Round 2: Filtering out the oddballs on Craigslist and Freecycle
Round 2: Filtering out the oddballs on Craigslist and Freecycle
If it’s free, why are you so entitled?
Writer’s note: This post was first published on Medium’s “Tickled” on May 29, 2022 and will now be permanently housed on Substack’s new “Tickled” column.
It’s Sunday Funday, and I’ve spent the morning bickering with a lady about plant hangers. It never fails. Any time I go on a cleaning mission to get rid of things I no longer want, a Craigslist or Freecycle user comes out of the woodworks to debate with me about free items. Social isolation and COVID-19 made Craigslist and Freecycle users be less strange involuntarily. Now it’s 2022, and they’re back with a vengeance. Here are five more tips for why you should stop being strange on these giveaway sites.
Recommended Read: “Be less weird during Craigslist pickups ~ Why do Freecycle people bring out their ‘inner weirdo’ when getting free stuff?”
Freebie posts are not intended to be social media comment sections.
I don’t know why people do this, but I once posted a few crochet bags for sale (similar to the ones above) that were handmade. A user felt the need to inform me about what Etsy is. I responded that I knew that already, and they were available there, too. I asked him was he interested in the bags. His response, “No.” Then what did you contact me for?!
Recommended Read: “Revenge flaggers on Craigslist: Why is your life so empty? ~ Why Craigslist needs to take notes from Freecycle: Get humans to confirm legitimate flagging”
This morning, another user saw a post about two free plant hangers that I was giving away. (They’re a great idea for plants with long vines, but my hooks are in weird spots where the sun doesn’t shine well. Four years later, I’ve never used them.) Instead of asking me were they available and a pickup time, she rambled on about how she’s had all these plants and how she supposes she should use plant hangers like these. No time. No date. Not even “Are they available?” Just telling me all about her plants!