March 2026 – CatsGamesWhatever

I would describe my February as barely keeping it together. I can’t point out one specific issue but the combination of mental illness and personal responsibilities has me feeling that way. I got through it though and I’ve come to enjoy doing errands as it coincides with canning. I find walking relaxing and if I so happen to find some money (in the way of cans) along the way, all the better. I earned $37.45 this month canning.

My Canning Earnings of $37.45 for February 2026

I found a bunch of stuff in the trash related to the project this month and I remembered to take a pictures too.

The first thing I found was a slightly used Jansport backpack (black). It needed a wash but besides that was in decent condition. I don’t have any pressing need for a backpack but it’s there now if I happen to.

In a school dumpster I found a Stanley 40 Watt hot glue gun (working) and a roll of masking tape. I guess they threw out the hot glue gun because it was missing the little piece of metal that serves as a stand. Maybe I’ll bend a paperclip or find some thin piece of metal and make a new stand for it. I’m not sure why they threw out the tape besides maybe not needing it. It’s Scotch brand too not that cheap dollar store stuff!

The hair from my cats chooses to stick to the roll just for this picture.

At an apartment block I found a small Honeywell oscillating desk fan in a recycle bin. It wasn’t dirty at all and looked as if it hadn’t been used. It was missing the AC adapter though so I guess whoever owned it before lost that and decided to lose the fan as well. At that same apartment in the dumpster this time I found a desk lamp (along with a Great Value LED light bulb still in the socket). The lamp has a pencil eraser sized bit of rust inside the shade so I guess that’s why they threw it out (and the light bulb also had to go as well since it was tainted by that). Both the fan and the desk lamp (and light bulb) all work fine. The fan will come in handy if I need to blow solder smoke away from my face while working. It’s not a fume extractor but it’s better than nothing. The lamp will come in handy as the last lamp I trash picked doesn’t put out enough light for my liking but this one is nice and bright.

The last thing I found was a Garrison branded money box thrown in a recycle bin. It was missing the key so I guess that’s why whoever owned it threw it out. I’ve just been leaving the cash that relates to this project sitting on my desk so now I can be all professional with a money box!

It was actually cleaner in the recycle bin

I still struggled to remember to write down the handy-man type stuff I did this month and quite frankly forgot all of it. I did repair a pair of boots for my mom (re-glued the heels and unstuck the stuck zippers with a birthday candle). She needed them to get through the mucky spring so it was a quick and dirty repair. The only reason I remember that one is because it happened on February 28th. I’ll try again next month.

The Tools

The first thing I bought this month was a set of Eklind SAE Hex keys from Amazon for $11.04. I had purchased a Bondhus Metric set in December so wanted a SAE set to compliment them.

The second thing I bought was a shoe handle wire brush also from Amazon for $4.93 . I need to work on some rusty bicycles this summer and this will do the job I think.

The third thing I bought was a Swanson Speed Square and Combination Square from Amazon for $11.74. I confess that I happened upon a Youtube video about using speed squares one day this month and they looked cool/useful. I don’t actually need them… YET!

The last couple of things I bought were some 3M medium grit sandpaper from Amazon $3.09, a roll of gorilla tape for $3.58 and a variable power supply from Aliexpress for $6.19 (it now powers that Honeywell fan I found).