It Pays To Watch Freecycle Experts Needed

Cinders2001

You never know!!!
We've had some odd requests of late!

MONEYMAKINGMUM

[QUOTEWanted...House ][/QUOTE]
Did you offer yours sazzzle? lol
Did you see the 'paperclip for a house' guy? It did work eventually.
Maybe I should try that on my local freecycle.

ben500

Sazzzle wrote: »

I think I win the "Cheeky/Funny Freecycle Post Of The Month/Year/Millennium" award hands down with this post I saw on Leeds Freecycle yesterday:

Wanted...House

Posted by: "Ian Hobson"

Thu Feb 7, 2008 1:40 am (PST)

I want someone out there to give me a house!! Someone out there is rich enough to be able to give me one of theirs............Believe me, I am serious. I live in a very nice council flat but would love to have a place to call my own. As I cannot work due to a disability I will never get a mortgage.

Please someone....Be the first!!! Thanks..........................Ian

Just had a look in the cupboard under the stairs and guess what? Found a three bedroom semi detached I put in there nearly four years ago now and had forgotten all about it!

Edna_Bucket_2

ben500 wrote: »

Just had a look in the cupboard under the stairs and guess what? Found a three bedroom semi detached I put in there nearly four years ago now and had forgotten all about it!

If you're prepared to donate some of your Lego pieces I'm prepared to match them Ben - in the spirit of charity.

System

I love Freecycle, I've so far donated about 30 pairs of my old prescription contact lenses & spare lens cleaning fluid (I'm on monthly contact lens plan and they always send me too much.)

I haven't managed to get anything ... most offers are taken before I have a chance.

I believe Freecycle should adopt a feedback scoring system of some sort. Like Ebay ... so that people are aware of exactly what & how much people have donated/taken. This may prevent people from taking advantage of the system.

Badger_Lady

Something similar has been suggested, actually - a "credit" system was discussed, whereby you earn credit for everything you give away, enabling you to "buy" more items. There are a few blocks to this though:

- Technology. Freecycle groups that use Yahoo Groups do so because it's cheap, but it doesn't have the flexibility to incorporate such a scheme. Some major investment would provide this facility for all the national freecycle groups, but who would invest this cash with no way of making money back?

- Charity collecting. People who regularly collect for charity (like me, who collects old CDs for the hospital radio) would lose out, because they'd be represented as "takers".

- Need vs means. Those who really are struggling to make ends meet may have a very genuine need for items but not have any spare "rubbish" to give away in return. It isn't always necessary to give and recieve in equal measure.

- Community spirit. As soon as you start creating rigid credit schemes, people start to forget about "politeness", "empathy" and "generosity" - it becomes all about credits and feedback instead.

If a particular group is being severely affected by "dealers" or "advantage-takers", then they may have to consider such a scheme (and maybe apply for council funding?). However, the longer we can keep it "goodwill" the better... certainly in my area I think we're doing just fine.

ayla261

MSE_Andrea wrote: »

Hi again

The production team is asking if anyone's been able to furnish their house thanks to freecycle.

Andrea

Hi Andrea, when we transferred housing authority properties last year, with no notice given & only two weeks before christmas, our local freecycle was fantastic. We recieved carpets, sofa, coffee table, bunk beds, welsh dresser, tv stand, bookcase, chest of drawers, bathroom cabinet, garden furniture & several new tins of paint. If it hadn't have been for freeecycle we would still be struggling to furnish the house now! I'm now glad to be a regular member of three of our local freecycle groups, regulary giving and recieving bits and pieces. :T

Badger_Lady

To go back to the original post - it's me! "It Pays to Watch" are coming to my house on Friday to start filming... wish me luck

essexgal

candyflossing wrote: »

I believe Freecycle should adopt a feedback scoring system of some sort. Like Ebay ... so that people are aware of exactly what & how much people have donated/taken. This may prevent people from taking advantage of the system.

If you go onto your freecycle site you can sort the messages by member - easy to see who actually offers and those who post all Wanteds. (Unfortunately you can't work out who's actually received from other offers as you're not supposed to post thanks on there).

I've just got rid of about 12 things this week (video recorders/computer bits, etc)- I allow 24 hours before picking as to give everyone a chance. Then I choose depending on the politeness of the emails, whether I can see if they've offered before, how local they are, or if I get a good 'vibe' from them. At the bottom of the list are the 'rude' emails, serial wanters, 'can you deliver'ers and 'greedy grabbers' - although if no-one else wants it I will let them have it. I just prefer to think that my stuff will go to someone who will appreciate it, and give in turn when they have something they no longer need.

In turn I have been lucky enough to receive a rug (exactly the shape, size and colour scheme I would have chosen), a coffee table (again, exactly what I would have chosen for myself) and a gorgeous (and enormous!) enormous brass wall plate. In each case I was told that I had it because I was the only person who took the trouble to use please and thank you, and turn up when I said I would.

Freecycle is a great concept - and the majority of people who use my local one are fantastic. Unfortunately there is the relatively small minority who 'desperately need' everything going. Like someone on mine who was asking for toys and clothes for her kids and gave the impression that they only had one change of clothes and nothing to play with, then a week later asking for bunkbeds and toy chests 'because they've got so much stuff' :rotfl:

essexgal

P.S. Badgerlady - good luck

crystalmooniris

our local freecycle now has a sister site that is for animals rehoming and requesting its only been going a month or so and the ridiculous request have already started, one woman "desperately needs" a male bichon frise puppy and can't afford to buy one!! and she has a whole sob story about how getting one would heal her broken heart from losing there last dog.
I say go to the rspca and rehome a loving old mongrel!:rotfl: