Would we bury someone prior to their death? Of course not. That is murder. Why do we bury “stuff” when there is still life in it? This, in a way, is contributing to a “slow death” of the earth…
As a whole, we as a society are wealthy (compared to the rest of the world) and — INCREDIBLY WASTEFUL!
More specifically, we are loading up our landfills with stuff that still has life in it. Can we please stop!?!
Realize that what we may consider “junk” or “no longer required” is someone else’s treasure. Alternatives to unload this stuff include donating to charity, having a yard sale, eBay, craigslist and/or putting it by the side of the road (on our own lot 🙂 ) marked as “free.”
In the last 2 days I observed 2 scenarios which prompted the writing of this post.
The first was a person who was moving out of his rented home. No longer needing his working refrigerator he was going to ditch it. I asked him if he thought of craigslist’ing it. His response: “I haven’t the patience for that.” I said: “Can you please turn the light on in here, I’ll take a few pictures and get it up on craigslist within the hour.” That same day we had 3 people respond and the fridge sold for $75 in less than 24 hours. This impatient person was undoubtedly happy with his $75 score.
The next day I learned that our church intended to trash 2 old, large and working AC units that were no longer required. The line was “oh, no-one wants these ole things.” It was time to head to church and take a few pictures. After posting the ad on craigslist an email blast was sent to fellow church-goers. Within 24 hours we had numerous inquiries and the units were claimed for pickup the following day!
Over the last several years my family has sold cars, tires, bikes, refrigerators, dehumidifiers, iPads and, I can’t remember what else, on craigslist. Most of the items sold within 24 hours of posting!
The process takes less than 10 minutes. Simply take a few pictures, create the ad, upload the pictures and submit. That said, don’t just put up an ad saying “AC Units” with the description “these ole things.” It is important to “pitch” what you are selling (what is good about it, etc.) and share why you are selling it. Be open and honest; never greedy. Price it to sell.
By taking just a few moments, chances are you can unload the unneeded item in short order, make a few bucks and KEEP IT OUT OF THE LANDFILL – at least until it is officially dead!
Be Brave Not Safe 
My wife Willow says to me”your uncle wrote a blog thats right up your alley”. She was right, as usual! Don’t tell her I admitted that. I’ve bought, sold, taken and given on craigslist, Uncle Henry’s and wise guide (when it existed). I’ve gone as far as to build my business from one man’s or should I say 15 businesses’ trash and I pay them to haul it away! You may think I’m crazy, but today I made $600 off $130 investment of someone else’s trash. I took a product and repurposed it, prolonged its life and quadrupled my investment. When I find 20 more suppliers I’ll be a millionaire off of someone else’s trash!!! You can contact me at barrelboss767@gmail.com for your bucket, barrel and other container needs. Or, if you have container disposal needs we can help with that too!!!
Michael – That is entrepreneurism at its very best!
A fantastic lesson on making best use of available resources. Not only are you making a profit, you are also helping the environment by keeping stuff out of the landfill – for a longer period of time!
Great job – and proud of you!