Article: Trash To Treasure! Taking A Walk Isn't Just For Exercise Any More! :)

I absolutely have become a "Trash To Treasure" Believer!:) I have found and re-sold or utilized, TV sets, DVD players, cordless phones, kitchen appliances, furniture and lamps... My prize find is an artwork by French artist Maurice Utrillo, which I am going to have appraised by Lark Mason (Antiques Roadshow)- This piece of art was on it's way to the landfill, when I spotted it on a plie of discarded items outside of a home that was being cleaned out by some re-hab guys... The owner had died and the family had told the guys to "Throw all that stuff away!", having no idea what some of that stuff was worth... My collecting is helped by the fact that I live near 4 universities, with a large population of students who are moving in and out of the neighborhood on almost a monthly basis... They throw out so many new and barely used items, that I wonder how their parents would feel if they knew where their money was actually going!:) I figure that the money that I have saved by not having to purchase furnishings and electronics, including a laptop computer, Is in the range of thousands of dollars over the last few years... Plus, I have satisfied my need to recycle as much as possible and not let good stuff go to waste... Sitting on my Yamaha electronic piano (Found in the box, barely played, with pedal and adaptor)) is a set of 5 crystal and gold hummingbirds, (One is missing) they are life sized and beautiful, and were in a foam lined box sitting on top of a pile of trash in an open dumpster... Thank the Stars that I have a great eye for art and beautiful things, and the mind of a guy who knows a little bit about practicality... There have been many pieces of jewelery and watches that nobody wanted anymore... including a gold bracelet that was set with diamonds all around, I this one found in a box of old gold rings, sitting in another dumpster... In a find like this, I will put up flyers that tell of what I have found, if no one comes to claim it, I will sell it or give it away... In taking my daily walk, I'm always alert and happily so, because it's never boring... The next pile of trash I see could make me a rich man! LOL! PS: To have artwork appraised, take moment to visit IGavel: IGavel- Appraisals Online!