Free!

This weekend I scored big at the mother of all free piles.

I don't know if this is just a Northwest thing, but people will leave curbside piles of stuff they don't want and its all free for the taking. Sometimes there's a Craigslist ad alerting of the pile, other times you just have to be lucky enough to stumble on it.

I'm kind of obsessed with free piles - they're even more fun than the Goodwill outlet bins. I've acquired some good stuff from free piles, but I think this one takes the cake.

Among my prizes:

-Full size inflatable air mattress, with pump
-Two Thermarest camping pads
-Sewing and beading supplies
-French Press
-Revlon ceramic flat iron
-Bissell shopvac/ vacuum (replacing mine that doesn't work!)
-Heavy wood cutting board/block
-20GB early iPod with all the accessories and a huge music collection
...as well as misc. smaller items.

Are epic free piles common in your city? What is your best free find?