I've been meaning to get to a post like this for a while. @dandesign86 recently asked me what I've kept and this was the sign.
While I've saved thousands and thousands of things to sell, donate, or gift away, I do occasionally keep things for myself.
To clarify, these are not all of the items I've kept. These are just some I'm thinking of or seeing as I'm looking around my apartment. In cases where pictures are available, I'll simply list some extras.
Let's Begin...
My mattress! It was about a year old and spotless in a bag from a move out. I'd normally never touch a mattress, but this was an exception. It was a floppy 71 pounds and impossible to get up my stairs by myself. It took me about an hour to barely get it up 6 steps around a bend before I gave up and left it on the first floor for a friend to help me with the next day. Retail value was $3,200.
This pic was from around 5 AM.
This is how I got it home:
Where there's a will, there's a way.
When I decided to keep it and not sell it, I couldn't believe how comfortable it was. To put this in perspective, I would actually be happy when I woke up in the middle of the night, would smile at how comfortable the memory foam was, and drift off again into heavenly sleep. This phase lasted for about a year and I can't even imagine a more comfortable mattress being possible.
Here's the original blog post.
Now I find endless amounts of video game systems, but haven't kept any for myself. The once exception was this Xbox One shown here being tested using my friend's power supply. This was exciting and I was able to wipe it and make my own account. I actually found this while walking in the rain with an immigrant from Turkey as I was trying to teach him how to find stuff to sell. I lifted a plastic kitchen garbage bin with a toaster oven sticking out, but it felt too heavy for just that. I lifted the toaster oven out and saw the Xbox inside, nice and dry. We kept talking and then I found a bag full of vintage video games and controllers. Needless to say, the guy was floored.
This is a stock photo of the Breville Smart Oven I've been enjoying for about a year. I actually have a second I've been meaning to clean before listing. The retailed for $400. Before that, I was using a smaller Breville Smart Toaster Oven. I chose not to take a full picture of mine because this one is much nicer, and my kitchen counter isn't looking photogenic at the moment.
I'll include a snap of part of it now for kicks. The main setting dial gets a little wonky sometimes, but it's not a big deal. That's probably why the original owner tossed theirs. The preset settings were exactly what I needed and I got rid of my microwave since. It's so easy to pop a steak or potatoes in there and let the magic happen.
This 1980's Japanese Cort electric guitar. I got it fully tested at a guitar shop. It was a "closet find." This means that it was all original and virtually untouched as it sat in a closet for a few decades. I kept it because it was a fun thing to keep to eventually earn guitar on. Funny enough, the guitar shop tried to buy it from me, but I declined.
I saved this 55" smart TV second before the trash collector walked up to me to take the bags next to it. It worked great and I've kept it since. It occasionally randomly shuts off, but I probably just have to go in the back and tighten a connector. It happens so rarely that it's not worth the time to unscrew everything. It likely explains why the person tossed it.
These 30 and 40 pound dumbells were found just as Covid was sweeping over my city. They were brand new in their boxes inside a suitcase. I happened to get Covid right after this, but let my neighbor borrow them for a few months since they had no access to exercise equipment.
I found this red electric kettle and kept it since it's a nice brand and look. It had a slight wobble to the switch, but it seemed to settle in and works just fine ever since. I guess the prior owner had no interest in wiggling the switch to get it to line up properly. It retails for about $130. It's in my cabinet right now, so a nice professional stock picture ensues.
I had a bad nerve injury in my lower back and had been doing spinal decompression stretches at a chiropractor's office on top of adjustments and acupuncture. The doctor suggested buying one of his back stretchers for about $120, but I simply went outside and found this within a week or two for free.
These Staby vibration training rods have been amazing while I've been stuck at home. They help with endurance, stabilizer muscles, and baseball pitching strengthening. I uses these all of the time.
Some Other Items Kept:
- Foam back roller.
- Small massage ball you roll on I use at baseball games.
- A stack of 5 and 10 LB exercise plates for barbells.
- 3 huge wooden bookshelves to store items I find.
- About 13 large stackable clear plastic bins, 3 plastic cabinets, and tons of smaller clear plastic bins.
- Endless amounts of light bulbs and rolls of shipping tape.
- Apple Magic Keyboard 2 to replace my prior wireless Apple keyboard, which replaced my older Apple wired keyboard, ha.
- Extra large deep lidded GreenPan frying pan that was virtually brand new. I forgot to take a picture of it before using it, but do have a pic of it covered in olive oil right after its maiden use I decided not to grace Hive with. It didn't even have a scratch.
This may seem like a lot, but I've been doing this for 6+ years and have found an unthinkable amount more. While it'd be nice to keep even more, I want the space and the income. While it's nice to get free stuff, keep in mind that I'm usually out in the middle of the night on the streets putting in the effort to find these things on my city's curbs in the dark.
Again, this is just top of mind glancing around my main living area. There's plenty more for a second post I already have in mind that I've jotted notes on to take some pictures. I'll likely come up with that in a couple of weeks because it's nice for me to memorialize these for myself as well.
Thanks for following,
@steemmatt
@tipu curate
“To put this in perspective, I would actually be happy when I woke up in the middle of the night, would smile at how comfortable the memory foam was, and drift off again into heavenly sleep. “
haha this made me laugh! And I have to get me one of these ! I mean what’s worth more than a good nights sleep ?
Definitely a good thing to hold on to ! Also very impressive how you got it home ! These kind of mattresses are a nightmare to Carry as you can’t really get a good grip and as they are heavy as shit.
