Freecycle Network

I haven't used this yet, but what a great idea:

The Freecycle Network is a grassroots organization whose mission is "to build a worldwide gifting movement that reduces waste, saves precious resources & eases the burden on our landfills while enabling our members to benefit from the strength of a larger community."

Basically how it works is this: you sign in to their website (which is free, naturally!)and find your community's page. There you can post items you want to get rid of, or browse what other people have posted to give away. If you find something you want, you can contact the owner through the site and they'll tell you where and when you can pick it up.

When I visited Wausau's page the other day items ranged from diapers to a canoe. And the tone was neighborly - thank-yous from donors and recipients alike peppered the page.

Freecycle groups are everywhere. All 50 states plus 98 countries and territories on 6 continents are listed on their site.

Hmmmm. I've been doing some pre-spring cleaning. My daughter wants to do a garage sale next summer, so I'm not getting rid of anything yet. But once she's done, boy am I going to start posting!