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My 30 Day Project for August was…forgotten. I didn’t notice August roll in, and when that fact finally registered, I had already blown the project. With that, and our planned vacation, I decided to take the month off. Yes, I am a slacker.
So, now that it is September, I’m getting back on track. This month, we are going used. For the next 30 days, we are buying nothing new.
The Ground Rules
1. We aren’t buying anything new. No retail purchases. If we need to buy something, it will be used.
2. Food is an exception. Used bananas are gross in too many ways.
3. Consumable hygiene products are an exception. We are not recycling shampoo or deodorant. We are also not willing to spend the month smelling like hippies.
4. My wife is not a loophole. Her shopping counts as my shopping, so this is something we have to do together.
4b. Neither is her mother’s credit card. We are doing this for real.
There is a group called The Compact that started this movement. They went for an entire year. They are hippies. Ick.
I am not a hippy!
My main goal for Hippy Month is to break our consumer addiction. We need to get used to “making do” or doing without. We also need to make a habit out of looking for used and cheaper options, first.
Our secondary goals are to save money and stop accumulation so much danged stuff.
It won’t be easy. Goodwill is far less convenient than Target. It’s so simple to run into a store to replace something that’s broken instead of fixing it or finding a used alternative.
These projects wouldn’t be fun if they were easy.
Anyone care to join me?
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We try to buy used whenever possible, so I’d suggest Freecycle and the free category on Craigslist.
I’m hoping we just don’t need anything.
Also a good plan.
Best of luck with your challenge!
Thanks!
I did something like this for almost all of last year. (except I did allow myself to buy paper products and toiletries).
I did awesome, but then at Xmas time I totally binged and bought a bunch of things all at once. It was the first time in years I had to carry a balance on my credit card (for one month). I now am trying the everything in moderation approach.
I still buy a lot used stuff but try to spread out the bigger ticket purchases by planning them out.
Hee, you’re “going on the compact.” I used to love reading compact bloggers. Then the great recession hit and it got less fun to read them because … well, it became more of a need for some people than a life choice.
Still, it is a great exercise and really gets you to examine how much waste there is in an average American life. It’s great when we value the possessions that we do have. And white vinegar really is a better cleaning product than a lot of the commercial stuff out there.
I look forward to reading about your journey this month!
Me, I need to get some thread and a needle because I have a basket of mending. Or maybe I should just put these clothes in the rag drawer and buy new. Does that make me a hippie?
I’m hoping this is a really boring month to write about. I would be thrilled if there was no challenge at all to doing this.
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