Waste

Waste bothers me. Period. I gets under my skin. It just sits in land fills possibly polluting.

I like to dumpster dive. I can't tell you where because it's highly frowned upon. At this one particular non-profit's dumpster, I find a lot of blankets. Some smell; some are ripped. It's disgusting to see all the waste because I know they are not ready to be garbage.

I take the blankets and other goods and give them new life. Blankets are washed and line dried; it make take a few days of airing out to get them fresh. I fix them up, usually a few new stitches and seems. I give them to a woman who works with low income people. She hands them out to those in need.

Other goods are washed as well. I usually keep them until I meet someone who needs what I have.  Here are some things I have rescued from dumpsters:

blankets (obviously)
double stroller
cat house
animal dishes
infant life jacket
cups
plates
dog jackets for the winter
Barbie clothes
a step stool
tables
Dutch shoes
paints
stationary
pictures in nice frames
clothes that have never been worn
baby swings that work
random toys
pots/pans


Many nonprofits have so much that they just toss what they have. Or they sell clothes to factories by the pound to use as rags. While I don't want to discourage people from giving to nonprofits, I hate seeing waste. Maybe your old things can put be on Craigslist or set in the front yard with a free sign. Try getting in touch with social services; they might know people who can't afford to shop at second hand stores.  If you exhaust all other options, maybe it is time to donate to a nonprofit.  Just think twice before you toss things out because not everyone can live upriver.