Why I'm a Craigslist Junkie

Craigslist.com is a website that I frequent because people from all over my area post free items. Free is one of my favorite words. Money is another. I am a cheapskate. Once I stopped working full time I was given a large dose of reality when we had to make the switch to one income. Luckily, Craigslist has everything I need, and more, for free.

What's the catch you ask? Usually the only catch is whether or not you are the first person to respond to the ad. Sometimes whether or not you get the item is also dependent on how quickly you can pick the item up.

Some of the items I've been able to able to get for free off of Craigslist include, a bumper for my husbands Prelude, a piano for my son, and several boxes of fabric and patterns for me. I've also adopted rabbits, picked up some boxes to use for moving, and emptied a poster's living room for a yard sale because she didn't want to have one herself.

When I have something I need to get rid of or sell I post it on Craigslist as well. For over 10 years we had some windows sitting outside of our house, that we intended to use, but never got around to it. We posted them for free on Craigslist and they were picked up that very day. We also had a friend's dog to re-home and we were able to find a great home for him with a woman who responded to our post on Craigslist.

There are several parts to Craigslist that I go to everyday. I start in the community area, where I check out the activities and general postings for the area. Next, I check out the discussion forums to see what's going on in crafts and writing. I finish up by checking out what's for sale under the baby & kid section, and what's free in the free section of course. There are also listings for housing, personals, services, jobs, and gigs.

I've also used Craigslist to help people. My son is turning 8, and requesting donations instead of birthday gifts, so that he can help out an organization call ROOTS. I first heard about ROOTS through Craigslist. I've also been able to help a young mother by passing on some baby items that I no longer needed.

The coolest thing about Craiglist is that it isn't just for the Seattle area. There are listings for all 50 states as well as other countries. I've communicated with several people in Canada and the UK, so if you're looking to make new friends in other countries Craigslist is good for that too.