HOORAY! I WON!

Lately I've been finding some choice freebies from Freecycle. Most people will select the first person who responds to give the item to so it's not always easy to get things. Part of the excitement is the fun of winning.

First, a set of high-quality flannel sheets. I wrote immediately and waited. By the next morning I figured I wasn't fast enough and then I get an email from her perturbed and demanding to know if I wanted them or not and if I didn't reply immediately she would give them to someone else. It seems she thought she emailed confirming I was the lucky winner - but I didn't get it! I almost missed out. I think misdirected or lost emails are common on Freecycle. I once was the first person for a wicker furniture set, didn't get it, then a week later the goof ball emails me and tells me I was first but the email went into his spam. WHY did he need to rub it in? Grrrrrr...people.

Anyway, great sheets. Although they are practically new, the owner did wash them in stinky laundry detergent and I had to wash them in hot water ten (10) times with a variety of additives: vinegar, ammonia, Planet dish washing liquid, and ECO detergent. New high-quality, thick, king-sized flannel sheets are not cheap, although after ten washings they are anything but new. They were a bargain but after ten washings they are anything but free. Still, new expensive sheets would have needed to be washed as many times so I still saved a lot of money. They are incredibly comfortable to sleep on. I LOVE flannel sheets. If I decide not to use them as sheets I can always use them for fabric. The dark olive color matches my living room so I could make curtains out of them...or something.

My second exceptional find is an office chair. You all know how hard it is for me to find an office chair. The new ones stink of chemicals and the old ones are just too worn out to be an improvement.

This one is in excellent shape with all kinds of adjustments, no rips or tears, but it STINKS...I think it's dirty cat or dog smell. It did have fur all over it. I have yet to figure out how people can live with animals they obviously never bathe and it stinks up their whole house. I've washed it twice with soap, hot water and vinegar, but I think I'll have to wait and rent a steam cleaner this summer. It might be for nothing, but it might be an improvement on my very old, worn chair. Or not. We'll see. Free furniture is always a risk...one never knows about bugs or fleas. This one has neither, but I think I should be more cautious in the future.

 

 

The next freebie is a strange one. I think the woman called it an exercycle or something like that, but it's really a "folding cycle". You sit in a chair and pedal! OK! Why not? The woman with the office chair wanted to get rid of things. She said it had never been used. I don't know how much I'll be using it as I already sit too much as it is and I'd prefer to exercise not sitting down.

 

The last one is another weird one. The ad said, "Mexican Wood Carving". OK. I like Mexican wood carvings and I have some hanging around the house. I was the first to respond and cheerfully I wrote to the person, "HOORAY! I WON!" She got really snooty and replied, "You didn't win. I pick the person who responds first so it's fair." Oh! So touchy! Some people just don't like cheerfulness. So I quietly cheered to myself, "Hooray. I won."  I asked the woman about the subject of the carving. "I have no idea." She couldn't tell me it was a teak wood mask of three faces? Would that be too hard? It's really difficult dealing with some of these people. Later when I picked it up I graciously thanked her and then as I walked away I quietly cheered, "Hooray. I won. Fuck you."

 

 

 

If anyone knows what this carving symbolizes let me know. I've read in Mexican folklore blue eyed people are either white people, nuns, or demons (or all of the above). The middle face is definitely a woman's and the blue around her head could be a habit? Maybe those profiles are priests? Hmmm...sounds like a plot from a telenovela. It's kind of weird but I think I might hang it on a tree outside in my yard this summer.

 



 

Those are my February freebies!

 

HOORAY!  I WON!