Free Time, Day Seven: On the 7th day she rested, and it was good.

Today I've reached the One Week mark when it comes to this Free Time project.

And I had to take a day off.

No trolling the craigslist today. No moving of furniture. Nothing palpable.

But the wheels continue to spin in my noggin, and my brain is consumed with the next step. Because I think I've accumulated enough to nicely furnish a house.

A modest house. Let's be clear. Whoever will be needing the items I've collected won't probably have an overabundance of square footage.

Let's review.

There are two matching leather chairs. Their color, espresso. I'm actually quite covetous of this pair.

A large coffee table, made of heavy oak. It's about 4'x4' square.

A sleeper sofa that's still in my garage.

Poof! It's a living room!

There's the kitchen/dining room table, made in Italy. Two barrel-back wooden chairs to match. Two high stools. A baker's rack, for incidentals. Pots and pans, utensils, a toaster oven. Some dishes.

Blam! Welcome to the kitchen!

There's a queen sized bed, almost new. A very cool wicker dresser. A side table and brand new lamp. A nice little desk.

Kazaam! A bedroom!

As for what gets hung on the walls, I don't really feel that it's appropriate to look for artwork on craigslist. Buying art for others is impossible. It's like buying underpants, shoes or panty hose, if people still actually still wear panty hose. Some things are better chosen by the end-user.

There are a few other items I'll most likely continue to look for, but today was less about acquisition and more about catching up on the rest of my life. I turned the Free Time project from boil to simmer while I took care of some other business.

I went to the grocery store. I got gas, before the impending snowstorm. I organized stuff for my kids. Cleaned the house. Did laundry. Went to the post office. A dizzying list. Compelling and fascinating, I know.

Essentially, I spent the day getting prepped for going back to my real job tomorrow, which will take me out of the loop until next Thursday.

So much for free time.

But I'm not done!

I still need to find someone who can use what I've found!

The wheels were spinning in my head as I was traveling around town today, dealing with the details of my real life.

This entire project has been touched by serendipity thus far. So I have a feeling I'll find someone when it's time, hopefully long before the lease on my storage space hits its 30-day mark.

But when it comes to right now, it's time to step back, take a breath and plan my next move.

Tomorrow I'm back on the wheel. My days off for holidays and the kids' winter break and tasty Free Time are over. It's back to work time.

So tonight, I'm going to let my project cook slowly while I take the evening off.

Free Time, Day Six: productivity.

What a jam-packed, exciting, productive day.

I was the first responder on a couple of choice craigslist postings that I responded to very afterthought-ishly yesterday. And poof! I got dibs on a couple of cool things!

So this morning, somewhere around 9:30, Mr. Fab and I hopped in my son's big truck and drove to Gil's house to pick up a coffee table. Gil lives approximately 8 miles away, which is truly the art of the deal. Proximity.

By the way, Gil and his wife are artists. I was tempted to ask if a few of the pieces that peppered their house were expendable, because their stuff was uncharacteristic for Highlands Ranch. Experimental, with a Folk Art sensibility. But I reeled in my art envy, kept my mouth shut, and we loaded up this square oak coffee table. And then we left, having chalked another item off the inventory list.

Then we figured we'd load up the truck with some stuff that's in my garage before we headed to stake our claim on the storage space.

So we went home, picked up the leather chairs we scored last weekend from Skip and Trish. Then we went straight to Public Storage, and I signed my life away.

At least for a month.

And the Public Storage deal is great. This shiny aluminum 10'x20' space is all mine until February 5, all for the low cost of 45.96.

And that's one of my end games. Keeping the cost down.

If I don't wrap this crazy experiment up in 30 days, I'll have to shell out a huge chunk of ching. What's worth 45.96 for a month of storage space today will cost me $140 a month 30 days from now. Very motivational.

So much more is left to say about the whole Public Storage experience. So much to say about Joe, who was our PS Point Man.

