Making money quickly

Thanks to Tricia at Blogging Away Debt I found an article that got me thinking.

15 ways to make $200 quick

Of course, most people said ebay, Craigslist or yard sales. The problem with those ideas is that we have simplified so much that we don't really have much to sell... and the things that we could sell, no one would buy. So I came up with a list of things a simple living family could do.

1. Sell baked goods door to door - when we lived in Akron, we lived in an "up and coming" neighborhood (Highland Square, for anyone who knows the area) and usually once a week we had someone knocking on our door. They usually did pretty good after a day of door knocking. This of course assumes that you have the ingredients to make them.

2. Collect aluminum cans - When I was a kid we used to collect aluminum cans and turn them in for money. We didn't do it for the money (my brother and I always got to keep the profits) but did because we liked it. My brother still turn in aluminum, and last time made over $100 - just from cans his family used.

3. Collect deposit cans/bottles - Likewise, if you are in Michigan (or another state that collects a deposit) you could collect deposit cans/bottles and turn them in. When we lived in Detroit we frequently saw homeless people digging through gas station trash cans looking for deposit cans/bottles. They often littered the streets. While where you look for them would depend on your level of squeamishness, you can make some good money, 10¢ at a time.

4. Offer services to your neighborhood - print a flyer offering to mow grass, babysit kids, haul things in your truck, put in storm windows, clean the garage/attic... the possibilities are endless.

5. Cook for someone for pay - know how to cook? Put and ad on Craigslist offering to be a personal Chef. Easy peasy lemon squeezy!

I never said it was a good list.. but it is a list.

How would you make an extra $200 in two weeks? Please share your ideas!