Environmental Enlightenment #7 (Freecycle)

I've always been a fan of hunting through thrift stores. When I was little my mom used to take me on countless journeys to either thrift stores or antique stores. I always thoroughly enjoyed finding some treasure with the 25 cents that I had in my change purse (which I had also found at an antique store for 25 cents!) As I got older my love for second-hand clothing faded. I started wanting the "new" and "in-style" looks. That's when I became aware of Plato's Closet. It's like a thrift store, but they only take in labels and looks that match the current trends. I can't remember the last time that I bought new clothing or shoes, because every time I need something (say a new pair of jeans) I can find it at Plato's Closet.


Despite my secret love for thrifting (and getting practically new things for next to nothing) I hadn't heard about freecycling until recently when I came across the Canadian reality show Junk Raiders. My boyfriend would insert a joke here about my "secret" love for Canadians. His exhibits a,b,c and d? Les Stroud, Wendy Russell, Gayla Trail and Vanessa Farquharson. Maybe I should just move to Canada? Okay, I'm getting off topic... The show is about designing/building new living spaces from re-used materials. Gordie Wornoff is a carpenter on the show and he takes freecycling to the extreme, labeling himself as a Freegan. Meaning he not only searches dumpsters for re-usable building materials, but also for food! I'm not prepared to take it to that extreme, but I figured that I could start by trying to find some slightly used (possibly free) pots for my indoor garden.

They're not the prettiest looking bunch, but they'll do the job.

Facebook is (at times) a wonderful thing. I posted asking if anyone had any pots that they weren't using that could be donated to my indoor garden. I got a couple responses and got what I needed, but I decided that the best way to find things for free would be to join a freecycling network. This way, I don't have to bother my Facebook friends with strange requests for their dust collecting junk (although I probably still will). So I signed up at www.freecycle.org and I'm crossing my fingers for a bike to come my way! I'm also going to think not only twice, but thrice before throwing things away. 1) Can I re-use this? 2) Can this be recycled? 3) Can somebody else use this? aka Can this be freecycled?