So much more about the surveillance. The security. The locks. The keys. The James Bond-like special codes we now need to learn to access our special, vast, aluminumy quadrant.

But I feel compelled to move the day along. There's so much more to say about today, and I have dinner plans. So I'll continue...

Mr. Fab and I were distracted by a craigslist posting that piqued his interest when it came to the part about the free Macintosh computers that were going to be dragged to the curb.

So we headed back to the very beige Highlands Ranch. Thank God for the GPS on the iphone, what with the circuitous nature of that area. No offense to those who live in Highlands Ranch.

We snagged a totally cool first generation Mac. Very heavy. We have yet to see if it works, but Macs are  almost indestructible. And I thought it was cool when Mr. Fabulous pontificated on the possibility of getting the Mac user-ready for someone else.

After stowing the Mac in the truck, we headed downtown.

Jillian had respected my dibs on her kitchen table and two chairs.

And what a bonanza! We procured this Italian-made, very large oval kitchen/dining room table, as well as two barrel back chairs (not shown), two very cool high stools, and a whole bunch of other very useful items.

Jillian's probably far afield from her computer this evening. Her mom is coming to town to help Jillian move back to Vermont. Jillian's been in Colorado to complete a practicum in her pursuit of a degree in environmental law. She found out, very recently, that this Colorado stint wasn't quite as long as she'd have liked. So Jillian and her mom are heading back East tomorrow.

Not unlike Gil, Jillian has a lot of work to do before she vacates her space.

But Jillian was completely generous, because she's a smarty-pants, and she understands there are bigger fish to fry than to attach herself to this monumental task of moving way way across the country.

She seemed grateful that we were taking these totally great items off her hands. She told us that we were actually helping her. Jillian has a lot on her plate between now and tomorrow, and the last thing she wanted to do was to have to drag the stuff that won't fit into her rented U-Haul to the Goodwill.

So right now, Jillian and her mom are most likely packing her items into a big moving van. And tomorrow they'll be on the road, bound for Vermont.

I think we both did each other a favor.

She provided so much more than the table and chairs to my project. And I hope we lightened her load, just a bit.

So. As I just mentioned, Jillian had more to give than the table and two chairs she'd put up for grabs on craigslist for free yesterday.

This is what we put in the gleaming and what-was-once-almost-vacant storage space, all because of Jillian.

The table and two chairs, as advertised.

Two raised barstools.

A brand new lamp.

Which is resting on a very cool little table.

Which is in front of a highly cool 6-drawer wicker and metal dresser.

Off way to the left is a highly functional and useful and almost new toaster oven.

On the barrel back chair (now shown) is a collection of kitchen items: pans, utensils, a cutting board.

Behind the wicker piece is a disassembled but very nice baker's rack (not shown).

Thank you, Jillian.

Because your items are now safely at the ready for the next step.

And I think we're getting close.

It's been less than a week. I'm thinking we need a bed, maybe a couple of other random items, and we're close to making someone we have yet to meet very comfortable.

This has been so much fun! I still have a few steps to go, a few aspects to resolve, but I and my complicit cohorts have kicked ass.

It's all become very tangible, very possible. Just within our reach, the goal.

Yes, we have a few details to iron out.

But to review:

I, Mr. Fabulous and my kids have spent a piece of our discretionary time on this project.

I understand that I'm still in need of a beneficiary. But according to my calendar, I still have a few weeks before I'm officially done.

Lots can happen between now and then.

I have a feeling we're going to be very productive, based on what we've done so far.

Free time, Day Five: The devil is in the details.

Today was a day of low productivity, primarily because I worked at my real job. And I needed a bit of a breather after yesterday.

And frankly, there was a crapload of crappity-ass crap on craigslist today.

Non-working tee vees. Apple tree branches. Scrap wood. Mulch.

And everything I enquired about that had any kind of functional promise was dibs within a few minutes after having been posted, regardless of my refreshing sensibility.

