Free! Garbage!

You know, it's amazing what people will grab when it has a "FREE" sign attached to it. Past places I've lived, you could put out an old, broken chair, a couch that had been physically sawn in half, a shadeless lamp, a lampless shade, or spare pieces of pipe, electical bits, and other detrius that collects in garages and basements, and once on the sidewalk, it would be gone within the hour. I've had people stop and take stuff before I had even made it back to the house after propping up the "free" sign.

I was a bit nervous here in Sudbury, because it's kind of a swanky neighborhood and they might frown on this sort of activity, but I spray-painted the word "FREE" on a couple of spare pieces of cardboard, and propped it up next to an old wicker loveseat and table that came with this house when we bought it. Under these was a wicker-type rug, ruined in some summertime rains. Next to this was the clonky old riding mower that I bought from my brother Matt after we moved in here. It has no brakes, and the throttle is stuck at full speed. Plus, lately, you can't mow for more than twenty minutes or so before it eats the belt that turns the mower blades. I only fill it up every so often with gas, but I have a steady supply of belts to keep it running.

Anyway, the mower disappeared after a day. The wicker junk left us after two days. I am quite happy, and my faith in people's strange need to get something, even if it's crap, even in a swanky neighborhood, is quite restored.