Free Stuff I've Received Through Slickdeals.net - Part II

A little over a year ago, in December 2006, I wrote about the wonderful freebies that had been mailed to me over time, courtesy of the fine members of the slickdeals.net freebie forum who tirelessly post their wonderful finds. A year later, my Roboform toolbar and I are still going strong, filling out forms with one stroke of the keyboard in order to attain what can only be defined as freebie-shopping therapy.

My all time favorite is free magazine subscriptions. Growing up in a large family, books were encouraged but magazines discouraged, and I had to sneak in a few gossip rags in my rebellious teen years. I never got over the magazine repression and now rake in as many as I can, paying for some while grabbing free offers for others, courtesy of freebie forums such as slickdeals.
The slick 'Culture and Travel' (6 issues per year) retails for $8 but somehow shows up in my home free of charge. I sometimes find myself explaining this to visitors, afraid they might think me silly enough to pay that much for a few good pages. Interview magazine of Andy Warhol fame is another welcome mag- what's not to like about celebrities interviewing other celebrities? Elle Decor is a recent addition to my free collection: a bit of a masochist I am, drooling over homes and furnishings I will not afford until i win the NY Mega Millions (I WILL win it, you know). As a new parent, I enjoy my free Parenting and Parents magazines, although I do wish they published separate mags for each age group. Ungrateful grump, that's me.
PC Magazine appeared regularly and was rarely touched, so I terminated the subscription, wary of our endless piles of newspapers, glossies, circulars and whatnot. Good Housekeeping and Popular Science will soon be found in my mailbox, unless the postman runs out of space.

On to practical freebies:

Occasional Huggies Diapers 'samples' from Sam's Club or Walmart are always welcome, what with diapers being more precious than platinum. A free baby spoon and bowl from Beech-Nut are perfect now that we're starting our baby on solids, as are baby food coupons from Gerber.

Once in a while, the freebie-aholic in me gets overexcited and strange, unneeded items find their way into my home, such as the small bag of Purina cat food (I do not, nor do I ever intend to, own a cat) and miniscule drapery fabric samples.

Household favorites are new Aquafresh toothpastes, various shampoos and conditioners, a hoard of key chains and bumper stickers we will never use. I occasionally get some free Tylenol or Advil, both always needed by my husband or I.

I am beginning to wonder if I was a very deprived child.

I will not go to great lengths to get my freebies; some companies prefer you send an email request or call in, and that is below my freebie-queen lazy standards. I prefer to stick with websites that allow you to quickly fill out forms, opt not to receive newsletters or offers from sister companies, and hit 'submit'. My old email address is perfect for these forms, spam doesn't bother me in that old Yahoo! mailbox of mine. Real people can reach me at Gmail after all...

I am now contemplating signing up for a 'Sunless Tan' sample, being as white as I am in this cold NY town. Another tempting offer is a free litterbag, though I don't know what I would do with one. Storage? I sometimes feel guilty, I'll admit, taking advantage of these poor companies. But I'm only one in millions.

A recent great saving was the 14 day supply of Nescafe Taster's Choice. Pretty hard to beat!

Now, if you will excuse me, I've got some freebie shopping to attend to...