I can't tell if this tide has changed in the past few days because I'm becoming more discerning, if it's because it's a weekday, or if this dusty dearth of offerings is because there are people more skilled than I am at snagging the good stuff.

So I have nothing new to report when it comes to procurement.*

But as I mentioned yesterday, I need to work on my end game. Because I'm not giving up. This Free Time chase is too much fun.

This whole crazy idea has such innocuous origins. I've browsed the Free Stuff postings on craigslist before, because frankly, I'm not made of money. And I was amazed that people were handing off such great stuff for nothing.

Someone with a bit of tenacity, I thought, could get everything they needed for free on this Free Stuff area of the craigslist. Everything they needed.

So I thought I'd give it a try.

I don't need anything, though. There's the wrinkle.

But the process sounded so interesting to me.

Therein lies the conundrum, and the opportunity.

Because last time I checked, these are troubled times. One in ten of us is unemployed. Another percentage (myself included) is underemployed. And yet another group has simply fallen off the radar. There's a whole subset of unemployed people who have given up. They've stopped looking for a job, or they've run out of unemployment benefits altogether.

There's another subset of subsets who are old. Maybe they're disabled. They're escaping abuse. They're looking for a new start. Whatever the circumstance; it creates a need.

And for whatever very human, very there-for-the-grace-of-god reason, these folks could use what I could find during my Free Time.

As I reported yesterday, Lois received a couch and chair from what we'd found over the weekend.

Yesterday morning felt good. Color me selfish.

But as I mentioned yesterday, the true end game of this Free Time is to find someone who can help me find people who truly need what I'm finding for free.

So today, I tried to dot a few Is and cross a few Ts.

On the suggestion of a friend who works with the elderly at Social Services, I called the Colorado Care Transitions Program. This organization has a primarily health-based focus. And after talking with the very affable Shelly, I was directed to the Agency on Aging, which is a part of the Denver Regional Council of Governments.

I found it's hard to explain what I'm doing while leaving a voicemail.

Regardless, someone from the Agency on Aging returned my call today. But I was working, and I missed the call. I left another message, but I haven't heard back.

I do need to find recipients, and I'm definitely persistent. I'll call the Agency on Aging tomorrow.

And my friend Gigi suggested I contact a women's shelter. What a good idea! You flee with your kids, and you have nothing.

But do you?

Not if I can help it.

Because tomorrow I officially lay down some ink and some ching on my storage unit. I tripped into a great value, as I mentioned in a prior blog. So there's no down-side.

And according to the crazy Colorado weather report, I'm going to need my garage very soon.

And since I started this entry, I've heard back from my Social Services friend, who reiterated the fact that there's a definite need for the hole I'm very selfishly trying to fill.

Because for me, it's fun to find. And the ancillary, selfish benefit is that there's someone who needs what I've been finding.

So tomorrow, I'll seal the deal on my storage space. It's a detail I feel the need to complete, because the weather's getting increasingly inclement, and I don't like to scrape my windshield before I have to go to work.

Color me selfish, but I like to slide my car into the garage, which, at present, is full of other peoples' stuff.

So regardless of how I hate to drown in the morass of detail, tomorrow is filled with just such stuff.

Detail.

Not so much about the detail when it comes to what I've found, because I know I'll find more. It's because of the prospect of what's still yet to find, for free.

Sometimes, regardless of how much I hate having to focus on such things, the devil is in the details.

That's what's happening tomorrow. Sounds hellish.

*I'm picking up a cool square coffee table tomorrow at 9 am. Refreshing bonus!

Free time, Day Four: It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.

What a schizophrenic day this was.

It started off as the best of times, when my lovely Lois friend stopped by around 9:30 am.

Lois is going through some transitions in her life, and she's moving into a new place. She'd read my previous blogs, and she knew that I've been accumulating what she needed.

