Standing in line to pay for my suspiciously low-priced groceries, I'm reconsidering the impulse-buy $6 t-shirt that also ended up in my cart. I don't really need this shirt, right? I have a closet full. More than I want, really. Besides, if I did need a new shirt, wouldn't it be better to get one at the local thrift shop instead of this mega-mart? Exploited producers, my money to a corporation, poorly paid workers at this store, natural resources knit into this unnecessary garment vs no new production, my money to a great local shop, and no new resources used up.
Its pretty clear in retrospect but at the moment all I could think was, "$6 dollars! It's organic cotton! It's my last time here for a year! It's only $6!"
Yeah, the shirt came home with me. And so did a few other questionable choices: 8 jars of organic spaghetti sauce, 6 pairs of underwear and 5 pairs of socks.
I made one last trip to the unnamed mega-mart to transfer my prescription to a local grocery store pharmacy and, I have to admit it, stock up on a few things. Some are pretty justifiable, like the socks and underwear. I'm in need of things that aren't falling apart and my knitting isn't up to whipping out 5 pairs of socks in less than as many years. There are a few local stores that sell new clothing but more along the lines of $200 dresses rather than a pack of basic underwear. Yes, the local sex shop has undies but not the ones designed for comfy all-day wear.
The spaghetti sauce however, is just straight up greed. In the first place, it is almost on the list of banned items as a processed food. That I consider being without an unacceptable decrease in quality of life is really the only weak rationalization that keeps it on the 'okay' list. That we'll be making our own at the tomato harvest is the only way I can rationalize that decision.
The whole idea of stocking up is pretty loaded. If I'm going to be so conscious of where my money is going, why start on some arbitrary calendar date? Why give an extra burst of money to the mega-mart now rather than to the co-op over a few months? But greed wins. One jar is $2.58 at the mega-mart and $5.99 at the co-op.
This has made me realize why I really want these rules. I don't want to stand at the check-out worrying about my decision with the pressure of a small price tag staring me in the face and becoming more influential than the things I think really matter. I want to make the decision at home, rationally and slowly, and carry it with me to the store in the form of a holy commandment of consumption. Long live rules!
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Resolve
I've been experiencing a growing sense of unease and guilt in the check-out line over the past few years. 2009 has been declared the year to do something about it. We've made the resolution, the rules and now the carrot/stick. A blog for family and friends to see our progress, whether we stick to it or we slip back to easy corporate consumerism.
Our rules started out with just one: only shop at local stores. This is our central goal but the more we talked about it, the more we came up with other bad habits of consumerism we want to kick. Basically, there are two underlying goals behind the rules.
-We want our money helping our local economy and not the already bulging pockets of mega-corporations.
-We want to do the least harm to the environment and to our bodies.
Without further preamble, our year of very conscious consumption rulebook:
1. Only buy from local stores.
2. Only eat at local restaurants.
3. No newly made clothing or electronics.
4. Hair/beauty products from the natural foods co-op and only those that pass the test: http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/
5. No magazines with high ad content or ads pretending to be articles.
6. When an organic/fair trade/sustainable version is available, the conventional version is off-limits.
7. If it is available used (even if it takes time to find), no buying it new.
8. Plastic bags for veg and bulk at the grocery store should be saved and reused. Minimize food purchased with lots of packaging.
9. No Internet shopping.
That's reasonable, right? I'll elaborate on these Nine Commandments and the perils of preparation in a future post.
Our rules started out with just one: only shop at local stores. This is our central goal but the more we talked about it, the more we came up with other bad habits of consumerism we want to kick. Basically, there are two underlying goals behind the rules.
-We want our money helping our local economy and not the already bulging pockets of mega-corporations.
-We want to do the least harm to the environment and to our bodies.
Without further preamble, our year of very conscious consumption rulebook:
1. Only buy from local stores.
2. Only eat at local restaurants.
3. No newly made clothing or electronics.
4. Hair/beauty products from the natural foods co-op and only those that pass the test: http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/
5. No magazines with high ad content or ads pretending to be articles.
6. When an organic/fair trade/sustainable version is available, the conventional version is off-limits.
7. If it is available used (even if it takes time to find), no buying it new.
8. Plastic bags for veg and bulk at the grocery store should be saved and reused. Minimize food purchased with lots of packaging.
9. No Internet shopping.
That's reasonable, right? I'll elaborate on these Nine Commandments and the perils of preparation in a future post.
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