New Old Things

I have a somewhat debilitating condition. When I “need” something, I go to such excessive lengths to avoid buying new, that I will sometimes spend hours to avoid doing so. I can’t stand the thought of buying new things, so I instead toil endlessly on reuse websites to find something second-hand. I much prefer to get new old things for myself.

The New Old Bed

I recently moved into a new apartment and took the room of my good friend. Fortunately, the apartment was furnished and I was able to use his bed, which made the move a lot easier. One major problem, the bed was as firm as a rubber band. How he slept on that bed is beyond me. He thought the mattress and the box spring may have been broken. Being the freegan I am, I thought “no big deal, I can tough it out”.

I could not. 

I dreaded going to bed and my back hurt every morning. Some things in life are worth paying for right? Well… I’m still a freegan. I can’t go down that easily. It’s almost debilitating sometimes, but I go through such excessive lengths to avoid buying new things, because I know just how much waste there is.

For days, I scoured Craigslist and OfferUp for a used bed set that seemed reasonably priced and in good shape. After going back and forth with a few people, I found what seemed like a good deal, a barely used queen mattress and bed frame for $125 total. 

I arranged to pick it up Friday afternoon and rented a UHaul (which in the end cost me $37). I drove over to the seller’s apartment and she was kind enough to help me disassemble and carry the frame and mattress to the van. My roommate was also kind enough to help me carry everything up to the apartment. An hour and a half later of setting up the frame and I finally had an amazing comfortable used bed. Counting communication, I spent about 5 hours, $162 dollars, and a great deal of sweat to ensure comfortable sleep for years to come.

Looking at some mattress websites, it looks like most full or queen mattresses similar to mine went from between $175-300 and box springs went for around $150+. In total, we’re looking at a completely new set for $350 on the cheap end. At a certain point, the effort I put in is not worth it. I could have easily ordered online and been done with it, but I instead went through a solid four hours of trouble. In total, I saved $163 minus five hours of work. Depending on how much you make and value your time, that could be a good or bad deal. On the one hand, it’s kind of a pain in the ass. On the other hand, it was a “fun” adventure, a workout, and I met someone along the way.

In fairness, sometimes you can come across a free mattress/bed set that is in good shape. This old free bed I got was so bad, I couldn’t bear another night of sleep on it.

The New Old Desk

I also started a new job recently and they reimbursed office equipment for up to $200. I decided to get a standing desk.

Instead of buying a standing desk from some place like Amazon for $100 that would be delivered right to my door, I scoured OfferUp and Craigslist once again. After much researching and negotiating, I was able to find one for $50. I rode a bike four miles to the seller’s house at 9pm on a Tuesday night, took a look at the desk, and gave him the cash.

Only problem was, this desk was damn heavy. I was thinking I would bus home with it, and then take the train with it in the morning. Too heavy for that.  Since I can’t train with it, I have to take a Lyft with it. But since I’m taking a Lyft home, I might as well bring it into the office instead of having to do it during rush hour the next morning. Next thing you know, I take a $20 Lyft to my office and set it up at 10 pm. I biked home and was in bed by 11. 

I saved $0 and spent two hours doing that as my company was paying for it regardless, but the thought of buying a brand new desk seemed insane to me. Plus, two bike rides is some good exercise.

I can’t turn it off. I go to such great lengths to avoid buying something “new”, I spend far more time and effort that logically makes sense. I’m pretty confident none of my other coworkers would have done something like this. Despite the effort, I had fun doing it, got some late night exercise in, and had the satisfaction of knowing I saved some resources from being mined. 

The New Coworker

One of my new coworkers loves buying old goodies too and told me a cool story. She was planning to get married when covid hit, delaying her wedding by two years. She then made it a goal to have her wedding carbon neutral, and over the two year delay, was able to collect a ton of secondhand goods, find a solar powered site, and bring in a composter for the food waste. In her words, “the drive to buy everything NEW for one damn day is astounding.”

This got me thinking, in an age where you can order an Amazon package and get it delivered within the same day, sometimes being sustainable means going slow. People will pay a premium to get something quick, but that can come at a cost. Sometimes it’s worth it (and more fun) to take our time. They don’t call it the scenic route for nothin’!

The Old Old Bed

You’re probably wondering what I did with the old bed set. I know you’ve been dying to know. Well, I didn’t want to put it in the alley and risk rain ruining it. I kept it around for two days until I found someone willing to take it off my hands for free. Sure that thing cramped my style (proverbially and physically) for a couple of days, but I couldn’t just throw it in the trash! Somebody, somewhere will find use for just about anything.