All you have to do is ask, I say.

Lois put a dibs on one of the couches we'd found over the weekend.

Always respect the dibs, I say.

She had her pick. We'd found two. And she picked the standard sofa, as opposed to the sofa sleeper.

Thank God. Sofas + beds =  heavy.

And get this!! The coolio comfy wing back chair I procured from Suzie yesterday goes perfectly with the couch Lois chose! And Lois needed a chair, too! It seemed only logical that we load both pieces in the truck and deliver them to Lois. We're nothing if we're not logical.

Because we were going to Aurora to pick up a mattress and box spring I'd dibs yesterday.

So we loaded the sofa and chair into the truck. So far, it's all good.

I'm so happy that these pieces went to Lois. And you can tell from this completely ROCKING photo that Lois was happy with her Free Time.

Thankfully, the brief Colorado cold snap is over, and we weren't barraged by snow or sleet or sheets of ice. Today was melty. Today required no jacket after 10 am. This was good, because the new apartment Lois found is on the second floor.

Crap.

It was tough, lugging the couch up a flight of stairs to her new groovy pad. No one tripped on the melty slush, no one was crushed in the maelstrom of upwardly mobile furniture, and only a light salting of F and S words were tossed in the process, mostly by me.

And now, the chair is next to the fireplace.

Just as an FYI, the initial intention of the wing back chair was to protect the its occupant from the heat of a fire.

Back to the story.

Thank God Lois chose the couch without the bed tucked inside. She, Mr. Fabulous and I were very, very grateful. Because moving the sleeper sofa upstairs would have been really hard.

The process of moving one's belongings from one place to another is such a pain in the ass. So I feel for Lois, because our two pieces were the first items to hit her new digs. She's only just begun.

I'm glad we could help, and I'm also glad that moving is nowhere on my landscape.

Transporting these pieces to the House of Lois was the best of times when it came to today.

But I'm getting ahead of myself.

While we were at Lois' new pad, I did a bit of refreshing on the craigslist. And poof! There was a couch, love seat and coffee table that were being offered for free, just a short drive down the street.

There was no photo of these offerings, but the copy indicated that the couch and love seat had been stored in plastic, implying pristine.

I called, and the owner of these undoubtedly quality items required that we take it all or nothing, sight unseen.

I wasn't willing to commit to that.

Frankly, the time I have when I'm not working and I'm with Mr. Fabulous is too valuable to be spent being bullied into taking at least two truckloads full of stuff I haven't even laid eyes on, so I passed.

I'd had my first exposure to the craigslist vibe of entitlement I'd heard about. Like your stuff is exactly what my world needs to become fulfilling.

No, thank you.

In any case, we were close to the mattress and box spring.

We twisted through the winding streets of a homogenous subdivision, and spotted the set we were looking for, on the covered porch, as promised.

They were sub-par, to say the least. The mattress, especially, looked like a pretend mattress. A prop. As Mr. Fab said, despite being advertised as new, every bed in my house that's been slept on for years and years was of higher quality than the mattress/box spring combo we'd intended to take.

So we left it.

This experience was our first brush with true junk.

Until now, I'd gladly put anything we've found into my home. We've found some amazing items these past few days.

Today brought a seed of doubt.

I started this project on a weekend. I'm thinking weekends are when the really good free stuff is up for grabs.

And I think there are a lot of refreshers out there. Typically, by the time these listings become available when I refresh my iphone, they've been on the market for 7 to 9 minutes. And when we're on the road and I'm refreshing, the items I've called about have already been dibs.

This amalgam of post-Lois circumstances planted a kernel of doubt that grew into a burning bush over the course of the afternoon. Is this project possible? If I do continue to collect these items, I thought, I really really need to partner with an organization who can help me distribute what I find to people who would otherwise go without.

So as the sun was setting today, I was re-thinking the game plan.

Before I go a whole lot further, I need to establish that end-user partnership.

