Curb Alert

I used to think that when I saw people looking through other peoples trash it meant that they were in dire straits scrounging around for anything that they could find to stay alive. I also had thoughts of "that's invasive". I mean, what if the homeowner was trying to hide some top secret information and figured the landfill would be ideal, just to have some nosey person come along and rummage through their garbage!

I've also seen those crazy coupon people on television rummaging through garbage cans looking for coupons. Now, I guess I can't knock attempts to save money. After all I believe the people that I saw on television were going to use the coupons to help other people.

I'm not posting about this because I've been rummaging through the trash, it's just that since I've been blogging I've learned more about refurbishing, and finding new uses for old things. I've learned about curb alerts on Craigslist and I've been re-exposed to thrifting (something that I remember as a child). The other day, I experienced my first curb alert. There was a post on Craigslist about giving things away and after looking at the images on line and asking myself "what could I turn that into" we went to check it out! I have to say...it was a bit weird. I felt like the homeowner  was probably thinking what I used to think. "oh, that poor soul. They must be struggling". When in fact, I just want to try my hand at turning old things into something fresh and possibly finding a new use!

After I got over the weird feeling of everyone in the neighborhood pointing and giggling at me I proceeded to browse. Soon thereafter it became quite comfortable because I began to see just what I could do with a few of the items. Chris helped me get them in the car. Here is what I got!

A mirror

A small chair and table slats

And two more chairs. These two really need some work:

So there you have it, my very first curb shopping trip! Exactly how I will utilize these items...not sure yet. Hopefully I come up with something or they'll end up on my curb waiting for the next person...or the garbage man :-)

Tatum