You May Not Need A Dumpster

[one_winged_cat]

There's a discussion going on on several friends' LJs about getting rid of stuff. A lot of people seem to be wishing for dumpsters

Comments

[tricia_joy]

we have some furniture we are going to list on our local freecycle which I have belonged to for a few years now. Clearly I'm suggesting getting rid of "junk".

One man knocked on our door the other to ask if he could take the two sinks which I thought was a splendid idea and glad he asked. I'm all for recycling, re using, re gifting, except when it comes to emotions. ;b

[one_winged_cat]

If I were doing demolition, I'd surely want a dumpster at the ready ... as you have. But I read the responses to your post where other folks are not talking about that kind of "junk" that they want to get rid of and some mentioned desire for a dumpster. That's what made me think about bringing up freecycle.

There are days I'd happily haul half my house to the curb if I knew it would disappear before the neighbors got upset.

[pouncing_tiger]

Wow! Since we got our recycling bin and our compost bin, we recycle almost everything. The only thing that goes into our trash bin is used cat litter and an occasional bag of non-compostable kitchen trash. We don't even put the used litter in plastic bags since I started using plastic coffee cans to hold and transport it to the garbage.

We have a local Association of Retarded Citizens (ARC) that takes donations of old furniture, clothes, etc., so we don't send any of that stuff to the landfill either.

I'm so glad our collection service started offering the curbside recycling pickup.

[one_winged_cat]

I think one of the neat things about freecycle is the almost instantaneous gratification of someone taking it away NOW. ARC, Goodwill and other groups have taken many usable items from us over the years, too.

The hilarious thing is there might even be someone that wants your coffee cans of used litter.

[faith0322]

Not meaning this in a bitchy way at all, but I am surprised in this day and age that there is a group that uses the term "Retarded". In Canada, we refer to this as developmentally challenged.

I am training to work the Olympics in Feb. and they have their own supposedly politically correct term, which is "cognitively impaired". I thought that one was weird, as I worked a crisis line for 8 1/2 years and that was never a term we used. (ANd it's driving me nuts to have to change the way I referance this condition, as I don't think anyone, but the Olympic people use this term.)

Anyway, just had to mention it as it struck me as curious to know people are still using "retarded".

[pouncing_tiger]

Yeah, I'm surprised they still use that term too. It's not one I would have chosen.

[faith0322]

I put some stuff on the edge of our drive with a big "FREE" sign on it. A month ago, it was an Ikea 2 drawer side table that we've all come to hate and which I replaced with a nice bookshelf instead. WHen I put it out, ds said no one was going to take it. I told him to wait and see. Sure enough, it wasn't out there more than an hour when a big van pulled up, someone jumped out and threw the table inside and drove off. YAY! Ds was amazed.

I take clothes to the missions or to the clothing drop off bins, other stuff goes to the SPCA thrift store. I recycle as much as I can and give stuff away. Very little of what I own ever sees the garbage. In BC, we are tree huggin' granolas, so everyone's very eco-concious.

I am glad you posted the reminder. I had fogotten about free cycle, but it's a great network for recycling too!

[one_winged_cat]

When I was a kid, I used to find the greatest stuff on the curb on trash day. I'm looking at a corner shelf on the wall right now that I "trash-picked" ... oh, 45 years ago! Then came the advent of garage sales ... and even later, eBay ... and there wasn't as much good stuff to find. But a lot of the things on the curb still ended up at the landfill.

So, viva recycling ... however one does it.