re·use: To use again, especially after salvaging.
The Johnson household, while not a household of ecological saints, is a household trying to reduce their carbon footprint. I’m fairly new to this bandwagon, and was thrilled to come to the realization that my dislike of paying retail actually helps the environment!
For quite some time now I’ve been a huge proponent of buying used. Since I was a little girl and my mom would shop at The Goodwill and drag me to garage sales, I’ve realized the value of other people’s stuff. This (and inflated pricing) has led me to the wonderful world of eBay, Craig’s List, and various pawn shops. I simply refuse to pay full price for electronics anymore. This decision has saved me thousands, I repeat, thousands of dollars over the past few years—this Christmas included. Here’s a short list of used electronics I’ve purchased over the years:
- MacBook Pro: Craig’s List. Approx. $1900 new, paid $900 (including s & h). Savings: $1000
- Panasonic camcorder: eBay. Approx $550 new, paid $275 (including s & h). Savings: $275
- Nintendo DS Lite w/10 games, charger, and case: eBay. Approx $350 new, paid $190. Savings: $160
- Zune 30G MP3 player: pawn shop. Approx $175 new, paid $70. Savings: $105
And that’s a short list. I have purchased everything from clothes for the boys, car parts, electronics, jewelry, and much, much more from resellers of all kinds.
Oh, I’ve also been a reseller myself, selling everything from purses to electronics I was replacing, to vacuum cleaners (I’m still selling my Dyson—anyone interested? 😛 )
This is one way that I can not only help reduce my family’s carbon footprint, but save tons of money in the process. So the next time you’re in the market for a big purchase, or even a little one, think about buying used. Have questions? Have your own ‘reuse’ story to share? Comment away!
This post was generously brought to you by Leptovox. If the holiday sweets start going to my thighs, I may need to supplement my workouts. Oh, I may need to start the workouts, too. 😉
Tags: Craig's list, eBay, pawn shops, reuse, save money, The 3 R's, used electronics
My “reuse” story starts long,long ago and far, far away. (From where she is now, of course.) This blog owner was 3 years old, and drop-dead beautiful. (Picture Jonah with long curly blonde hair and killer eyelashes.) Being that cute cried out for cute clothes, a passion she STILL shares. Being a single mother, I had limited funds to spend on said cute clothes. MY Mom drug me to this new store she had found on Federal in Denver, called the ARC. Said it was cheaper than the Goodwill, and had better stuff. I was right there! My Mom had $$…she didn’t have to shop used, but for some rason, just HATED to pay retail.
We went, and I walked out of that store with 2 huge bags full of cute clothes for Miss and me, and it cost me $8.00. That began my love affair with “used” stores. Have always loved garage sales, and no matter what she says here, this blog owner wasn’t so unhappy with being “drug” to them when she came away with a bag of toys for $1!!
But I digress…MY “reuse” story is that 30-something years later, my dauhter, and now my grandbabies are more conscience of the world we live on/in, and how to stop misusing it. She is also aware that things don’t have to have an expensive price tag to mean something, and be usable.
Cheers to you my darling, and thank you for passing that along to the boys!
PS…The ARC is a non-profit organization dedicated to bettering the lives and opportunities of handicapped and disabled people across the country. The Association for Retarded Citizens has stores in nearly all 50 states. Times are tough. Give what you can.
Merry Christmas to all, and to you, my darlings, I’m always right there.
Love,
GramMa