so the really really free market is this movement where an temporary alternative market based on gifting is set up.

basically you put out what you have to give away and take what you want of what others have put out.

it’s not a trade or a barter.

it’s kind of amazing.

and san francisco has one on the last saturday of every month in dolores park. 

 (see i really went)

and it rocked my world, sort of.

i brought some books i finished reading, some ink cartridges, a pair of too big shoes, and a set of 4 tupperware i don’t get along with.

and i got some issues of harpers and mother jones

also a great shirt from hong kong, a bag with a leica and a rattlesnake on it

some fab-lous hard cover books, reflective tape for my bike, stickers,

and had an somewhat intense conversation about milton friedman.

oh! also a free home grown pomegranate

i had to walk my bike up the octavia hill it was so heavy with books and such.

also-do you see that amazing floor length down coat in the picture above? how was i able to resist this? i tell you, nerves of steel.

so to recap

last sat of every month

dolores park

about 1 to 5pm

because who doesn’t get up before noon? anarchists and art students.

so my girl andre has this really cool bolg called coffee cup crusade

you should read it cuz it’s really great

she’s giving up paper coffee cups and studying the impact that different types of cups have on the environment

so we were talking about a coupla things, first being that no coffee= death, the impact from the making and transporting of new coffee mugs, and how it could be made easier for people to have access to an actual coffee mug when they needed one. and we realized that there were tons of already-made ceramic mugs in cabinets and goodwills everywhere. not to imply that energy wasn’t used to make these puppies, but their impact has already been made, in contrast to a making a brand new one. we decided to join forces. we wondered would people use them? would they steal them? would they wash a mug that wasn’t theirs, or leave it to mold in the dark recesses of grad design?

soooo we went to goodwill and got some cheep/fabulous mugs and left them on the coffee counter. ninja style.

nobody used them.

so after a week we added a note that these mugs were for everyone to use. 

that seemed to help.

we’re about 3 weeks in, and it seems as if the mugs are being used. and that mostly, they are washed after being used. so hopefully, we were able to save a few unnecessary paper cups from the landfill, and share groovy used mugs with the world. 

have you used one of these mugs? lemme know what you think.

if you’re not in class with me, be prepared, it’s about to get a bit confusing, and i won’t be clarifying-sorry

anyway, so i picked the needle point hoop and the exacto knife, and now i have to figure out what the sam hill to do with them

so, first line of business=trip to scrap!

thats right kids-i got ink, charcoal, chalk line chalk, paper, string, watercolors, extra hoops, paint, and a gabazillion other toys as well as some great books and a stylin’ wood wine box to hold all the free fabric i got off freecycle last week. 

$10

heck ya

bring it vanesky

its true, dagnabit, we need to spend to keep our economy cruising along at top speed, windows down, stereo on.

(oh slate, how i love to hate thee)

our entire economy is structured around the making, selling, and buying of new stuff.

so if we stop  buying stuff, the ferris wheel will run out of tokens and grinds to a stop

it’s like we’ve built this crazy rotisserie wheel and we have to keep buying more stuff and going into more debt just to keep the contraption going.
and also,  considering that we are in the middle of a financial crisis that was spearheaded by the idea that people should really keep buying things that they can’t afford and worry about it later, maybe i could venture to say that perhaps the model isn’t working? 

more to follow

also, i think i’ve about topped out on the analogies here

i’ve been doing this no buying stuff think for a bit now, and it has saved me some serious dough

but, i’m not missing anything

i mean, at some point i am going to break down an buy a roll of scotch tape, but beyond that i’m really not denying myself anything

everything i’ve wanted, i’ve gotten

and i think because i had less choices (damn you amazon) i was completly stoked with what i ended up with

and on my grad school string budget i find myself with a touch of extra cash

so now i have that little bit of play in my budget that means i get to make choices with what i buy

like i decided that i could afford to get my cats off of the (cheaper) clay (sodium bentonite) litter and onto more sustainable corn/wheat litter

makes cats happy

so i’ve got that going for me

this is his blurb as it appeared on freecycle: 

Hello,

I make belts out of used bike tires and am currently making some for the San FranciscoBicycle Coalition’s winter fundraiser, Winterfest.  All proceeds to benefit SFBC.  Please see link for an example.  If you have any interesting tires laying around, I’d be happy to take them off your hands.

ok, so this is his email: sfenjoy1@yahoo.com

anyway, the belts look really sweet, and i’ve been just tossing worn out bike tires (aaah! bike tires are made from petroleum products) so i think this is rad, and as soon as the sexy black and reds i’ve got on my trusty peugeot bust open, i’ll send them over.

so

i had one of those microsoft wireless mouses (mice? strange) and it was black and pretty and i could use it free range over my entire desk area. i mean, i liked it enough to move it out here from chicago.

isn't it pretty?

i also have three of these:

isn't she cute?

and the grey furry one one knocked the black plastic one off the desk and killed it

horrifying

i am not proud to say i made some very stern noises at the grey furry one

and i tried to be brave and exist with out a mouse

and i failed

and i pondered whether this would constitute a necessary violation

and i decided that no, it does not (damn my rectitude)

i mean, it’s not as if she knocked my pacemaker off the desk

so i briefly panicked, and then went out to the bar

and then next day when i went to retrieve my bike i rode past a man selling some pre-owned electronics and also shoes on the sidewalk 

so for $7 i’m hooked up with a mouse, a keyboard, and a metal slide rule (!)

so now i have this:

still sexy?

ok, its less cute. but actually it works really well

i have to say, i am (so far) actually reallyreally surprised at how easy this project has been

i mean, i”ve had my moments, like when i dropped my bike cable and had to retrace my entire route 3 times before finding it in a gutter

it’s mostly been a process of finding the new ways to get things, being more aware of things that i want or need, and of being less uptight about having a tethered mouse

also, did i mention i scored a slide rule?

ok link to it here: http://storyofstuff.org/

or try this:

also, i had a interesting conversation about stuff after watching this

we were talking about how much it sucks that things are designed to become obsolete so quickly

and my friend said something along the lines of..it sucks, but my iphone has made my life so much more convenient

which is probably really true

nothing further to add

and like a small time crack dealer i  want you to try it just this once

ok, so freecycle is where people give away stuff they don’t need anymore to people who want it

one word:brilliant

about 3 times a day i get an email with a list of things that people want, things people want to get rid of, and whats been claimed. if theres something i want, i zip am email off to the offerer. they pick who to give it to, wa-la.

most places have a freecycle, you want to join the site for the area that you live so all the stuff is close by. i use freecycle san francisco, so everything is right around here, and all the listings have the neighborhood/cross streets where the stuff is located. 

the giving away of stuff on freecycle is just as miraculous as the getting of free stuff

its really super to find people that are STOKED to get something that i don’t need anymore

and this is some of the stuff i’ve gotten:dremel, rolls of tracing paper, big sketch pads, oil and acrylic paints, binders, charcoal pencils, dish drainer, wallet, colored pencils, exact-o knifes and blades, keyboard, kitchen supplies, moving boxes, lots and lots of art supplies, architecture and design mags

but i’ve also seen on there things like bikes, book shelves, darkroom supplies, mulch

so all this stuff that wold be hanging out in a alley or taking up landfill space is now in a loving home

plus the not using of resources and energy in making a new one and shipping across the globe to my door

heres the link again http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SFFN/

you know you want to

also, piece o’advice: if you want to keep your mail box not-bombed, choose the “daily digest” option 

freecyclers are the new rock stars