Tuesday, October 09, 2007

Custom Ordered Free

I realize there is no harm in asking. I am a member of the local Freecycle - so that I can get rid of stuff. (I am currently not allowed to even look at the stuff marked OFFER until I get the remaining boxes in my kitchen taken care of.)
I check the ones marked WANTED since people might have something that I am not really using and can get rid of thereby speeding the destash of my apartment. (To make more room for yarn. Or books.) And there is nothing wrong with asking - that is in fact part of the established protocol. Perhaps it is just me, but while I see asking for "kitchen stuff" or "wall hangings", I find it a bit amusing to see "television 30" or larger with remote" or "tablecloth - blue only". I mean sure, someone might have a spare television or blue tablecloth. And - no harm in asking. But, isn't the idea of freecycle that we reduce waste? Making better use of the resources already out there by passing on things to others who need them rather than passing them to the dumpster. Now clearly, I don't know the stories behind these requests and there might be legitimate reasons that only these specific things will work for their needs. And you might as well see if you can get it for free before trying the next outlet (no pun intended).
But it seems a little bit like trying to special or custom order something and get it for free. I really need this exact thing, and I'm hoping you'll just give it to me, so I don't have to buy it.