The Spokane world is fifty shades of grey today. Can you tell what I read on vacation? More on the most uncharacteristic book I've ever read, later. I have a lot to say about it. Back to today. Beckett and I took a slushy, wet-toed walk around the neighborhood and the grey world was quite a contrast to the reds and greens and blues of Kauai, where we spent the last two weeks. My whole family went (thirteen of us in all) and we ate and pooled and shopped and we played in the sun. It was everything a family vacation should be.
Now, were back in Spokane, thankful that we have such a lovely little life to come back to. And our wallets are, as expected, featherlight. Which leads me to the title--we're taking a month off from buying stuff.
Food, of course, does not count as stuff. Although I could probably stock pile enough beans, rice, and squash to last us a month, this month is not about forgoing vegetables. After bags of Maui Potato chips, we need some serious veggies. But everything else? Off limits.
This wasn't' just inspired by vacation. It's been something I've been wanting to do for a while, because although I am constantly getting rid of shit, I constantly have more shit to get rid of. How does this happen? Also, one of my recent obsessions is paying off our student loans (with two graduate degrees, we have a ways to go), and maybe we'll have a tiny chunk to put towards those at the end of the month. That would be a bonus.
So, starting today, no more buying stuff. And I have some predictions/hopes for what it will be like. Although I don't spend a ton of money, I "window" shop online. Like, a ton. So, I'm not going to do that this month. I also want to be more aware of what I feel denied. Am I going to realize that I rely on a lip gloss now and then to perk me up? As I type this I realize I'm out of my everyday tinted lip gloss, which means I'll be scraping that thing dry. I also predict having to borrow stuff. I'm also hesitant to do so because I hate making the call, and, as people who try not to have much, I worry I won't be able to repay the favor. So, I'll have to do that. You know, community building. And hey if you're doing it to (and, I think you should) then we could borrow stuff from each other! Or, I could make you cookies to say thank you for letting me borrow something. What do you say? You could even just try it for a week. Or give yourself different, softer limits. Then we can talk about what it's like. You know, community building:)
I'm hoping to do one big thing like this a month for the whole year. I have all of these things I want to try, but I never do any of them. So this year is the year of monthly experiments. Next month I'm going to whiddle my closet down to 37 items and only wear those for a month. That's another thing I've really been wanting to try, and, somehow, Tim has agreed to do it with me. It's his Christmas present to me. What a love.
Now, were back in Spokane, thankful that we have such a lovely little life to come back to. And our wallets are, as expected, featherlight. Which leads me to the title--we're taking a month off from buying stuff.
Food, of course, does not count as stuff. Although I could probably stock pile enough beans, rice, and squash to last us a month, this month is not about forgoing vegetables. After bags of Maui Potato chips, we need some serious veggies. But everything else? Off limits.
This wasn't' just inspired by vacation. It's been something I've been wanting to do for a while, because although I am constantly getting rid of shit, I constantly have more shit to get rid of. How does this happen? Also, one of my recent obsessions is paying off our student loans (with two graduate degrees, we have a ways to go), and maybe we'll have a tiny chunk to put towards those at the end of the month. That would be a bonus.
So, starting today, no more buying stuff. And I have some predictions/hopes for what it will be like. Although I don't spend a ton of money, I "window" shop online. Like, a ton. So, I'm not going to do that this month. I also want to be more aware of what I feel denied. Am I going to realize that I rely on a lip gloss now and then to perk me up? As I type this I realize I'm out of my everyday tinted lip gloss, which means I'll be scraping that thing dry. I also predict having to borrow stuff. I'm also hesitant to do so because I hate making the call, and, as people who try not to have much, I worry I won't be able to repay the favor. So, I'll have to do that. You know, community building. And hey if you're doing it to (and, I think you should) then we could borrow stuff from each other! Or, I could make you cookies to say thank you for letting me borrow something. What do you say? You could even just try it for a week. Or give yourself different, softer limits. Then we can talk about what it's like. You know, community building:)
I'm hoping to do one big thing like this a month for the whole year. I have all of these things I want to try, but I never do any of them. So this year is the year of monthly experiments. Next month I'm going to whiddle my closet down to 37 items and only wear those for a month. That's another thing I've really been wanting to try, and, somehow, Tim has agreed to do it with me. It's his Christmas present to me. What a love.