Yes! I have many secret such spots. Living in America has made me feel less bad about throwing away something that I just can't, for one reason or another (skills, time), fix. Because we are constantly rescuing things (toys, wood, large plastic storage boxes), from the roadside. We live off other people's detritus. So once I've broken something, I feel less bad throwing it away, knowing that I already gave it a second life than it once was going to have. But that's a low bar. It's still wasteful. We have a large garage so that helps, and N never goes out there so she doesn't know what's in there, and doesn't care, as long as it's not in the house. Sometimes I just have to take a deep breath and send it off to the hole in the ground (of which we have a lot in Texas...)
I like the idea of feeling less bad throwing things out that were rescued from the roadside in the first place. Like yours, most of our stuff has also been salvaged or pre-loved (roadside treasure, chuck-outs from the local WhatsApp group, cousin hand-me-downs, Marketplace, Vinted etc. ) and maybe I shouldn't beat myself up so much about the stuff that really does only belong in the depressing black bag. (In fact, it's a compostable bin liner, though after news today of a BBC investigation into what actually happens to our rubbish, I'm not sure why I bother... but more on that in my upcoming newsletter!).
Yes! I have many secret such spots. Living in America has made me feel less bad about throwing away something that I just can't, for one reason or another (skills, time), fix. Because we are constantly rescuing things (toys, wood, large plastic storage boxes), from the roadside. We live off other people's detritus. So once I've broken something, I feel less bad throwing it away, knowing that I already gave it a second life than it once was going to have. But that's a low bar. It's still wasteful. We have a large garage so that helps, and N never goes out there so she doesn't know what's in there, and doesn't care, as long as it's not in the house. Sometimes I just have to take a deep breath and send it off to the hole in the ground (of which we have a lot in Texas...)
I like the idea of feeling less bad throwing things out that were rescued from the roadside in the first place. Like yours, most of our stuff has also been salvaged or pre-loved (roadside treasure, chuck-outs from the local WhatsApp group, cousin hand-me-downs, Marketplace, Vinted etc. ) and maybe I shouldn't beat myself up so much about the stuff that really does only belong in the depressing black bag. (In fact, it's a compostable bin liner, though after news today of a BBC investigation into what actually happens to our rubbish, I'm not sure why I bother... but more on that in my upcoming newsletter!).