FreeCycle

Today my eighty-five plus year old neighbor, Mr. Bob Hench took me in his old pick-up truck to the neighboring community of Dillsburg to pick up some furniture for daughter number 3. (I have to tell you about the farm field he mentioned where they picked up the airmail when he was in his twenty's!) I heard about the giveaway from the online forum, FreeCycle. You probably have one in your online community and if not, START ONE! Basically, the concept is to Reuse, Reduce, Recycle. Here is what they say to describe the concept:

The Freecycle Network™ is made up of 4,852 groups with 6,691,000 members across the globe. It's a grassroots and entirely nonprofit movement of people who are giving (& getting) stuff for free in their own towns. It's all about reuse and keeping good stuff out of landfills. Each local group is moderated by a local volunteer (them's good people). Membership is free.

You are not supposed to sell what you get, and you must give your junk away in equal or more amounts than what you get. Pretty amazing. You have to have a yahoo email address, which is easy and join a yahoo freecycle group. It is easy to sign-up online, then just wait for the emails for free stuff, and clean out your basement and attic by offering junk that people come by your house to pick up. Kind of fun, to tell you the truth.

A fellow FreeCycler, Bob P. was generous enough to give us two end tables, three lamps, and a queen size bed headboard and footboard which are in great shape. Plus the added bonus was they are "retro", which the mimers (aka daughter number 3) loves. She is very supportive of the whole *Reduce*Reuse*Recycle* concept, which is fantastic for a nineteen year old and bodes well for our future generations.

I have given some stuff away...and am looking forward to cleaning out some more. Sure makes sense, rather than just bagging it for the trash man. Thanks to both Bobs!!

Painting our Fence

Ali is painting our old redwood fence! Yeah, Ali!! Another good example of *Reuse*Reduce*Recycle*. Wait...is she wearing my OMENA sweatshirt? You better not get paint on that vintage piece!!

Laundry

Nothing smells better than clean laundry hung out in the sun to dry. The white t-towel hanging on the end was my grandmother's. Can you see her hand stitched hem in red and blue thread? It was probably an old sheet converted into this towel. They used and reused everything back then. It is time we abandon the "throw away" attitude of our society and embrace the old fashioned *Reduce*Reuse*Recycle* strategy.

Lovely Lawn Chairs

I love Spring! We have a useful tradition in our town left over from when the borough collected large items once a year. Everyone would put their trash which was too large for regular pick up, out by the curb and the borough would wait about a week before picking it up. During that time, people would cruise the neighborhoods for useful items in the piles. My "trash" pile would begin rather large, but each day I would reorganize the smaller and smaller pile after people had rummaged through it. Sometimes by the end of the week, I had no pile left. It was interesting to see what I considered trash, but someone else considered useful. It was a nice way to *Reuse*Reduce*Recycle*. Even though the borough changed how they pick up trash, allowing one large item each week and no yearly pick-up, a tradition was born. If we have something large and still useful, we put it on the curb with a free sign.

My neighbors recently did this with their old lawn chairs. I saved them to my back yard! Aren't they great!?!

Garden Stool

Larry's Trading Post is always a fun place to go. Used furniture, used tools, used dishes...definitely fits into the *Reuse*Reduce*Recycle* theme. This is my latest find. It saves my knees when I garden and cost a quarter. Love my garden stool.