Mail

[Chicken lady]

So last night I walked up to the road and left the recycling and trash can. This morning I walked up to the road, got the recycling bin and the trash can, and took a handful of new recycling out of the mailbox. It was even helpfully labelled "please recycle" on the envelopes.

We hardly get any catalogs any more, just a few that I actually want - mostly seeds, but anybody know how to stop the credit card offers?

Also, I read some time ago somewhere that those direct mailing are what keeps the post office afloat. Is that true? If I have to recycle a few trees to keep my chicks and seeds coming, I'm ok with that.

[ToomuchStuff]

According to several of the mail carriers I have known, third class mail is what carries a lot of the post office, with package delivery going up. First class mail, from personal letters/cards, to monthly bills have gone mostly digital (including most of these mail carriers).
To opt out of stuff, see this: http://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0262-stopping-unsolicited-mail-phone-calls-and-email

[lessisbest]

You can take paper destined for recycling and make handmade paper - all it takes is water, a blender (use an old one from a thrift store) and a screen. There are even methods that don't require the blender and screen. I convert at least 50% to handmade paper to use as gifts, art pieces, gift wrap, envelopes and cards.... How-to information readily available on-line.

You can also convert it to paper fire logs (information for an assortment of methods also available on-line).

[Chicken lady]

Lessisbest, those are good ideas, but I have a dumpster dived (word?) trove of all kinds of paper from my local public school that will last me years - got it wrapped and boxed! And I don't use paper for gifts often - my grandmother gave me a few rolls 20 years ago and they aren't gone.

We have so many dead trees on the lot we give firewood away.

So for me, it's better to contribute to the community recycling stream.

[kib]

credit cards and insurance offers: https://www.optoutprescreen.com/?rf=t

Anyone know if you can opt out from the ... what to call this. It's the bundle o crap that shows up in your newspaper, but here it also shows up all by itself. Redplum, grocery circulars etc.

[SteveinMN]

Anyone know if you can opt out from the ... what to call this. It's the bundle o crap that shows up in your newspaper, but here it also shows up all by itself. Redplum, grocery circulars etc.
I've had mixed success with those. Some of them have contact numbers on the mailing/delivery bag/whatever. Even if they don't, they almost always have a number for prospective advertisers. I've called that number and asked for a general number for whoever is mailing the circular (RedPlum, local newspaper [to which we don't even subscribe], etc.). Sometimes a Web search will get you to their Web page and you'll find a number there.

I've pretty much succeeded in getting rid of all of those at one point or another. But it doesn't take much, it seems, for some transaction with some company or organization to start it up again. They're selling subscriber lists out there and sometimes it feels like playing whack-a-mole.

[ApatheticNoMore]

Do they even need to be selling subscriber lists? And do you even need to have been subscribed to anything in your life (maybe a utility bill? I've never gotten a newspaper or magazine here, does having ordered something from Amazon count?) Grocery store circulars aren't coming to any particular name, they are just coming to the raw address. I really suspect they just have a list of all addresses on the grid in the area. Also cable subscription offers, they come at least once week, to no name at all, just to whoever lives at the address.

Credit card offers I have easily stopped receiving, but they actually had my name and I called a number to get all credit card offers to stop and got them to stop sending.

[Chicken lady]

I love the cable tv ones that guarantee to lower my bill by $20 a month. Really? You're going to pay me $20 a month to have cable tv? Because right now, my cable bill is $0.

[SteveinMN]

ANM, most of the circulars like that which I get usually say "SteveinMN or Resident" so they're pulling the name from someplace. But, you're right, they aren't always personalized. This does work for the mailed stuff. The pieces dropped off by hand? The big challenge then comes in getting the person doing the mindless job of delivery to remember not to deliver to our house at 1313 Mockingbird Lane. Seems to be a lot of thinking for the folks in those jobs.

[JaneV2.0]

I've done the Opt Out thing on line, but it expires after a few years. You have to call some 800 number and give up your SS#. When I get catalogs, I call the company and ask to have my name removed from distribution. That seems to work. I only rarely get mailings now (I'm looking at you, Capital One).