On impulse, I decided this morning that in the month of June, I am going to freecycle one item for every single day. Yes, I will get rid of thirty things or groupings of things that I don't use, but which could serve someone else just fine.
For those who don't know about freecycle, I first started jumping around about it in November. I've been a little less enchanted recently with the volume of emails I get every day, especially when people don't follow the rules (naturally they don't, naturally that bugs), BUT am feeling re-energized by this little task I've set myself, which accomplishes something I really want to do: streamline, create more space, clean out crap gathering dust.
None of it is really crap at all. Just unwanted.
For a start, I posted 5 things that I pulled from the linen closet. There's more in there, but I'm trying not to go too utterly insane, knowing that I have to sustain this for another 25 days.
- two hall runners, perfectly serviceable, but that I just am not crazy about. They've lived in the closet for over a year, probably 5, who knows;
- misc. bag of cleaning supplies, including carpet cleaner (can't even remember when or why i bought this);
- two book lights;
- a bottle of Pantene shampoo that wound up in our shopping bag after a visit to Long's Drugs (RIP), paid for and probably sorely-missed by the man ahead of us in line;
- marbles and "gems" for floral arrangements (who WAS the person who bought that crap), and some floral foam.
Within twenty minutes of my posts, 4 of the 5 items are spoken for. I love it that I actually know one of the people coming by for driveway pick-up - such a tiny world we live in.
It is amazing how much stuff accumulates in a life, and how when you have space to tuck it away, you can just forget about it. I never forget it's there, though, and feel its presence even when I can close the door on it and walk away. So great that there's a way I can pass useful but unwanted items on, putting them up for adoption by a self-selected new loving family. I will probably never have a garage sale again. I'd so much rather give it to someone who actually wants it, than stand around trying to hawk miscellany for pennies on the dollar anyway, steadily building a head of steam as people haggle me down from $1 to 25 cents.
Thanks to Sally, Judy, Fran and Elizabeth for taking this stuff off my hands. Thanks for freecycling!
3 comments:
We tried Freecycling, but no one ever followed the rules, but mostly people would never stop by to pick up the stuff. Now, we donate everything to either a) HousingWorks, or b) the stoops of Brooklyn. Our newest rule--far more draconian than the previous "nothing comes in, unless something goes out"--is "you leave the house, take something with you."
That's too bad, MT! The not-following-rules that bugs me is only that people don't follow the conventions when they post to the list. I've had no bad experiences, only good ones, and generally utterly delightful people appearing in my driveway to take things away. Maybe it's geographic? Here it seems that I "meet" funny great people through this medium, a community (dare I say it) of like-minded individuals. Or perhaps it's more the homogeneity of the place I live. Qui sait? XX
We were freecycling in New Haven, so that might explain the colossal dumbassitude! I bet if we gave it another shot in Brooklyn, we'd be pleasantly surprised. You've inspired me...
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