To Provoke the Thoughts

A while back, I wrote a post about the the nature of photography and how it's changed in the digital age.  I still wonder what is going to be at the estate sales of the future in place of boxes of family photos. 

Monday, when I was trying to find the blog post I wrote about my mother's death for a post on the Book of Faces, I stumbled across four or five older posts in a row that had deleted videos embedded in them.  On the one hand, this makes me a little sad, given that this blog is a record of the last twelve years of my life, off and on.  On the other hand, do I really want to go back and clean up 1000+ old posts when there are much better (and more fun) uses of my time?

John Green works a bit with both those ideas in this interesting video.  If you don't know who he is, check out the vlogbrothers YouTube channel.  It's pretty awesome. 

Some thoughts about this junk stuff

Junk set out time always makes me contemplate this junking life I'm leading.  I usually intend to share them on the blog, but never seem to get around to it.  Consider this post to be a random look at some of the things rolling around in my head.  Very random.  Like that surprises anyone.

My long-suffering husband is fond of saying to me:  "Just because it's free, that doesn't mean you have to take it."  My typical response to that is:  "What?  I left some stuff didn't I?"

Right before I got out of the van to grab that metal box from last week's sneak peek, I told him:  "You might as well go ahead and give me that eye roll.  I know it's coming when you see this thing."

I wish I could find money, like the guy at Things I Find in the Garbage.  I mean, I do find money, since I sell what I find, but just finding actual cash once and a while would be cool, even if it's only a buck.

I learn a helluva lot from other blogs that guides me in picking stuff.  Sometimes, I pick something up and think:  "So and so would make a project out of this."  Or "I saw this used this way in a blog."  Or the ever famous:  "I know that such-and-so would really love this one."  I match my finds up to people all the time.  I even play a guessing game about what will catch particular people's eyes enough for them to mention it in a comment.  I'm right a lot of the time.

On the nicer side of the neighborhood, where people have alleys and garages and off street parking and trash pick up, they tend to toss their junk out at any time.  It doesn't get picked up, but it's out of sight, out of mind until the next pick up comes around.  I've started taking Sunday evening "junk constitutionals" to see what's new.

People complain about the mess that gets left behind when people go through the junk piles.  Scrappers are notorious for rooting through stuff and making a huge mess.  I've learned over the years, however, that there are a fair number of piles that start out as a mess from the moment the stuff is put out.  An awful lot of residents just randomly toss things out into huge, unorganized piles that cascade all over the place, at gravity's accord.

I'm not saying that to excuse junkers and pickers, but it is time to bring a little perspective to the issue.

Making a mess is something that I will go out of my way to avoid.  Items I pull out of boxes go right back in the boxes or into other boxes.  One time, I accidentally dropped some glass stuff and stayed until I had picked up every shard and carefully disposed of them.  I'll even tell home-owners I see that I won't leave a mess.

One of the biggest contributors to the mess situation is clothing.  People put out bags of clothing that get torn open and scattered, then it all gets rained on.  I very rarely open bags, especially if I can tell they're full of clothes.  We are not that far from a Goodwill, and there are several churches in the area that have clothing closets and do give-aways.  We also have three or four of those for-profit thrift drop boxes for clothes scattered throughout the neighborhood.  There are even several charities that pick up donations.  Tossing useable clothing is something I just don't understand.

Seeing boxes of books at the curb always makes me sad, even when I know it's stuff that no one is going to want.

Queen of Fifty Cents coined the term "Taker's Remorse" the other day in a post.  This is the feeling you get from picking up freebies that you really don't want or that really aren't what you need/want.  Our junk set out periods easily resolve this dilemma.  Typically for me, there's a flaw that I didn't see when I grabbed something.  I work kind of fast and quickly shove things in to my bag.  When I look at something later and realize that it's not going to work for me, I either leave it on someone else's pile or toss it on my own when I get home.  Problem solved!

If something makes it to the booth and turns out to be a dud, it will eventually get a markdown or two, then head to a sidewalk sale, if necessary.  After all, it was free.

Brothers of the Pick

I taught three classes on Monday, two during the day and one at night.  My day classes are close enough to home that I can walk or ride my bike, which I usually do.  I walked on Monday, so that I could catch the bus to the evening class without having to hassle with getting the bike on and off the bus.  Plus, Keith does a class at the same school on Mondays, so we ride home together.

Anyway, I was walking through the neighborhood, zig zagging between piles of junk set-outs looking for treasure on my way to work.  The entire area between my house and that center where I teach is a part of this week's pick up, so there was a lot to see.  Or not a lot to see, depending on your perspective.

Didn't find much, except for an amazing Mid-Century Modern headboard that was too large to take with me and that I knew would not be there that evening.  Oh well.  I didn't have space for it at either booth at the moment anyway.

I've kind of learned that I have to be a little philosophical about missed opportunities and then let them go.  After a couple of years in this business, I can say that I know a few things for sure:

1.  There's always going to be junk out there somewhere.
2.  Some of it you'll get.
3. Some you won't, for a variety of reasons.
4. You can't be everywhere.
5. Similarly, you can't get everything.
6. There's no use fretting over things you don't get because (back to number 1).

I can't spend all my time stressing about what I didn't get.  There's too much else out there to find.

Anyway, as I was walking along, I noticed a man in front of me with a plastic bags who was also looking through the piles.  I was kind of intrigued, since you don't see too many pickers on foot (other than me, of course).  Sometimes folks will poke in a pile they're passing out of idle curiosity, but there was a deliberateness to this guy.  He was definitely picking.

I watched him for a few minutes, then I realized what he was doing.  He was looking for cans!

For the past few months, I've been pondering various aspects of this re-sell enterprise.  You've got those who craft things to put on Etsy using older materials that they've bought/found.  You've got those who set up at flea markets.  You've got the eBayers.  You've got your people with booths.  You've got people who sell gold.  You've got your scrappers.  But I hadn't ever thought about the can collectors in that context before.

But it fits!  They go out.  They hunt, usually in all kinds of weather.  If they're lucky, they find something.  And then, maybe, they'll make a little (very little) money for their efforts.  Sounds like what I do.  And what all of the above do. 

Our hunting grounds may be different. What we're looking for may be different.  But, in the end what we're all trying to do is make a little cash off of things that others were getting rid of.

I know some very snooty people with booths who will take great offense at being lumped in with the homeless guys and their carts of cans.  I love it!