Got a great deal on Freecycle.org!!

[MaryAnnDVC]

Have you heard of www.freecycle.org ? Just heard about it recently, and today I got a really lovely (now that it's all cleaned up) FREE futon frame for my 13 year old DD.

The way it works is you register for your local chapter, and people post what they have to get rid of. Or, you can post a "WANTED" message. Items must be offered for FREE. The point of the program is to put items to good use instead of just throwing things out with the trash. It just kills me to see perfectly good items sitting on the side of the road for garbage collectors, creating more garbage in the world.

We just spent about $600 for futon mattresses for two futons (we already had the other frame) for both DDs, so it was nice to not have to also pay for a frame; and actually, I like this frame better than many that I've seen in stores. And the people we got it from were the nicest folks, to boot!

 

[doxdogy]

Thanks for the link. Always happy to get rid of stuff and hopefully acquire new stuff.

 

[LJC1861]

In the past few weeks we have gotten a bicycle and a modem that works in the laptop computer we found on the street. Freecycle is a great way to get rid of stuff that you no longer need but that someone else might. The toughest part of it for us here in NYC is connecting to pick up or deliver things.

Linda

 

[OceanAnnie]

That's neat! Thanks for sharing the link!

 

[LScot]

Cool Mare! Thanks for the link. I'm going to check it out!

 

[powellrj]

I have an account but I am dropping it because in my area thats not what its all about. You have a few people giving things away, ( usually the guy who runs the site), but its become a begging site for items. Not cheap items, people are asking for things like canoes, video game stations, work out equipment and fisher price outside play items. These are the most asked for items. I am not sure what I was expecting, but it sure wasn't several emails a day telling me their kids are bored and really need a play station or that they have found a great way to get out of debt or work at home.

 

[MaryAnnDVC]

I've only been a member of our local Freecycle for less than a month, but I never saw anything that struck me as "begging". A lot of things, like exercise equipment and Fisher Price outdoor play items are things that people hang onto because they don't take the time to get rid of it. There are certainly other options to disposing of these items...yard sales, donations to charity...but some people just want it out of their homes, and and are conscientious about the environment, and the person comes and picks it up and hauls it away. It's a win-win situation. Sometimes, asking for a particular item might motivate another member to clear some stuff out.

The family I met today is planning to move, and has gotten rid of a lot of things through Freecycle, and are only too happy to do it. The wife said she heard about things that get donated to charity and then sit in some warehouse, and it made them feel good to know that their items were being used.

As far as the emails, I look forward to getting them, altho I've never seen anything I've wanted besides the futon frame. It's sort of interesting to see what people are getting rid of, kind of like I would feel just looking around Ebay. And honestly, I don't read all the emails...the email subjects state whether they are offering an item (ie, OFFERED futon), looking for an item (ie, WANTED futon), or if an offered item has been taken (ie, TAKEN futon). I just delete the ones I'm not interested in.

And I'm so grateful about this futon, I feel very motivated to see what I can get rid of myself.

Maybe I just got lucky and am part of a really well run Freecycle.

 

[Dizzy-Disney4]

Love Freecycle! I opted not to get the emails so I just log onto the local site and read the posts.I see nothing wrong with asking for items that might seem silly or extravagant. You never know what someone may have laying around. My dad has had a canoe for 5 years...sitting doing NOTHING. If my mom had a pc and knew about Freecycle...someone would be getting a free canoe.

 

[Robinrs]

I just joined the Atlanta group. Thanks for the link, Mare!

Powellrj, I'm not surprised that some people will use a site like this for greed. Anytime you open something for human beings you will find some who try to get over on it. This happens in every aspect of life. I hope that I can use it to bless someone with the stuff I'd like to get rid of but I'm sure there are people signing up that are thinking "cool, I don't have to PAY for something!"

For ex, I dropped off some items to a donation box for a thrift shop in my area. There was a MAN IN THE BOX, picking through the items! It gave me the creeps!

 

[arminnie]

I think the moderators of my freecycle list are doing a great job. They tell you up front that you are supposed to offer something before you ask. They've even gone so far as to make people list things as "wanted" not "needed" - no begging allowed.

I wish they had this when I moved from California. You cannot believe the good stuff that I had to throw away because I couldn't get any organization to take it. This was in 2001 after the dot.com bust and all of the agencies were bursting at the seams and literally couldn't accept more stuff.

When I had the Salvation army come pick up stuff - they cherry picked the stuff they wanted and left the rest.

I had a brand new expensive king size mattress set that I ended up moving because I literally could not give it away. My only alternative was to move it or pay someone to haul it away to the dump.

 

[Robinrs]

Giving this a well deserved BUMP!

Thanks again, Mare, for the intro! So far our Atlanta group has been WAY more offers than WANTED and the wants are pretty sensible, like teachers asking for supplies for the upcoming school year.

I have so much stuff I need to give away and would love to give it to someone who can use it.

Today someone posted a FREE YARD SALE! Great idea!

 

[Serena]

I missed this the first time around. It sounds interesting. Thanks mare.

 

[Dizzy-Disney4]

Oh wow thats a great idea.I have so much stuff in my basement I have wanted to get rid of before we move. I dont feel like doing a REGULAR yard sale...just not in the mood to set prices and bicker over it. I think I may post a free one on the several groups I belong to. Thanks for the idea Robin.