There are many ways to get rid of unwanted things.
One way is to simply throw them in the trash. This is good for things that have outlived their usefulness or just don’t work anymore (like old computer cables or mismatched tupperware). It’s also a way to get rid of small items that you don’t want to spend time trying to find a new home for (like packages of nails or screws or fish food).
Another way to get rid of things is to sidewalk them – put them out next to the sidewalk with a “free” sign on them. Interested parties can then simply walk off with the items they fancy. This works for larger items like chairs or shelves or potted plants. It’s not so good for very large items like couches or mattresses. It can be especially bad for couches or mattresses if they get rained on. Nobody wants a soggy place to sit or sleep.
A third alternative is to list your items on Freecycle. You say you’re offering something and interested people let you know they want it and they come take it off your hands. This lets more people know you have something available than if you sidewalked it and it keeps items out of the rain until they are picked up. It’s not a perfect system – people are involved. Sometimes they decide they don’t want an item after all. Sometimes they say they want something and then keep not showing up for arranged pickup times. But heck, you get to get rid of stuff. Maybe you could sell it but, if you’re like me and you got most of your furniture for free, giving stuff away is fun. (And the amount of money I might make selling the stuff is minimal at best.)
The house is almost empty. I’ve got to do some touch up painting on Sunday.
The cat moves to the apartment on Monday. Monday and Tuesday nights will be cleaning days with Wednesday held in reserve if absolutely necessary.
At the same time I need to spend a little time every day getting shelves set up and having books tossed on to them. Yay!
Let us not forget the patron saint of unwanted detritus: CraigsList! Bow down before its mightiness.
Eric in Seattle
I hadn’t forgotten. I had many people recommend that I use Craigslist. So far I’ve had pretty good luck with Freecycle. But time is running short and I’ve got some items that have gotten passed over more than once. Anything that hasn’t been picked up by tomorrow afternoon will get listed there.
I never realised how important a good bed was until I got a bad back?.
Over 1,400 members of BackCare, the national organisation for healthy backs, responded to our Back Your Bed survey – the first of its kind to explore the views on beds of those who suffer from bad backs and the experts who treat them.
SUMMARY OF THE BACK YOUR BED SURVEY RESULTS
Buying a good bed is one of the most important purchases you can make when it comes to back pain relief. Nine out of 10 say their bed is more important to them since they developed back pain; 98% agreed that a good, supportive bed could help a bad back. 82% of experts felt that the right bed could help prevent back pain.
“If you cannot rest properly and sleep well, this hinders recovery from back problems.”
A firm, supportive bed, not a hard one, can do wonders to ease and even prevent bad backs. Only 22% of sufferers had bought a bed classed as ?orthopaedic?; while 28% describe their bed support as ?medium?. Only 6% of experts would recommend an orthopaedic bed to patients.
Three quarters would be prepared to spend more than ?500 on a new bed: compared with just 36% of the ?normal? population. Nearly one in 10 would pay more than ?2,000 for a new bed to get the comfort and relief they need.
Back pain sufferers are twice as likely as the rest of the population to own a new bed – 50% have beds that are less than five years old compared to the national average of 24%.
88% are satisfied with their choice ? but 16% said they would get a better quality one next time; while 9% would opt for something firmer; 5% said they would choose a softer bed and 4% wanted a bigger one.
Sufferers are three times more likely to replace their beds when they no longer feel comfortable (65% compared with just 20%).
31% own a king size bed compared with 11% generally. Separate mattresses zipped together are also popular with couples whose support needs differ or who are easily disturbed by their partner’s movements. top
So worth considering when buying a