Rant and Roar

As some of you know, I've been in a seemingly never-ending process of "re-doing" the bedrooms. What started off as a simple project of re-painting the "guest" room has turned into a near 6 month endeavor of moving furniture, sanding down and painting hard-wood floors, purging years of stuff I don't use and moving piles of "stuff" from one room to another as it is needed.

I'm nearing the end. The "guest" room is now completed and is serving as a staging area for everything that will go in the the "master" bedroom. The master bedroom will get new paint this week-end, new carpet for Valentines day, and new furniutre next week-end. Since there is new furniture coming, the old furniture has to go. Up to this point, I was still using the white/gold french provinical Sears furniture that every girl growing up during the 80's in the mid-west had. I had updated the dressers with fresh paint jobs and new hardware. I had also supplemented with other pieces picked up at second hand shops and yard sales. But it was time for all of it to go.

I made an appointment with Salvation Army to come pick up the items. SALVATION ARMY REFUSED MY DONATION. Apparently, my stuff is not good enough for anyone else. They suggested I call MAP, a furniture bank that doesn't sell things, but gives furniutre away to the needy. They also gave me a receipt showing that I did make the donation of dressers, which I will certainly put toward my taxes next year.

So, I called MAP. THEY REFUSED MY DONATION AS WELL. I guess noone likes free, functional furniture. I am beginning to doubt if there really are needy people. If there were, they wouldn't be refusing these items.

It reminds me of a story my cousin tells, about a family who said they had no money for food, yet turned their noses up at the meal they were asked to share.

I contacted a local junk removal company. They will gladly haul my stuff to the dump....for $100 minimum. Geez. I can't donate it, I have to pay for junk removal...I guess the only "free" way to get rid of it is to sell it.

Thankfully Dad will be able to stop by Thursday and pick everything up to store up at the shop. We'll put it all in the next garage sale and I bet ya....someone will pay for it. Afterall, it is from the 80's -- I can tell them it's "vintage."