Reuse and recycle

One easy way to lose lots of money is to decide you need an item and buy it immediately. You miss out on potential sales, can lose money by not comparison shopping, and if you don’t look at what’s out there, you may be dissatisfied with the item you buy. But shopping can be a hassle; who wants to go from store to store looking for, let’s say, a little table for next to your couch? You have to spend time finding stores, time going to the store to find tables, time setting it up, and of course you have to spend money.

Want to save all that time shopping and a big chunk of change at the same time? Recycle! A friend may be getting rid of what you need, or you may find the parts to make one yourself. It may take a bit more time, but as long as it isn’t essential (looking for some moldy bread to create penicillin is not something I would advise) the search can be fun.

A month or so ago, I did not want to go through the ordeal of buying a table and so I tried to do without. Stacks of textbooks work... until you want to unfold your futon, or, gasp! use one of them. The floor can hold a cup of tea, but there’s always the horrible possibility of somebody kicking over a delicious brew. Then, the unexpected happened!

A friend of a friend had picked up some free cardboard and wood spools that are created to hold wire. I thought they were snazzy, and he said that if he couldn’t find a use for them, he would give them to me. He didn’t find a use, and I acquired them. Some wood glue, red spray paint, and some time later I had a nice two-spool table, with a big enough top to hold whatever, and a middle shelf to hold the over flow.

There are all kinds of ways you can reuse things. Turn a shoebox, some tinfoil, a pair of scissors and some duck tape into a box that fits up against an open window to keep soda cold when your fridge is broken.

Use cling wrap, a tube from glow sticks for stabilizing, some more duck tape, and a couple clips to create a thing that allows air up onto a Percopo deck. And so on. We are Rose-Hulman engineers! It’s far more awesome to build than it is to buy.