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Collecting “Junk”

It’s official. I have turned into my parents. I always swore I wouldn’t, but it is time to face facts.

When I was a kid we lived around the corner from the garbage tip (it’s not as bad as it sounds). This was back before recycling was encouraged and it was ok to dump cans of paint, large sheets of asbestos etc. On Saturday mornings Dad would sit out the front drinking his coffee watching trailer loads of junk be driven past. When he saw something “good” go past he would jump in the car and drive after it. One time, just after Christmas he found a box full of gifts  still in their packets. I still remember a grape soap on a rope, and $50 note – which was big money back then.

These days, I no longer live around the corner from the tip, and people no longer just dump surf skis, Lego and other “quality” items. What has replaced it though, is even better!

Instead of going to the dump, people put out their stuff, and the council cleans it up. Lets face it, council clean up is really a community junk swap.  And what rich pickings there are!

My parents are now laughing at me when I tell them all the great stuff I have got. Bikes, a picnic table, hall table, Tonka truck, book case, clam shell swimming pool for the kids (ours was broken and went out) and a box of over 150 books including a lot of recent releases, are just some of this years  haul.

I used to roll my eyes at my parents when they got stuff for free, now my kids can do the same for me.

Do you like council clean up? What are your best finds?

Here’s Toby’s new ute, courtesy of  council clean up – every farm boy needs a ute!

P.S. Since writing this, the Country Boy has come home with more great finds! A new kitchen bench for the farm (which we really need) and a giant dolls house (which we really don’t need and will soon be chucked. See previous post :))

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Comments

  1. daytrippersippers says

    October 9, 2013 at 3:31 pm

    We kitted out our whole garage / rumpus room from Second Hand Sunday (council cleanup) and Freecycle.com.au. We picked up a fully working fridge, microwave, bench, bread oven, kettle (which just needed a descale), spare TV, radio cassette player, a walker and exercise bike. Freecycle is a great online site to give away and receive goods.

    Reply
  2. Jo S says

    July 31, 2011 at 11:08 am

    I wish I could say that it was out of environmental concern, but the truth is I get a wierd sense of achievement when I manage to get something for free!

    Reply
  3. Christine says

    July 29, 2011 at 9:43 am

    hehehe nice work 🙂 Its very environmental to use things that others have discarded. My parents are so similar ! Their fave lounge chairs are from the last council collection – and they are soooo comfortable. People throw out lots of good stuff ! I think perhaps our parents were environmentally conscious in their own way 🙂

    Reply

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Hi, I’m Jo

I'm a city girl turned farmer's wife, school teacher, ideas woman, and mum to three country kids. Country Life Experiment is all about simple country living, growing and making our own food, and life on our family farm in rural Australia. Join me as I give country living a try. Read more...
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A lovely, easy Christmas with family, good food, a A lovely, easy Christmas with family, good food, a few presents, an afternoon swim and dinner on the veranda as the sun set. Time to stop and be thankful for the many blessings of the year. I hope you had a lovely Christmas too!
We have been mulling over how to fix up the drivew We have been mulling over how to fix up the driveway and lead up to our house for a while. Currently it’s just a dumping ground for old bits of metal and a big pile of mulch, but C would like to create a turning area and put in a garden. First up though, there’s a huge old stump that needs to go. What better excuse is there to have a fire on Sunday afternoon? C and the kids jumped on the quad bike and trailer, and hauled back a big pile of sticks and logs to help the stump burn. Once the fire was going, marshmallows were found and roasted. No better way to spend time together.
Team work makes the dream work. We were asked rec Team work makes the dream work. 
We were asked recently whether we “make” our kids work on the farm. The answer is of course not. Having said that, all three love to help out whenever they can. They all work hard because they want to; because they take pride in working hard and contributing in a meaningful way to our family life; because they love living on our farm and don’t remember life before we moved here. Whether it be planting trees or doing sheep work or feeding animals, they all want to be involved. As a parent, nothing is better than watching them grow in skill and confidence as they work along side you. We’re so glad that we get to spend time with our three, working together.
We’ve had an unexpected addition to the family ☘️🐑. She is a lot easier to look after than the other family members but she does try to escape her yard and head butt people. Poddy lambs are super cute but they tend to think they are a human. Clover the lamb is sure that Meg is her mum. Can’t think why… 🤔🤣
The perfect way to end a long winter weekend: toge The perfect way to end a long winter weekend: together, cooking damper around the remains of the bonfire.
It’s been a tough few weeks on the farm. We got It’s been a tough few weeks on the farm. We got through shearing without a hitch (thankfully 🙏) but we’ve had a run of the flu followed by Covid run through the family since then. The kids and I have tested positive (this is my second time getting it 🦠) though so far C has managed to avoid it. There has been a lot of lying on the couch feeling pretty ordinary. Han had to reschedule her driving test for a 4th time due to Covid, which is disappointing for her because she wants her freedom and for us because it would be so much more convenient if she could drive herself places. Just to add in to the mix, our hot water system has chosen now as a good time to die so we’re on cold showers until we’re all out of iso. This is not meant to be a whinging post but sometimes life just sucks a bit and it’s good to be real. Fortunately, the sight of the fire going with a stack of wood next to it cheers us up. Things will improve soon. Onwards we go…

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Hi, I’m Jo

City girl turned farmer's wife, school teacher, ideas woman, and mum to three country kids. Country Life Experiment is all about simple country living, growing and making our own food, and life on our family farm in rural Australia. Join me as I give country living a try. Read more...
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