EQ habit now in real world

[Froni Thunderpaws]

I am a horrible pack rat in both realms, but I kind of figured my vendor diving addiction would be limited to EQ, but today I crossed over the line. I was taking some empty containers out to our dumpster and found out that a few coworkers wanted them for waste oil and such. OK, fine by me - glad to see them get another use. Then I followed them out to the dumpster and Steve taught me the fine art of dumpster diving (I guess I am an honorary seagull now.) I should tinker in real life I found a bunch of optical filters that I figured I could use in some art project along with bunches of cables, connectors, circuit boards, controllers.... I was amazed and he told me that you kind find stuff like that all the time at most companies. Sheesh!!!!!

I don't think I am going to check out other dumpsters but I will keep an eye on ours for more shiny goodies.

sigh, what would my parents think if they knew....

[Melinia]

Froni,
Your secret is safe with me... for a price ... Veggies would do nicely

[Froni Thunderpaws]

Eeep - OK OK, I think I have a few more stacks for ya Melinia.

And I am worried that you are now a sacrificial enchanter - I figured with how easily and often Tayln and I die that no other sacrifices are needed.

[Lilosh]

I was telling the channel yesterday that I tinker in real life.


I'm a techie, and an AV Geek at times too. The pretty shiny wires and machines make me drool.



-Noish

[Nhin Impious]

I've dumpster mined and sold my findings at a fair profit (meaning for a fair amount of cash, sometimes minus a bit of cleaning or time spent finding a buyer), a time or two.

Best deal was 257 CD jewel cases...sold at 22 cents each. My ex and his roomie once found two shattered stereos in the dumpster at Radio Shack, and for the price of some solder, put one good one together out of them. Its name, of course, was Frankenstein.

My last rat cage stand, complete with six drawers and a little curtain over a bottom compartment, solid wood, cost me $2 for a pint of mis-mixed paint at the local hardware store and $1 worth of fabric off the buck a yard table. My current five-shelf bookcase in the bedroom was also a dumpster find, and only took 25 minutes to figure out a way to get into the house.

If you want shiny goodies, old or unwanted CD's make GREAT reflectors for those tiny holiday lightbulbs...

Nhinx "you gonna use that?" Aphsion
vendor shark and Paladin of Innoruuk

[Melinia]

Froni, thats Unofficial sacrificial enchanter... I always seem to be the only one who seems to die in the guild raids/events. Rather than pout about it I would rather be for a higher purpose Then again there was that time that everyone seemed to want me to go into the plane of mischief first so i would die first (ok.. they were just pulling my leg... but I was a bit nervous.. just in case)

[jeger]

I have to jump on the bandwagon along with you guys... I've found the most astounding things by asking (if they were on curbside pickup days) or sometimes by just helping myself if they were in unlocked (ie, open) dumpsters.

I'm a fanatical gardener... Your local greenhouse/garden centre usually will have a dumpster area for non-sellable plant material.. these are almost always usable for repotting, cuttings, and seeds if nothing else... I picked up over 200 out of bloom (at the time) Phalaenopsis and BLC alliance orchids... all but a handful made it and are blooming away happily as I type this. I trade for seeds online...sending my extras in exchange for ones I want. (Check out www.gardenweb.com, especially the wintersowing forum... you'll never pay for another plant). Cache pots and plastic nursery pots are usually free for the asking as well...(Though it's outside most people's comfort level, cemetaries throw out _staggering_ amounts of plant material and potting items as well, and are generally happy to have people ask for it). Asplundh (the tree trimmer guys) will almost always _deliver_ truckloads of free hardwood mulch to your HOUSE for asking from the trees they've chopped up doing maintenance.

Curbside pickup days and car boot sales are amazing sources for perfectly good serviceable stuff (wish we had garage sales in Norway, alas we do not). I've found wonderful brass fireplaces, stone library lions and statuary (was a bugger to haul home),and more furniture than you can shake a stick at, simply for the price of hauling them home. Furniture refinishing and upholstry has made me a considerable amount of income for a long time...

It's gotten to be a personal philosophy of mine really.. .once you turn the corner and realise that you're not only giving a well made item another lease on life, but keeping the same out of our rapidly shrinking landfill space, it gets a lot easier to wrestle things into the back of your car and into your house =)

Remember.. paint is cheap and if you hate it.. you can always stick it back out on the curb to be hauled off! =))

Annie (Jeger/Nissen)