I decided that I'm not stopping, by any means. I'm just catching my breath.

I completely enjoyed the early part of the day, when I had the opportunity to see how happy Lois was with what we'd found for free, despite the sweat equity. I'm so glad she's benefitting from my folly.

But if this day were a person s/he would be easily diagnosed as bipolar.

I got my groove back, eventually.

Tomorrow portends a day of planting seeds for Thursday, because my real job is taking me out of the loop.

What in the hell have I gotten myself into?

Or onto?

Because today was a roller coaster.

Free time, Day three, Tip One: Being a first responder is refreshing.

So Day Three was an odd, practical, twisted denouement; a stark understanding of what exactly I'm up against spearheading such an optimistic project.

I think I realized today what a big job this will be, this accumulation. Because today, in addition to piecing together what will hopefully become the elements of someone else's surroundings, I had to work at my real job.

I must say, I was highly productive, from 8 am to 4 pm.

But in those few vacant moments, I was thinking in a completely different, non-work-related direction.

I need a place to store this stuff I'm getting for free.

So during a break from my real life, I called Public Storage. There's a location just a few miles away from my house. I talked with lovely Linda, who is skilled in the art of customer service.

Apparently, Public Storage offers a variety of empty spaces.

I have no clue how much room I need, and Linda was so very helpful. She let me know that typically, the interior of a 3-bedroom home can fit nicely in one of their 10'x20' units.

And today was my lucky day, because Public Storage is in the midst of a crazy-ass promotion.

Typically, a 10'x20' space would cost $126 every freaking month. So much for my Free Time.

The cost was deflating, but only for a moment.

Because Linda told me that Public Storage is offering pinch-me-you're-so-full-of-S-cheap rates right now.

What's the bottom line, you ask?

Public Storage is charging me $1 for storing my treasures for the first 30 days. After that, we'll talk.

I'm sure they're banking on my stuff sticking around a while, so that they can make a bundle on my procrastinatoritude; my hoarding essence. But I intend to be done with this project in 30 days, maybe less.

Yes, there's a $22 administration fee. And Linda suggests that I purchase their very sturdy lock, for 13.99.

Let's review.

For a shade under $40, I'll be able to store my stuff for a month. I'm no mathematician, but I think that evens out to a daily rate of a buck and change.

Score!

Maybe my car will see the inside of my garage before the next Colorado snowstorm.

Okay. So the storage part is a done deal. I'll wander around my fabulous empty space tomorrow.

As for today, I realized that the refresh, refresh, refresh sensibility has its benefits when it comes to craigslist.

Because some of the groundwork I laid yesterday completely paid off today.

Suzie called me today. I'd been the first responder to her wingback chair craigslist post.

I drove my son's freakishly large truck to Suzie's house as soon as I was done with work at 4 pm. Oddly (...or is it? This entire exercise continues to confound me with its seemingly intricate serendipity...), Suzie works where I work. And she lives four miles away.

So I picked up Suzie's chair. Everything she said is true. This chair is to my hind quarters every bit as a comfortable as a well-worn shoe is to my bunion-spackled feet. Like an old shoe, this chair has seen a few miles, but it's solid and issue-free. It's an inanimate version of the perfect friend, if the friend were a wingback chair.

So there you go. This chair is the tangible benefit of being a first responder.

And that's not all! In addition to laying claim to my little patch of storage space heaven and adding Suzie's wingback to my collection, I made plans to pick up a new queen sized mattress and box spring from Thomas tomorrow!

Thomas emailed me today, solely because I was the first to have responded to yesterday's post.

So, despite being tethered to my job today, the groundwork I laid yesterday with the borderline OCD refreshment paid off today.

I think this project of furnishing someone's house (who I don't know yet), for free, in a month, in my free time, is exhaustingly possible.

An ancillary benefit? The exhilaration of finding great stuff.

Another ancillary benefit? Meeting such generous people.

