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You threw away what?!

237 50 June 21, 2012 at 05:05 PM in Finance
I decided to put my log book on this forum so you can all see the crazy amount of free stuff in good condition that I find while walking my dogs at night in NYC. My girlfriend and I recently moved into a new apartment on the Upper East Side and we had been noticing how much brand new (or antique) stuff is left out on the curb.

So for fun (and because we are both as cheap as they come), we started grabbing stuff that is in good condition. Either we use it, try to sell it, or give it away.

Oh, and keep in mind, bottles and cans have a $0.05 deposit on them so we return those.

We just started keeping track, here is what we have so far:

6/18 - 18 books, 1 milk crate, 4 deposit cans ($0.20)
6/19 - Aero-Swiss Humidifier (Valued over $100), Keurig Coffee Machine ($120), Small Dust Buster, Best Fitness Leg Developer (Over $100), 11 deposit cans ($0.55)
6/20 - 7 deposit cans ($0.35)
6/21 - 37 bottle deposit cans (took the dogs on a long walk this afternoon) ($1.85)

That's the last four days, I'll update this as we get new finds.

Anyone else do this either out of necessity or as a hobby?

Stephen

Check out the new blog @ http://youthrewawaywhat.wordpress.com ... my site where all I do is talk about garbage!

Community Wiki

Last Edited by stephenNYC July 30, 2012 at 06:41 PM
Here is the master list of all of our finds to date! It also includes what has sold, the upcycle projects and any other benefits we have gotten from our trash!

Found:

TOTAL: 8 milk crates
TOTAL: 635 My Coke Reward Points
  • 18 books
  • Aero-Swiss Humidifier
  • Keurig Coffee Machine
  • Small Dust Buster
  • Best Fitness Leg Developer
  • Giorgio Armani Sunglasses Case
  • June issue of Backpacker Magazine
  • Verizon Phone charger
  • 7 dresser drawers
  • 2 Wilson Titanium Tennis Rackets
  • Large Kitchen Garbage can
  • Michael's Arts and Crafts drawers
  • A crochet purse
  • Shannon Hand-Crafted Lead Crystal Cake Plate and Server
  • Cooks Panini-Maker
  • 3 Magazines -- Elle, Cosmo, and Glamour
  • 2 Picture frames in their original plastic
  • Film Quarterly magazines from the 1960s and 70s
  • CAT5e Ethernet Cable
  • DesignForLiving Water Bottle
  • Broyhill Nightstand
  • Cheese Grater
  • NIB Wilson Titanium Tennis Balls
  • Some eating utensils
  • Two Hard Rock Cafe Glasses, NIB
  • 254 my coke rewards points.
  • Black and Decker mixer
  • Frying pan
  • Lemonade pitcher
  • Coffee table
  • HP1040 Fax Machine
  • HP Floppy Drive & Smart Card Reader
  • Dell Keyboard
  • BodyBlade Classic 4
  • Bake King Cupcake Pan
  • Step stool
  • United States Annotated Code Chapters 28 (Federal Rules of Evidence) and 42 (Public Health and Welfare), 2001 edition with the 2012 supplements.
  • A Trash Can
  • Laundry Basket
  • Kelty Kids Ridgeline Backpack
  • Budweiser Billiard Cue
  • HP Toner
  • CAT 3 Cable
  • Holmes AccuTemp Window Fan
  • "The Naked Nude Nude" screen print art
  • HP OfficeJet Pro K850
  • 2 Electronics Stands
  • Laptop Desk with Built in Fan
  • Signed Artist Proof, Fragment by Arline Sherman
  • Small screwdriver set
  • Players Image Alignment Golf MIRROR Training Aid
  • 2 Family & Friends CPR Training Kits with Manikins
  • Pantone Color Tint Selector by Pantone Library of Color
  • 3 Books on Woodworking
  • 10Base-T Concentrator
  • A bunch of cedar shoe-horns
  • S-Video Cable


Upcycled:
  • Two dresser drawers into kitchen shelving
  • Film Quarterly Magazines into Art for wall

Converted to Cash:
  • HP1040 Fax Machine, Recalled for $100 rebate. Used to buy new printer
  • Bottle Deposit Returns: $16.30
  • HP Toner and HP1040 Ink Cart, HP OfficeJet Carts/Toner (11) -- $26 @ Staples
  • BodyBlade Classic 4 -- $68 via Ebay
  • Michael's Storage Drawers -- $25 via Ebay
  • Air-O-Swiss Humidifier -- $25 via Ebay
  • Both Wilson Tennis Rackets -- $27 via Ebay
  • Kelty Kids Backpack -- $36 via Ebay

380 Comments

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Joined Jun 2012
Trash Connoisseur
> bubble2 237 Posts
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Original Poster
stephenNYC
06-23-2012 at 08:32 PM.
06-23-2012 at 08:32 PM.
Quote from Piccaboo :
I'm in Pennsylvania, in the 'burbs outside of Philly....