It’s interesting the items you kept, with just small problems and people toss it right away. There are actually quite a few items here that peaked my interest and that I would have kept as well. Like the back stretcher ! I have some problems with my back as well and I sometimes ask my wife to stand on my back and try to fix it but it’s kind of risky, and I might end up messing it up more than fixing it !
Glad you shared this post it was definitely an interesting read ! I will do a reblog a bit later when Europe’s more awake
I should add that the process of getting that mattress up no more than 6 stairs in an hour until I felt like I was going to faint included falling down the stairs on the mattress many times due to that wobble. It was literally impossible, but I was so determined to conquer the challenge that I lost all common sense. ...Literally an hour to make it up to the 6th step of about 50s steps. I eventually accepted that I was being an idiot and brought it back down, took my completely sweat drenched shirt off, and passed out like never before.
The back stretcher is nice because it takes pressure off the vertebrae by pulling gently on the spine with a curve. There are many types, but that type of exercise may help you. I bet you could design one.
There are more to show, but I have to save some ammo for the next post. Thanks the thought of the tipu. I never understood how that worked or how people could award that.
Haha I know exactly what you mean. I also sometimes get into this cave man mode and I loose all my rational thinking. I was building a camp fire out in the forest close to where I live and I had cut down this big pine tree and I made a log that could way too many asses on and tries to haul it to the camp fire place. I think not made it a few meters and then I was sitting on it for 20 minutes just trying to catch my breath. Then I started using the Egyptian rolling log technique and got it in place, but my body was worn out the next day so I should have just asked for help .
The tipu I haven’t gotten to work yet, this is the second time and seems it doesn’t work. I had some different people do it on my post and I don’t know if you have to be an actual cheater for tipu to use use it but I thought it was worth a shot.
"Smeg" is also an invented swear word used in a Sci-Fi comedy series Red Dwarf. I didn't know it was an Italian Company. https://reddwarf.fandom.com/wiki/Smeg
Wow. Interesting. It does sort of look like a rocket ship, so maybe there's more to the story.
hehe I felt touched how much you missed your old foam, and the pain is that you won't find a matrass as good as your old one. I guess you have to get use to your new foam and trust me you will find it even better.
if it was my mom she wouldn't even dream of giving up her old stuffs, even when we moved to our new house last year she literally brought every old stuff along even after telling her not to. she has this strange connection with them so funny hehe.
am happy you didn't give up that beautiful electric kettle, those 40 pounds thumbnails is exactly what i need right now. maybe when your neighbor return it you can give to me for some few months hehe. i really enjoyed your post thanks.
@steemmatt! You Are Alive so I just staked 0.1 $ALIVE to your account on behalf of @germangenius. (10/10)
The tip has been paid for by the We Are Alive Tribe through the earnings on @alive.chat, feel free to swing by our daily chat any time you want.
For someone with as much proclaimed intelligence, it's wiser to educate people without insinuating that someone doesn't work out every day, love themselves, or eat food that doesn't kill themselves or the planet. You made a lot of quick judgments, and I question your ability to communicate with grace, which is also a form of intellectuality.
I've saved thousands and thousands of pounds from being wasted if you take more time to see my blog over the last 5 years to better understand that I'm doing more to help the environment than kill it. I have two smart ovens because I sell the items I save from being wasted on my city's streets. Perhaps this was a language barrier here, because I'm surprised at your approach. Love is the way, not sharp insults.
Why are you speaking as if you're a prophet and live a perfect life to come out of nowhere to criticize others? I find that hard to believe. You know nothing about me and/or what I eat to be able to make any claims. Gaslighting is not a nice way to meet people, and that's not for me. Perhaps the reality you see is upsetting, but please don't try to make others responsible when you don't know them. Thank you for your wisdom.
Why would I not speak to you without pure honesty as you'd like to call it? You don't know how I eat/live. You don't know anything about me. I don't hate myself. You can't read my mind. I'm not easily manipulated to accept this false narrative. I hesitate to respond again because that seems to fuel unhealthy rebuttals, but this will be my last.
Trying to help and educate others is a great intention, but the way you've communicated is very toxic. There may be some good mixed in, but to be frank, it actually comes across as delusions of grandeur. I'd pause and think about that for a minute. Your words, actions by writing them, and tone do not match your intentions. Your wisdom should confirm this. This is beyond any potential language barrier as I gave the benefit of the doubt for the first time.
Calling your statements "love" is biased because you've based this opinion on rather extreme personal beliefs. Projecting unfounded generalizations on others you don't know won't help you to connect effectively to get the impact you may be going for. Furthermore, your communication style of blame shifting is technically a form of emotional abuse, and you would know that. Distorting statements and concepts to dodge fair criticism won't help anyone, including yourself, in the long run. I'm not your typical human mold that you seem to be so frustrated with.
If you have a good message, deliver it tactfully. Speak to your audience, not in such a harsh way. When they understandably react to your instigations, don't gaslight them to try to make them feel like they're wrong for it. That's another way of being emotionally abusive. If that's something you wouldn't want to be viewed as, then think about changing your style.
A reaction that you don't like doesn't mean that someone is lying to or hating themselves. If anything, I've got the inclination that you may be projecting something. Love is acceptance and compassion, not criticism and blame masked by the misuse of the words love and truth.
Here's a key question to reflect on with honesty.
If you had a humble ego, intellect and love would become naturally self-evident when interacting with others. I can't possibly spell out any more clearly how that discredits your position and is counterintuitive to your overarching message.
I wonder where these thoughts of yours have come from. Perhaps your brain needs more of the right nutrients, and your body needs more movement, relaxation, sun, and water too. I'm not perfect and definitely could use plenty of many of these since it's easy to fall behind.
Thanks for the engaging discussion. We can part ways now.