Now I just need to work on the end game.

Free Time, Day Two: A day of dibs.

I started today so refreshed, while refreshing.

Refreshing the craigslist free stuff, after having taken a refreshing shower.

I was up long before I needed to be, ready to pick up the chairs I dibs yesterday. That wasn't happening until 11 am.

So while enjoying my coffee, I hit the list.

I know a bit about mid-century items. So cool, so atomic, so retro-fabulous. So this ad compelled me to call, straight away:

Free 1960s era mid century minimalist desk

And there was a phone number on the listing.

So of course I called, and a charming gentleman answered right away.

It was 8:30 this morning, and he was already on his way to seal the desk deal with someone else.

But he and I chatted, and he let me in on the fact that he had a pod full of stuff he was giving away that is his mother's. She's moving into an assisted living setting, and he's in charge of her stuff.

I told him what I was doing; accumulating necessary items for people in need for whatever reason, and he was intrigued.

He told me about a book. Material World: A Global Family Portrait. Photographer Peter Menzel took pictures of 30 families all over the globe, in front of the accumulation of all of their possessions.

This photo is the result of a family's stuff who lives in Japan.

I didn't get the desk, but I did have a great conversation with this person, who indicated that he gives this book to his friends, because, as he said, it's life-changing. The items we collect, culturally, truly resonate in terms of sheer mass.

Early score! A great conversation with a totally cool guy. He had no monetary attachment to stuff, which was so refreshing. Our conversation was an education.

And it was also a teaching tool, because the early bird does catch the worm when it comes to free stuff on craigslist.

Refresh, refresh, refresh.

I was doing just that as Mr. Fabulous and I headed to our 11 am destination. Leather chairs with a bit of wear, my dibs from yesterday. When we arrived at the home of Skip and Trish, this is what we loaded in the truck.

We travelled a total of 48 miles. I think every mile was worth it.

There are a few scratches, made by pets. Mr. Fab and I surmised that Skip and Trish probably didn't have kids, save for their pets. And their house was fan-freaking-tastic.

Again, a sign that no kids were present.

I have nothing against kids. I have two of them, myself. They're great! I wouldn't change a thing! But I do know that Skip and Trish have a house with the look and feel of a show home, and I'd venture to guess that their pets are the ruling party when it comes to offspring.

I do love these chairs. Yes, they have a few scratchy scratches, but it was very easy to google all kinds of information about how to mitigate such flaws. The chairs are so lovely, so leathery. Their shade, according to the label I found, is espresso.

And now the chairs are in my garage, despite the fact that I'd like to put at least one somewhere in my own house.

But this is not about me.

Would that it were. I have the perfect spot for at least one of these chairs.

But I digress.

Mr. Fabulous had an afternoon planned with his kids. So he couldn't help me pick up the couch I'd put my dibs on. And I'd told Laura I'd be there between 3 and 4 pm.

So I switched up vehicles with my son, who was at his dad's.

Sounds complicated. Maybe we'll get into that later.

In any case, my son Connor has a big truck, and I had a couch to procure. So I dropped my car off, and I took my son's truck.

Then, I drove home, got my other son out of bed (it was well after 1 pm at this point. Jeez.), and he and I drove to Laura and Hugh's house.

This bad boy is HEAVY. Because much to my surprise, it's not only a couch; it's a bed, too!

Logan and I dragged it into the garage after I took this picture.

It was a great score, on so many levels.

Just like this day became, it was more than I bargained for. I found a fabulous couch that's also a bed, and I got it for the price of 28 miles. That's the round-trip journey from my house to the home of Laura and Hugh.

They were glad to get rid of it. Hugh was completely cool when I told him it was going to be given to someone who really needed it.

And tonight, I got a call from Lois.

She needs a couch.

Lois and I work together. She's moving soon, and the one piece to her puzzle is a couch.