Another place to find newspapers, is in hospital waiting rooms laugh out loud
They put them in there for "free" for people going in waiting for people,
usually in the lobby areas, and the waiting room where people wait for
patients who are in surgery. Been to the hospitals too many times,
and I've always been able to pick up the daily newspaper for my FIL this way
while he is in there Smilie
Oh, I lived in Philly for a year. Lots of good junk around there. I used to door to door fund-raise for the Democratic Party out in the burbs. Was the top averaging fund-raiser in the summer of 2006 in the whole country from your 'hood.

We scored the Backpacker magazine on the bus. Another good spot where people leave their reading materials Smilie
Reply
Joined May 2006
Boating
> bubble2 21,228 Posts
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Piccaboo
06-23-2012 at 08:36 PM.
06-23-2012 at 08:36 PM.
Quote from stephenNYC :
Oh, I lived in Philly for a year. Lots of good junk around there. I used to door to door fund-raise for the Democratic Party out in the burbs. Was the top averaging fund-raiser in the summer of 2006 in the whole country from your 'hood.

We scored the Backpacker magazine on the bus. Another good spot where people leave their reading materials Smilie

South Street still has a lot of off the way locales to check out - and when we go down to the Marina's there - we always walk South Street and go off into the side streets - to where the odd shops are to find things.
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Joined Jun 2012
Trash Connoisseur
> bubble2 237 Posts
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Original Poster
stephenNYC
06-23-2012 at 08:39 PM.
06-23-2012 at 08:39 PM.
Quote from knott02 :
Thanks! I will read the blog! I would love to find some non-touristy souviniers to bring back home...those are the best! Will take a peek to see if the SA one is close to where we will be anytime and add that into our trip!
In the blog there are some "higher end" thrift stores with some great Antique finds. Don't know if that is what you are into (my gf and I are big antique hunters so we scrounge for those). They are priced higher than normal thrift stores, but are still waaay below normal prices for stuff like that. Plenty of good smalls to bring home. If you are in Hell's Kitchen, it will be a very easy trip over to the big SA.

Actually, speaking of antiques, my grandmother (who passed away about 8 years ago) found this trunk (picture below) sitting on a trash pile about 30 years ago. She dragged it home and it was left to me in their estate. It's a late 19th century, fully original piece. The "repair" tag is dated 1902. She was a dumpster diving legend -- high society Greenwich Village philanthropist with an eye for the unusual.
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Joined Jul 2007
Not. Going. Anywhere. LOL
> bubble2 5,232 Posts
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Thrifteh
06-23-2012 at 08:44 PM.
06-23-2012 at 08:44 PM.
Quote from stephenNYC :
Thanks! The Humidifier and the Vaccum cleaner work great. The former will come in handy in the winter when it gets really dry here. The Keurig seems to have some minor problems, I have to take it apart tomorrow and see what's up with it.
I bet you $5 that the Keurig simply needs a descaling. Search YouTube, there are all kinds of Keurig fix it tutorials.

This thread is awesome, gonna have to subscribe to it. Reduce, reuse, recycle High Five
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Joined Jun 2012
Trash Connoisseur
> bubble2 237 Posts
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Original Poster
stephenNYC
06-23-2012 at 08:47 PM.
06-23-2012 at 08:47 PM.
Quote from Thrifteh :
I bet you $5 that the Keurig simply needs a descaling. Search YouTube, there are all kinds of Keurig fix it tutorials.

This thread is awesome, gonna have to subscribe to it. Reduce, reuse, recycle High Five
I will check that out right now. I have a $5 cracker barrel e-gift card I can give you if you are right Big Grin

Oh and thanks!! I am not very good at finding deals to post on here (if you look at all of my attempts, they've been flat out flops).. but one thing I do know is how to recycle and upcycle, so I will share my finds and knowledge in my own way on here Smilie
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Joined Jun 2008
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knott02
06-23-2012 at 08:47 PM.
06-23-2012 at 08:47 PM.
I think I would have liked your grandmother! Smalls will be what we are looking for, just unusual items that you can tell has a story. The blog is exactly what I have been looking for. I've never been to NYC and it is just a trip for me and my 12 year old son who like to find treasures as well! We are from Iowa and have got to hang out with the American Pickers quite a few times, so he is always motivated to find a treasure that he might be able to flip for some $$.
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Joined Jun 2012
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cheapoGIRL1992
06-23-2012 at 08:48 PM.
06-23-2012 at 08:48 PM.
Oh me and my boyfriend do that too!!!!
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Joined Jun 2012
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stephenNYC
06-23-2012 at 09:11 PM.
06-23-2012 at 09:11 PM.
Quote from knott02 :
I think I would have liked your grandmother! Smalls will be what we are looking for, just unusual items that you can tell has a story. The blog is exactly what I have been looking for. I've never been to NYC and it is just a trip for me and my 12 year old son who like to find treasures as well! We are from Iowa and have got to hang out with the American Pickers quite a few times, so he is always motivated to find a treasure that he might be able to flip for some $$.
Yeah she was a pretty amazing woman. Well NYC is smalls land! That's awesome that ou guys have hung out with the APs. They seem like good guys. Great that you are getting him into that, I feel like there are not enough young people (I'm 24 and my gf is 20) that are into antiquing/junking, and I feel like its becoming a lost art. Post what you find here!!
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Joined Jun 2012
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> bubble2 237 Posts
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stephenNYC
06-24-2012 at 03:46 PM.
06-24-2012 at 03:46 PM.
Quote from knott02 :
I think I would have liked your grandmother! Smalls will be what we are looking for, just unusual items that you can tell has a story. The blog is exactly what I have been looking for. I've never been to NYC and it is just a trip for me and my 12 year old son who like to find treasures as well! We are from Iowa and have got to hang out with the American Pickers quite a few times, so he is always motivated to find a treasure that he might be able to flip for some $$.
You inspired us to do some Sunday thrifting today. We hit three different stores down in Greenwich Village. Had you in mind to weed some out for you. I grabbed the business card from Cure Thrift Store because they had loads of great antique smalls there to pick through. Their proceeds benefit the Diabetes Research Institute (which is in partnership with my Alma Mater, the University of Miami I found out today) so that was an added bonus for me. You and your son will like it a lot I think (attached picture of their card below).

