annuin: (Eddie Izzard Stupid Fucker Period)
Marieke ([personal profile] annuin) wrote2009-10-10 06:11 pm
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Freecycle Funnies

I'm on the Freecycle mailing list for this county. This list provides some hilarity to me at times, watching what people will ask for. Some people seem to forget that this is a list where items are offered for free, this also would generally mean that you shouldn't be too picky about what comes your way, because, you know, it's FREE and not costing you anything.

Earlier in the week, someone posted a Wanted for a horse. Yes, one of those 4 legged furry breathing ones that you can ride on. And it had to be tame/friendly too. Let me just get that for you, one sec, I have a spare in the closet... *eyeroll*.

Another that got me was someone asking for Le Creuset ware. Le Creuset is enameled cast iron cookware, it lasts a long time... my mother has a dutch oven and a saucepan of theirs, and has had them for at least 25 years now. You easily pay $100+ for the pans. So this someone was asking for them, and on top of that, was stipulating that the enamel had to be chip free. It doesn't bother me that they're asking for expensive stuff, hell, what do you have to lose if someone is actually looking to get rid of some... but to be that picky about the state it's in is just rather obnoxious when it's a freebie. Especially considering this county (being the most expensive to live in the country) isn't lacking in well-to-do people.

For now, I'll keep giggling at people asking for high-end items that are unlikely to really appear on a Freecycle list though...

[identity profile] ariandar.livejournal.com 2009-10-11 12:42 am (UTC)(link)
In a local paper here, there's a "looking for..." segment, where people are supposed to ask for things that are hard to find. E.g., Sandy in Whitehall is looking for an avocado green 'fridge door to replace the one that's broken. That sort of thing.

But lately, I've seen them print people who actually say they're looking for things like an Xbox 360. Hello? Go to the mall. They're on sale.

Freecycle got to driving me crazy with the greedy/picky people, so I had to unsub from the list before I said something I regretted. :-D

[identity profile] tanthe.livejournal.com 2009-10-11 05:22 pm (UTC)(link)
It really is the greed that gets me. It's one thing to see stuff offered you'd like to have, like I got a "Crobots" book (crochet amigurumi robots) book, which I'd actually been holding at B&N not 2-3 days earlier than when I saw the offer post (and thus saved myself about $15), but another to ask for really expensive items that you're just too stingy to buy... and then be PICKY about them too.

The idea is that you're keeping stuff out of the landfill, so likely often older things. And honestly, you should be glad anyone's getting rid of enameled cast iron cookware for free at all, let alone in perfectly mint condition.

I know some split off from our local Freecycle list to become Freeshare, as they didn't like that Freecycle got taken over or bought into by a waste management company, and felt that went against the principles or idea.

[identity profile] octopusgrrl.livejournal.com 2009-10-11 11:20 pm (UTC)(link)
*rollseyes* I'm a mod for the local Freecycle list, and it's amazing what people have the chutzpah to ask for. Unfortunately as moderator it's actually pretty difficult to say to people, "get a grip, ask for something reasonable!" as quite often we have people offering all sorts of amazing stuff like bikes, skis, an Xbox (albeit broken), a piano and even a car! My brief is basically that if they want to ask for ridiculous stuff like MP3 players or game consoles or whatever, go ahead - they're the ones that look like idiots that just don't get the whole concept of Freecycle, and you find they unsubscribe pretty quickly! But unfortunately that also runs the risk of alienating the decent generous folk on the list so it's hard to find a middle way *sigh*