Trash and Treasures

I've been stressing all week over that lousy "green logo" campaign. I thank the many of you for your suggestions but I think I'm pretty loaded on the sarcastic ideas already. But I do applaud your enthusiasm. So since green is on my mind, I thought I'd tell you how I've been being green myself – by helping people recycle their unwanted stuff (and selling it for cash, heehee, I keed).

It's so exciting to find something for free. It's kinda like a reward for doing nothing. But it's not always easy. Combing Craigslist (CL) for freebies is like scouring a beach with a metal detector. It's a lot of searching, and most of the time you only find nickels and cheap jewelry. But once in a great moon, you'll hit the jackpot such as the playstructure above I picked up last year. Yeah, poor guy's rental house burned down so he had to unload it quick. But just finding it is only a part of the quest. You have to be the first to respond and then you'll have to consider the distance to justify its worth. Conversely, giving stuff away is not easy either. Often times you'll get flooded with emails, but no one can come quickly because of the distance. Getting and dumping things can be such a chore.

Freecycle.org
Recently I joined Freecycle.org and have been snatching up treasures left and right. Freecycle is a collection of Yahoo Groups based in individual cities. You join the particular group for your city (or any city) and you can subscribe to the messages. Most of the ads are giveaways but some are also seeking stuff. It can be anything as long as it's free. Great way to both collect and purge away your excess items.

The best part is that all the ads are within your city, so you'll never have to worry about driving far. And if you're unloading stuff, you'll know the recipient won't be far either. This is a huge advantage over CL, which covers the entire bay area.

All the messages get emailed to you once they are placed (although sometimes I get the message late - don't know why). This is good and bad. The good part is that you'll get the messages ASAP so you can respond immediately. The bad is that your inbox may get flooded by all the other ads that you're not interested in. It all depends on how active your group is. I think the Castro Valley group has like about 10 posts per day. So if you don't want a cluttered inbox, I suggest a secondary email. Plus it helps to be checking email frequently.

Just this month I've picked up the Playstation, aquarium, hot wheels tracks/cars, tennis rackets, and other misc. toys - all in great condition. Stuff like this is near impossible to find on CL. I've also seen other stuff like clothes, garden tools, appliances, desks, etc. It seems most of the people are getting rid of things that their kids have outgrown. Furthermore, I've noticed that most charitable people tend to be nice and they're encouraged that their old stuff will bring happiness to others. It's a win-win situation and you may make a friend (or a repeat customer). So sign up today. The only warning is that in the CV and tri-valley areas, you'll be competing with me for the good stuff ;) So good luck to you!