 hours, whereas in the movie (I think) the store closed at night which would make it quite a bit more challenging to stay overnight.

[rogue74656]

Originally Posted by PrincessLeia

And the movie was based on a book with the same title.

Even before "Where the Heart Is" there was an book I read as a kid:

"Secrets of the Shopping Mall" by Richard Peck

[snapdragonfly]

"Where the Heart Is" is an excellent book. So was "Honk n Holler Opening Soon" by the same author.

There are always birds in all the grocery stores in my town. They just get in and fly around in the joists or whatever those things are. I haven't been pooped on yet, but I generally wash off EVERYTHING before it's consumed.

[Esprise Me]

I've heard similar rumors about people setting up an office at Kinko's. Unfortunately, in real life, I'm pretty sure such a thing would be noticed within a day or two. Wal-Mart may look like a big, confusing maze with plenty of hiding spots, but let's give the managers and employees a little credit.

[Halfmad]

This also reminds me of My Name is Earl where they take over a Wal-Mart-type store on New Year's Eve believing that the Y2K crash happened.

first post

this reminded me of that show Absolutely Fabulous, how Patsy and Eddie get kicked out of there house and at the end show them in a really nice place having a drink and relaxing on the lounge, then the camera goes back to show u they are living in a shop lol.