Monday, December 7, 2009

That's so trashy!


As the famous saying goes -- one man's trash is another man's treasure ... The other day Rick and I were at the dump site dropping off some trash. As we were driving away, Rick mentioned a little sleigh sitting on the side of one of the trash bins. I said, "Huh?" Apparently, he had tried to point it out to me a few minutes earlier, but I didn't hear him because I was too busy being grossed out by a huge deer that had been gutted and tossed into one of the bins. Anyway, I made him back up to retrieve the little sleigh. It was in perfect condition, but just a little dirty because it had been used as a planter.

So anyway, here it is in this picture. I knew it would be perfect for my little stuffed reindeer that I got from Burger King back in the 1980s. The tricky part would be keeping GI Joe from stealing it. He tried, but I snagged it back. I tossed some elves in it last night, but I'd like to make some sort of sack for Santa's toys to put back there. And maybe add some snow underneath. Reins would be nice too. After all, whoever saw a reindeer without reins. Yep, the day has finally come. I've been in Montana a long time now. Long enough to start bringing home treasures from the dump -- sigh.

The picture below is probably pretty common. Most people have plastic bags accumulating in their house somewhere. One thing I've been doing with mine is using them as packing material. Last year I used bags to pack up all my Christmas decorations. They work just as good as newspaper and they don't leave your hands all messy from the ink. When I set up my decorations, I use the bags to pack up other stuff that I temporarily put away for the holidays. You can also use bags to fill in empty spots in packages you're planning on mailing out. Just something to think about ...

7 comments:

  1. No more plastic bags!

    I use the reusable green kind you can buy for 70 cents. They are AMAZING and the stores give me 5 cents credit every time I use them. I hate those bags because they break, accumulate, and are a big waste to the environment. And the green bags hold a lot and last...I've had mine for about two years now and they're still going strong! Since I have a large family, I have about twenty bags for my groceries, but I only carry two in when I'm running in for small items. So worth it!

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  2. Cute sleigh,I would have picked it up too! I also frequent a church near here that gives away free clothes 3 days a week.NICE clothes too. Of course,I try to donate back a lot of clothes to even things up. Free is good!

    Leanne

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  3. Rescuing the sleigh was a good thing. In the islands it's called dumpster diving. We have retrieved many things from dumpsters, like perfectly good porch furniture.

    I'm with Pam on the plastic bags. I really, really dislike them. But at least you are using them for something other than landfill material.

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  4. Great buy!
    I do generally use reusable bags for shopping, but still accumulate some anyway. I also use them for packing my decorations and for poop patrol (picking up dog stuff in the yard ;)

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  5. Yeah for rescuing Santa's sleigh. We have to buy grocery bags so it's an insentive to bring your own bag when you shop.

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  6. The sleigh is adorable. Good find! I use plastic bags for packing too, they work great!

    Nancy

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  7. I am actually totally out of plastic bags. I never thought the day would come as I had hundreds of them but our local stores (food and Walmart) have all started charging for bags. Only 5 cents but enough to make us go out and get the environmentally friendly, reusable ones. So now we take our own bags to do the shopping and never get a plastic bag. I know it is better for the environment but I sure miss having one at my fingertips - especially when my daughter has a nasty diaper. :)

    Great sleigh Rena!

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