She read yesterday's blog, and thought she might want the couch we found yesterday, until I told her about what we found today.

She's most likely going to take this couch/bed item on Tuesday.

She really needs it. And I'll still have a couch to spare.

All for the cost of 78 miles and a few dibs.

Free Time, Day One: 1/1/11

It seems so appropriate, to start this project on 1/1/11.

The purpose: to see if it’s possible to find enough free items advertised on the Free category of Denver’s craigslist to furnish a house. I’m giving myself a deadline. I’m doing this in my free time, and I intend to complete my mission in 30 days. Maybe less.

Then, after spending my free time finding stuff for free, I’m going to give it all away. I have so much, and there are so many people who don’t have anything. I have a few good leads on organizations that know of people who need exactly what I intend to find during my Free Time.

So what better day to start than today?

Today was the morning after Denver’s first measurable snowstorm. It’s odd for Colorado to be so dry so late in the season, but it was ripe for staying inside, ideal for hatching a plan.

So early this morning, I threw together a bit of an inventory list. I looked around the main floor of my house, and figured I’ll try to find items I’d need if something crappy happened and I lost it all and needed to start from scratch.

After making my inventory list, I started trolling the other list. The craigslist.

The day started with some promise. There was a listing for a free washer and dryer, and another listing for a free refrigerator. No phone numbers, so I emailed these folks. No quick response, so I let those items simmer on the back burner while I kept cooking.

Refresh, refresh, refresh.

That seems to be the key to the capture. Strike quickly, like a puma snares a deer. Like a snake swallows a mouse. Like how quickly a ding-dong like me can refresh the craigslist free category.

Among the offerings this morning were a whole bunch of cardboard boxes, a car without an engine, broken furniture, hobbled appliances, a collection of random used toys. Then, there was this offering:

Free unassembled snowman.

Can be picked up on the driveway and sidewalk – bring shovel and containers. No delivery.

So seasonal, so wry, so timely.

Then, a bit later, there was this:

Free rooster. Four months old. Very friendly and handsome. Can’t have roosters where we live, or chickens. Someone gave him to me not knowing this.

This made me and those around me laugh, as they say, out loud.

Eventually, I reeled it in and got back to my inventory list.

Then there was a couch. Poof. Free. Clean. Pick it up today.

So Mr. Fabulous and I did just that.

We headed downtown in his truck and picked up a couch. Very nice, very clean, as advertised. This couch will make someone very comfy.

We procured the couch from Zay Rios, a man in his late 20s. He was so gracious. When I mentioned what I was doing, it seemed so obvious to him, the passing stuff along to people who don’t have anything. He and his woman were moving from downtown Denver to the mountains, and they no longer needed their couch. So they were giving it away.

Nice.

So we brought the couch home, after a ride of 18 miles, round trip. I had to relinquish my garage to the couch, but I intend to procure a storage area on Monday. My car will be fine outside in the meantime. 

Bottom line, the couch cost me the use of my garage, temporarily; and in terms of dollars and cents, it cost us somewhere around $3 in gas. Score.

On the way home, I did a bit more trolling. I responded almost immediately to two free leather chairs that look totally cool.

Skip called me after we got home. I’ve got the dibs on the chairs. We’re picking them up tomorrow.

I can see that this is going to be an interesting experiment.

I just checked the free listings again.

There’s a goat someone’s giving away. A goat by the name of Bill. Go figure.

Here’s exactly what Bill’s owner posted:

Bill. very gentle and loving, reason we re giving him away is because we no longer have his horse out here with him so he has become very lonley.

NEEDS TO GO TO A HOME WITH OTHER FARM ANIMALS!

GOOD HOME ONLY.

It would be just a touch funny if it weren’t just a bit tragic and sad. Poor Bill.

I’m not getting anyone’s goat tonight.

I do have a better understanding of this process after Day One. Actually, day 1/1/11.

I think this Free Time trip’s going to be quite a ride.