Scrap metal

For some reason it never occured to me before to recycle old scrap metal. Of course I've tried to recycle plastic bottles, cans, newspapers and other traditional items, but things like copper piping and chain-link never really crossed my mind. I feel kind of stupid, now, for not seeing that opportunity. For months the news has been reporting on the rash of copper theives all across the nation who steal the metal, even off people's graves, to sell it. And when we had a plumber out to fix some (apparently) faulty pipe under our house, he mentioned taking the old copper pipe to his sister who sells it to the scrap yard.

And here I am, looking for ways to supplement my income and work towards freedom from wage-slavery (see www.whywork.org for more on that topic), not to mention do something to help keep the planet clean, and I completely overlooked scrap metals time and time again. So now here's what I'm going to do: This weekend I'm going to clean out our garage, which is chock full of all kinds of metal scraps--from old lamps to brass coathangers to the kitchen sink (no joke!)--and call up a friendly neighborhood scrap yard to come take it away. Not only does the scrap get melted down and reused, thus keeping it from ending up in a landfill somewhere, but these companies will actually pay to haul the stuff off. Not sure how much scrap I have, or how much it will earn me, but I can honestly see a future version of me who spends his free time scouring neighborhoods for any bit of junk left on the curb, and whose eyes are constantly peeled on every road trip for miscellaneous metal bits lying by the roadside. A treasure hunter of sorts. Now the only question is, can a modern treasure hunter actually make any money?

We'll find out this weekend.