I went over to visit my friend’s 101 year old MIL the other day. She said 'I still have this dry sink (and cabinet) you like" Hmm, I said it was my mother who would like it because it is early American style and NO, I don’t care if you are 101, I don’t want to take stuff from YOUR house to MY house. My mother has died. I have way too much furniture as it is so I don’t want any more. She’s also offered me this big frame for making hooked rugs and all the material to complete one she probably started 30 years ago. The frame is as big as a sofa.
She doesn’t want to get rid of anything in her house because she’s sure the grandchildren (who are now in their 40s and 50) will want it. They have their own homes and don’t want her tankard ‘collection’ or a 40 year old TV set or the little calendar that is a bear holding blocks and you turn the days and months every day (and she does).
I feel it is a win on the ‘Bag a Week’ because even though I didn’t take a bag to the good will this week, I didn’t bring MORE into my house even though it is free.
I went to a craft supplies swap at my church and came home with about the same amount space wise as I took, so counting it as a win. Quantity wise it was a super win because I took hundreds (thousands?) of plastic beads and came home with 7 skeins of yarn .
I have 4 of my kids old musical instruments. We’ve had them 10+ years and they weren’t in the best shape to begin with. They were Craigslist finds. I’ve thought about contacting the middle school band director but they have a pretty high end program and I don’t know if anyone would be interested in very used instruments. But I need to ask. We don’t seem to have any program like this around.
Put out a dresser at the curb last Thursday hoping someone would pick it up. If noone did by Sunday, I was going to call the trash service for bulk pickup for Wednesday. Someone took the dresser home this afternoon, 15 minutes before the first rain we’ve had in three weeks. WOOHOO! Saved me the bulk pickup fee and it’s not in a landfill!
S2 and DIL are here for a month and have also been VERY helpful in assisting me with moving stuff out of the house. OTOH, I have been moving plants into the house, much to H’s consternation. It’s cheaper than therapy, dude!
They do not. The one who continued on with music into college has two nicer trombones. The other two only kept playing in middle school to go on the band trips (NYC, Chicago,DC - they had a great band program). The trumpet is something my husband bought thinking he might, I don’t know, suddenly decide to be a trumpet player (he hasn’t touched it in the 10 years he’s had it).
I haven’t needed to get rid of too much since moving 2 summers ago, but I had been shoving a bag of small electronics around my guest closet (seasonal decoration & grandkids’ toy closet) since moving in. I’m having a brunch for condo friends on the 28th and it has served as good motivation to do a few things that I’ve procrastinated on. Took that bag to Best Buy on Tuesday and it felt so good to mark that to do off my list! Next up, getting rid of a paper grocery bag full of clothes.
You might consider donating them to an organization that fixes them up and gets them into the hands of kids in underfunded schools – something like this: https://hungryformusic.org/instruments/donate-an-instrument/ I’ve never used this particular one but there are several programs like this all over the country. A music store in your area might be able to point you to one that specifically serves your local schools or you could just reach out to music teachers at one of the less-wealthy districts in your area directly. I was a band teacher for several years and I know that there are many schools out there that would be very grateful to have your instruments no matter what the condition. Good luck finding them a new home!
Hungry for Music link was interesting. I also liked finding their Facebook page Hungry for Music
Saw many fun posts, including one about a boy scout project instrument collection.
If we had a collection around here I’d probably send off the three violins in the basement. (Last year I had a violin teacher church friend look through all four in our collection… she restringed and tuned the best one and picked the best bows. I put them in the best case and gave to my daughter at Christmas, to take to her apartment.)
H put a patio table and four chairs at the curb the afternoon before our bulk pick up day. At dusk I was tickled to see our neighbor’s two teens run over and haul them to their backyard. They were looking over their shoulders as if worried someone might see them. I’m happy they’ll be put to good use.
So far this month various neighbors have picked up a stroller, a crib and mattress, and two patio chaises. Charity shops near us won’t take anything that “a baby’s bottom might have had contact with” (this is the criteria H was told by two of them) such as highchairs, exersaucers, strollers, or beds. Car seats aren’t accepted because they can’t confirm if they’ve ever been in an accident.
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Some are really eternal. I just use more of the “expired” spice.