I bought a few t-shirts and some shorts today at two different clothing thrifts. Great buys IMO.

Our diving today hasn't yielded much but tonight should be good! I will update with any cool finds.

Today so far is 14 bottle deposits ($0.70)
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Joined Jun 2012
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stephenNYC
06-24-2012 at 08:45 PM.
06-24-2012 at 08:45 PM.
Just got in from our nightly walk, so I am filling in the log for the night. We weren't out for very long because it started pouring on us.

We got a record-high (for one walk) 44 bottles for return ($2.20), bringing the day's total to 58! ($2.90).
4 My Coke Rewards Caps
1 Sunday New York Times

The only piece of furniture outside was a beautiful wood twin bed. Looked like something for a kid I guess. The gf was saying it would be very easy to sand down and repaint in the shabby chic style and sell for quite a bit... but we didn't have any way of getting it back home, nor the room to store it. Oh well.
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Joined May 2006
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Piccaboo
06-25-2012 at 04:01 AM.
06-25-2012 at 04:01 AM.
Quote from stephenNYC :
Just got in from our nightly walk, so I am filling in the log for the night. We weren't out for very long because it started pouring on us.

We got a record-high (for one walk) 44 bottles for return ($2.20), bringing the day's total to 58! ($2.90).
4 My Coke Rewards Caps
1 Sunday New York Times

The only piece of furniture outside was a beautiful wood twin bed. Looked like something for a kid I guess. The gf was saying it would be very easy to sand down and repaint in the shabby chic style and sell for quite a bit... but we didn't have any way of getting it back home, nor the room to store it. Oh well.

That vacation is beginning to add up quickly Smilie
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Joined Aug 2007
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noungning
06-25-2012 at 09:14 AM.
06-25-2012 at 09:14 AM.
Interesting thread! Thumbsup
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Joined Jun 2008
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knott02
06-25-2012 at 10:58 AM.
06-25-2012 at 10:58 AM.
Quote from stephenNYC :
You inspired us to do some Sunday thrifting today. We hit three different stores down in Greenwich Village. Had you in mind to weed some out for you. I grabbed the business card from Cure Thrift Store because they had loads of great antique smalls there to pick through. Their proceeds benefit the Diabetes Research Institute (which is in partnership with my Alma Mater, the University of Miami I found out today) so that was an added bonus for me. You and your son will like it a lot I think (attached picture of their card below).

I bought a few t-shirts and some shorts today at two different clothing thrifts. Great buys IMO.

Our diving today hasn't yielded much but tonight should be good! I will update with any cool finds.

Today so far is 14 bottle deposits ($0.70)
Thanks for the info and glad you had some fun! I was telling my son about this and he was excited! I will have to keep you posted on our finds and keep my eyes out for people's trash! I've been buying him NYC t-shirts at garage sales/thrift stores since we knew we were going...so we shouldn't even need to buy $5 t-shirts when we are there!
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Joined Jun 2012
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stephenNYC
06-25-2012 at 11:11 AM.
06-25-2012 at 11:11 AM.
Quote from knott02 :
Thanks for the info and glad you had some fun! I was telling my son about this and he was excited! I will have to keep you posted on our finds and keep my eyes out for people's trash! I've been buying him NYC t-shirts at garage sales/thrift stores since we knew we were going...so we shouldn't even need to buy $5 t-shirts when we are there!
Great! You guys will have a great time. The best neighborhoods to search are the Village and the Upper East or West sides. Look for what days are the bulk trash pickup and you could get lucky. The best time to go looking is around 7-10pm. That's when the building staffs start to move stuff out to the curb. One rule -- if you find something you want, do not let go of it. If you walk around the block (aka go find a way to move it to your hotel), it will be gone by the time you get back. I've learned this the hard way quite a few times already...
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Joined Oct 2004
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Jabbit
06-25-2012 at 03:35 PM.
06-25-2012 at 03:35 PM.
This is a cool thread, thanks for the posts. Best thing I ever found in the trash was a Weber gas grill that works awesome, I have used it for 3+ years. Also found a BNIB office chair at a Staples. They threw it out because it was missing 1 wheel. $3 later, brand new chair Smilie
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