Just like the magazine Adbusters promotes Buy Nothing Day from time to time, I am declaring the rest of July "No More Stuff Month". I realized today, while cursing the lack of garage sales in my neighbourhood, that I have cultivated a habit of mind that is constantly grabbing, scavenging, pining away for more and more new stuff.
It hardly matters what the stuff is, most of the time, just so long as it's new (to me). I don't even have a proper room anymore, but I'm still out there looking for more stuff. I've got two boxes of records I haven't listened to yet, and a stack of books I might never read. So what's up with that?
It's time to stop the madness. If I start feeling the need to hit the thrift shops, I'll just content myself with some of the treasures I've already accumulated. Or better yet, I'll grab the Thomas Moore book that I picked up for a quarter the other day, The Re-Enchantment of Everyday Life, and head down to the waterfront to do some reading.
As far as this Flatlander is concerned, I'm just going to say,
Enough is enough when it comes to more stuff.
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3 comments:
I tried to get rid of everything, but then I collected half of the stuff back! I guess being selective is the key, like you said. Having an attic would help as well.
I think you come by the urge to buy a bargain - any bargain - honestly. It takes a lot of will power not to look when you know there must be bargains out there.
When I get the urge to look for bargains I look at what I have and ask if I really need more just as you are doing. Beware, however, this addiction is deep rooted and I am constantly having withdrawal symptoms.
I can almost smell the bargains. They call to me like mermaids from the rocks... "Flatlander, Flatlander, Save us from becoming landfill!"
Sometimes I just have to lock myself in the basement with my record collection, but even then I can still hear the siren song. Not even 80's synthesizer pop can drown it out.
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