<p>In my common app essay I talk about an adventure I had dumpster diving (not as bad as it sounds). My old school grandmother insists that Dumpster is a name of a brand of dumpsters and therefore needs to be capitalized, like Kleenex if you use it instead of tissue. I can find surprisingly little info on this on the web, any of you erudite essay readers care to weigh in?</p>
<p>I’m not sure where she got that information. Perhaps it was true many years ago, but “dumpster” is now just a common word. Do not capitalize it.</p>
<p>And I also would caution you against portraying yourself in a negative light. Dumpster diving is technically illegal in some places, and even where it is legal, it’s not an activity that you should immediately want to brag about.</p>
<p>Good luck.</p>
<p>^^ thanks for your concern, without going into details, it was not illegal nor does it cast me in a negative light. I actually found the answer to my question:
[Dumpster</a> - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dumpster]Dumpster”>Dumpster - Wikipedia)
…and learned a new phrase:“genericized trademark”</p>