WORDS BY RAYMOND BRIEN, PHOTOS BY HELENA COOK AND RAYMOND BRIEN

‘Musician after sheet music, furniture and new connections after a move during the pandemic’

Perhaps that’s closer to a Tinder bio than a TrashNothing request. You’ll be pleased to know I decided to just scroll through the TrashNothing app rather than posting a request sounding so desperate. But yes, I’m still single.

I’d decided to download the TrashNothing app ‘just in case there’s actually anything good on there.’ In fact, I was sceptical as to whether it was only going to be offers of half-full jam jars. But I was very pleasantly surprised!

Daniel and I met over TrashNothing after connecting through the app from a listing of his, which offered some great items including the infamous ‘leaning tower of Pisa’ wicker basket which he has written about here.

What separates TrashNothing from the likes of Ebay is the community feel; people wanting to give their things a second life with their neighbours seems to come hand in hand with a more optimistic outlook on life. And with generosity comes gratitude, for me anyways.

Dan and I became good friends and have been planning events together in celebration of freecycling and community. Daniel offered me heaps of sheet music that would have otherwise gone to waste. As a professional musician, when I find piles of sheet music, I’m immediately in kid-in-a-candy-store mode.

I have found some utterly fantastic composers that I otherwise would never have come across. This has actually lead to me creating some specific programmes to celebrate the Jewish Community in North London, featuring many pieces from the music collection Daniel was offering.

As the cost of living continues to rise, if people have things to offer or you have things to give away, I really encourage you to do so through the TrashNothing app. You’ll be surprised what can happen through a simple community exchange.