Our community has a special trash night were we are allowed to get rid of everything except mattresses. I blogged out it last year as “Everything Goes Trash Night is Like Bizarro Christmas” where this special day is almost like a holiday for my wife and I. It’s a great opportunity to get rid of clutter!
It’s the anti-thesis of Christmas where instead of receiving stuff, we get to toss stuff out! This year didn’t disappoint!
Bizarro Santa
The list of things that we tossed out included the following:
- A plastic luggage traveling casing for traveling (this thing was huge and took up way to much space in my garage… I was also very ugly).
- A cheap black office chair that was broken (I had this for over 12 years).
- A heavy mirror that has sat in the basement since we moved into our house.
- A heavy metal computer tower model 486 (I have no idea why I kept it so long).
- Our lighting fixture that was replaced recently (a Chandelier).
- Old Bean Bags that were taking up space.
- The coffee table that we never used that sat in the basement.
- The kid’s sandbox that was too old and the kids never played with.
- A small fridge from my college days. (Still worked and was the first thing picked up by drive by folks looking for good stuff).
- and other miscellaneous junk.
We put our stuff out late, so we missed a few of the opportunistic drive by folks looking to breathe a second life into our stuff, but we still have a few. First was the guy in an SUV that was nicer than my cars. He just picked up the college dorm room fridge and left. The second was a guy in a small pickup, the took the heavy mirror, our Chandelier, and the coffee table. The garbage collectors got the rest.
Next year we’ll try to put out our stuff earlier, that way they might find a second home. Or perhaps Bizarro Santa will come and take them to the island of misfits…
Cheers,
MR
I think this is AWESOME! I wish my neighborhood did it! I love that people take people’s stuff, too. Question though — since you’re a financial blogger, any reason you didn’t try to sell that stuff on ebay or craigslist?
Mostly, it was broken. The fridge had issues too. Of the lot, it was the only thing that I think had value.
If I were single and renting still, I would do craigslist. eBay is too much hassle for such items. I’m an eBay and I know it wouldn’t be work the hassle.
That is SO cool! I wish my community had something like that, especially because it would be like Christmas for those able to get some useful items for free.
Part of the fun is hoping someone comes and picks it up! It’s Bizarro Christmas, and it’s something that I enjoy.
We send our better stuff to goodwill.
This would be the greatest Christmas ever! I wish our community would do this. You don’t even know how much fun I’d have getting rid of my unused stuff and finding free items in other people’s treasure-trash!
For me, it’s really like Christmas, except in reverse. I love the fact that someone will make use of my stuff…
Set it our a day or two early and I’d bet it’d all be gone before trash day.
Good idea! The thing is that hardly anybody come down our street, so putting it out earlier might not have the effect we wanted.
But on this one special night, people that look for that stuff hit’s the routes that have garbage that give night. The are frugal and clever about saving their gas…
It takes a lot of emotional fortitude to throw out a lot of stuff. I find that the little voice keeps saying, “But maybe you’ll need this someday…”
Good for you that you were able to get rid of a lot of things.
That voice was a lot louder 10 years ago. Now I mainly here my wife’s voice saying “get rid of it”. And surprisingly, I’m agreeing 🙂
Getting rid of clutter periodically is a great idea. I’m experiencing helping my parents clear things out after many years, and it’s overwhelming. I’ve learned a lesson.
The more one things about it, the more is makes sense. I still have a long way to go, but this is a great first step.
Why didn’t you Ebay any of those things? Getting rid of clutter is great but you had a few dollars there. I mean if you kept the chair for 12 years what’s another week for a quick sale?
As a former eBayer, I find that only certain things sell well on eBay. I might have been able to see the fridge, but that was it… The chair was a $15 version new, but mine was broke…
eBay is great, but not in these things I had to sell.