active recycling is what i call the act of taking something considered garbage or refuse and turning it into something you can use, but unlike passive recycling, you do it yourself.
remembering an old post of willike's, i took a vhs tape apart (it was no good) and used the tape inside to make cordage. i whipped up a drop spindle by sticking a short stick through a tennis ball and sticking a wire hook on the long end. i started spinning the cord on the spindle until the ribbon was all used up. while i was taking it off, i pulled it tight to set the twist in the string. i call the resulting cord "dragon whiskers", because that is what it reminds me of.
i took the resulting cord (about 40 feet total) and braided it into a sling. here is the result:
an entirely VHS sling. that's what i call active recycling.